We're Passionate About Our Planet

A Legacy of Leadership in Sustainability

ONGOING INITIATIVES

Recycling

Materials sourcing, utilization, disposition

Onsite electricity cogeneration for efficiency, cost savings, and to relieve the local grid

Emissions management & reduction

Waste reduction and disposal

Advocacy for manufacturing and plastics

BY THE NUMBERS

<1.5% of waste goes to a landfill

50% reduction in water usage using inline filtration 

350,000 pounds of material diverted from landfills annually

1,744,627kWh of energy saved using high-efficiency lighting

161,518kWh of energy saved using variable frequency drive motors

SINGLE-USE PLASTIC MYTHS

“Zero waste” efforts that eliminate single-use plastics minimize the environmental impacts of an event. In reality, the benefits of diverting waste from the landfill are small. Waste reduction and mindful consumption, including a careful consideration of the types and quantities of products consumed, are far larger factors dictating the environmental impact of an event.

A History of Sustainability

Beginning in 2007 Hoffer Plastics implemented a facility wide recycling program. The focus of this program was to eliminate all manufacturing waste from going to the landfill. Hoffer’s Executive Management Team supported this initiative which involved employees from all departments.

In 2021, less than 1.5% of the 25,000,000 lbs of manufacturing resin ended up in the landfill. The company wide initiative institutionalized a culture of enhanced corporate sustainability. This corporate culture has helped spur on many innovative and cost saving ideas from employees. Capital saved from these projects has allowed the organization to reinvest in other areas allowing it to be one of the leaders in our industry.

Scrap Separation and Recycling

All plastic is segregated by type including any floor sweepings or contaminated materials.  In 2021, we used 25,000,000 lbs of material and sent less than 1.5% to the landfill.

The engineering team identified the most voluminous polymer used in our manufacturing process and created a separate collection system for the machines running that material. Now that this scrap is acceptable for recycling, we no longer need to have the trash compactor picked up each week. Instead we have worked with the garbage company to have the compactor picked up on an on-call basis.

We estimate the annual impact of this system change to be 350,000 pounds of material diverted from landfill.

FROM THE BLOG

hoffer plastics team members talking

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Rethink.

How Hoffer Plastics Is Setting New Standards of Sustainability in Plastics How can we use less material? How can we use it more effectively? How can we give plastics a new life? As a plastics processor, we must keep these questions front and center. It’s about the future of our company, our community and our…
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two men on factory floor looking at a plastic part

Hoffer Plastics Meets Growing Demand with a Focus on Sustainability

Custom molder to showcase full range of injection molded caps, closures and fitments for flexible and rigid solutions at Pack Expo booth N11308 Sustainability is in Hoffer Plastics’ DNA. So is meeting customer needs for safety, product functionality and aesthetics. Through its Lok™ family of closures, which will be on display at booth N11308 at…
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mpo cover

5 Ways to Tell if a Custom Manufacturer is Truly Customer-Centric

Medical Product Outsourcing shared an article authored by Millie Nuno, Hoffer Plastics Vice President of Sales. Read more below about the five fundamental characteristics to look for when choosing a truly customer-centric custom manufacturer. In today’s consistently fluctuating medical market, one thing is certain: There continues to be a growing need for reliable custom manufacturing…
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lightweighting feature image

Lightweighting Takes the Spotlight

Design News recently shared an article co-authored by Millie Nuno, Hoffer Plastics Vice President of Sales and Brian Beringer, Hoffer Plastics Director of Engineering. Read more below about the growing spotlight on lightweighting. Facing unprecedented pressure to create a smaller environmental footprint, companies are in a race to reduce the amount of plastic used in products…
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jeff klabunde

Hoffer Plastics Welcomes Jeff Klabunde as VP of Operations

Hoffer Plastics, a leading provider of custom injection molding solutions, announced the hire of Jeff Klabunde as Vice President of Operations, effective immediately. Klabunde will hold responsibility for the oversight of all Operations-related functions including the integration of automation technologies and ongoing maintenance of the organization’s focused manufacturing plants to maximize productivity and operational excellence.…
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gretchen alex charlotte

Secrets of a Sustainable Business: Five Lessons from a Third-Generation Family Company

Explore 5 lessons learned over 70 years from the third generation of Hoffer Plastics family leadership. Discover key insights into laying the foundation for sustained business growth.
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EnteraLoc

Hoffer Plastics’ Trust-T-Lok spout, part of EnteraLoc’s enternal feeding pouch, receives four gold awards in packaging excellence, sustainability, technical innovation, and expanding the use of flexible packaging, from Flexible Packaging Association.

The Highest Achievement Award is evaluated by the judges as possessing overall packaging excellence, significant attributes in all award categories, and contributing most to the advancement of the industry. The winner this year was the EnteraLoc™ enteral device. Designed for tube-fed patients, the EnteraLoc is an innovative 510(k) FDA-approved enteral device—a flexible spouted pouch with…
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circular economy graphic

The Concept of Circularity

Read about exciting initiatives around the globe as visionary leaders work to move us toward a more circular economy The Concept of Circularity Can you envision a global economic system where products are conceptualized and designed for re-use or re-purposing from the onset? That describes a circular economy. It’s all about reuse, sharing, repair, refurbishment, re-manufacturing…
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National Water Quality Month

For many, August is best known for hot weather, heading back to school, and the end of summer. As we cool down and cool off, let’s note that it’s also National Water Quality month. Read on to learn more about the concerns, challenges and initiatives to preserve and protect this amazing resource that cools and…
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The World Will Run Out of Water

The 48th annual Earth Day commemorated on April 22nd reminds us that an ongoing supply of clean, safe water is not guaranteed. In fact, this precious commodity is very much at risk. In this issue, learn about global water challenges and what innovators are doing to address them. Statistics from the United Nations: By 2025, 1.8 Billion people worldwide will…
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