White smoke coming out from factory grounds

Many companies are thinking about their energy consumption and CO2 emissions. (Image: Marcin Jozwiak/ Unsplash)

Reliably determining the carbon footprint of packaging machines

Sustainability is one of the great topics that companies have to think about Goals for sustainability need to be formulated, and there need to be new ways to make products and services more sustainable. For Syntegon, this is no different. The company has set itself the goal, among others, to reduce the consumption of its most energy-intensive systems by 25 percent until 2025. One important step in this direction is the TÜV-certified calculation of the carbon footprint of Syntegon systems, which the company can now offer.

The sustainability of packaging is not only determined by its ability to be recycled at the end of its first life cycle. Emissions are created long before along the value chain, for example by machinery. The use of a system is only part of the carbon footprint when viewed over the entire life cycle. Steffen Carbon from Syntegon knows this:

"Our analysis covers the life cycle of the machines, from their manufacture to their transport and finally their use. The latter makes up around two-thirds of the entire life cycle of a system. With these data that we gather, we help our customers to effectively improve their systems and processes to achieve sustainable production goals while reducing costs."

A new, software-based approach is to provide not only the company, but also customers from the food and pharmaceutical industries, with information about the carbon footprint of their plants over their entire life cycle. This creates more transparency for both sides and can support sustainable development as well as contribute to optimum resource efficiency.

A method for more transparency

Since 2021, Syntegon has been working on their method. For data collection and analysis, the company uses certified software by the company ifu Institut für Umweltinformatik GmbH in Hamburg. Another database is provided by the non-profit organisation ecoinvent from Zurich. To describe the methodology, Syntegon has also joined a workgroup within the German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association (VDMA).

The capsule filling machine GKF 720 was used to develop the method.
(Image: Syntegon)

The calculation involves different parameters such as electricity, compressed air, media and packaging materials. These are set in relation to the carbon emissions they cause, which is how the consumption of a machine can be measured on a holistic level and specific to individual customers. The method may be applied to packaging plants as well as processing plants.

"This way we add another important element to the services we offer. Our customers are put in a position where they can achieve their goals for sustainability. By knowing exactly how much our plants consume and emit, we can continually optimise them – and thus make another contribution to more sustainability." Marc Braeuninger, responsible for Quality Management and Product Compliance at Syntegon

Successful first trials

Syntegon conducted the first successful tests with two of their systems in the autumn of 2021. Consumption was analysed for the wraparound case packer Elematic 3001 and the capsule-filling machine GKF 720. In July 2022, the method was certified by TÜV Rheinland, an independent testing service provider. With this analysis, all systems manufactured by the company, and all production scenarios, can be analysed and evaluated.