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GREEN BUSINESS He takes pride in the fact that "every single pound of wood that goes into our products is a by-product of some other industry. We buy sawdust, shavings or scrap, so there are no trees actually harvested for our toilet seat products, saving the equivalent of about 612,000 trees a year. traditional recycling. We've got a cross- functional team at Bemis that looks at our energy usage. Electricity is the fiſth-largest expense. Since we've started tracking our use and making changes, we've reduced our electrical consumption by 6 million kilowatts per year. But, Schnicke adds, "It's not all about " " employee loyalty? Schwaller: "The general public wants to go green if there' How does "green" create customer or do it. Fortune 500 companies are being much more sustainable and setting an example, and many have sustainability reports to show their customers what s a cost-effective way to ABOUT OUR GREEN EXPERTS Brian Schwaller is owner of EcoManity, LLC, an independent energy consulting firm based in Elkhart Lake that provides energy audits as well as energy efficiency and renewable energy implementation. He is also president of the Sustainable Living Group, a Sheboygan-area networking group that educates the local community about sustainability, energy efficiency and renewable energy. Kevin Crawford is senior vice president of external affairs at Orion Energy Systems of Manitowoc. Through patented technology and energy management strategies, Orion helps companies they are doing." can see that you can reduce energy consumption without compromising their work tasks in their shop, they feel comfortable going home with that as well. You'll find people willing to reduce their energy consumption through lighting – or even recycling Crawford: "When employees significantly reduce their lighting consumption. Paul Rutledge is environmental health and safety director for Johnsonville Sausage, LLC, based in Sheboygan Falls. Glen Schnicke is continuous improvement manager at Bemis Manufacturing Company of Sheboygan Falls. The company' s proprietary division manufactures toilet seats and toilet seat components, and its contract division does custom molding for the health industry and a variety of major corporations. their coffee grounds." Rutledge: "We actually call our employees 'members.' They feel really good about our company and want to work for a company that cares – and we do care. Each facility has a green team, dealing particularly with energy and water conservation." Schnicke: "When we meet with 48 | INSIGHT • October 2012 www. insightonbusiness.com