Deforestation, consumption of incredible amount of energy and water, plus contributing to air pollution and other waste problems. Those are the issues with papers, but yet, we can’t live without it. In the U.S. alone, paper made up of around 40% of the total waste generated and that, my friend, is a huge environmental issue. However, not all hope is lost. Responsible organization recycles and grow trees to cover the nature’s losses, but Epson is upping the paper recycling game with the first ever in-office paper recycling machine. Dubbed the PaperLab Office Papermaking System, it is the first of its kind designed to take in documents, shreds them and churns out clean, white, usable sheets – all in the matter of minutes and within a single machine.
In fact, it is quite speedy – capable of spitting out 14 A4 sheets a minute, which works out to 6,720 sheets in an eight-hour work day (which equates to about 13 reams, or more than a case). How it actually works on the inside is not revealed, but Epson did state that it uses a dry process that only requires a small amount of water to maintain the humidity level inside the system. The machine is capable of producing papers of two sizes (A4 & A3), and in variety of thickness and types, including colored and scented stock.
Since the waste paper will be broken down within the machine itself, PaperLab is totally suited for pulverizing confidential documents, thus negating the need for a separate shredder. Think of PaperLab as a ginormous shredder, with the added bonus of turning out clean, usable paper. The obvious draw here is the ability to settle the waste papers right there and then, which negates the need for an appointed waste paper recycler to pop by to pick up the wastepapers, thus reducing the carbon footprint of the recycling process. Though it is yet to know what’s the operating cost will be like and how much will be the initial outlay will be, to full qualify it as a viable solution to our growing wastepaper problem.
If it works as promised, Epson PaperLab Office Papermaking System could be the greatest thing to happen to offices since like, forever. It will not only be kind for the environment, but it could save the office some money too. Commercialization of the Epson PaperLab Office Papermaking System is expected to begin this year.
