Rohrer blends sustainable materials, smart design, and customer-focused solutions to create packaging with the wow factor – retail-merchandiser.com

Rohrer Corporation: Strategic Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

Advancing SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

Rohrer Corporation demonstrates a significant commitment to SDG 12 by embedding sustainable practices into its core operations and product offerings. The company’s strategy focuses on promoting responsible consumption and production patterns within the retail packaging industry.

• Sustainable Manufacturing Progress: The company’s dedication is quantified by a 12 percent year-on-year increase in its EcoVadis score, reflecting tangible progress in sustainable manufacturing processes.
• Innovation in Sustainable Materials: Rohrer has developed product lines that directly support circular economy principles.
  1. EcoVolve Paperboard: This line includes EcoVolve-30, a material featuring a blend of virgin and 30 percent post-consumer recycled (PCR) fiber, enabling brands to clearly communicate their use of recycled content.
  2. All-Paper Blister Packaging: This innovation represents a major step toward eliminating petroleum-based plastics from packaging, directly addressing waste reduction targets. It is gaining significant traction in the household goods, cosmetics, and personal care markets.
• Navigating Sustainability Trade-offs: The company actively manages the challenges associated with increasing recycled content, such as reduced material strength and clarity. This balanced approach ensures that progress toward environmental goals does not compromise product performance, durability, and security, which are critical for retail success.

Fostering SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

Rohrer’s investment in technology and innovative processes supports the principles of SDG 9 by building resilient infrastructure and fostering innovation within its industry.

• Advanced Manufacturing and Design: The company utilizes state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies to create innovative packaging. This includes developing creative design solutions, such as advanced windowing concepts for the all-paper blister, to balance aesthetics, functionality, and sustainability.
• Technological Integration: Rohrer addresses modern retail challenges by integrating technologies like RFID tags into packaging. This innovation helps partners improve inventory tracking, theft prevention, and replenishment systems, contributing to more efficient and resilient supply chains.
• Efficient Production Models: The ezCombo® program is an innovative manufacturing solution that combines the orders of multiple customers into a single production run. This shared tooling arrangement enhances efficiency by:
  • Increasing speed to market.
  • Reducing start-up costs.
  • Minimizing set-up times and material waste.

Promoting SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

The company’s operational strategies and corporate culture align with SDG 8, promoting sustained, inclusive economic growth and decent work for all.

• Economic Efficiency and Productivity: The ezCombo® program not only supports sustainability but also drives economic efficiency, making high-quality packaging more affordable and accessible, thereby stimulating economic activity.
• Inclusive Workplace Culture: Rohrer prioritizes building a diverse team by hiring talent from both within and outside the packaging industry. This strategy fosters innovation and creates a supportive workplace culture where employees are engaged in problem-solving and business operations.
• Strategic Growth: The company has a clear strategy to double its business size through organic growth, market penetration, and strategic Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A). This focus on expansion is geared toward creating long-term economic value and employment opportunities.

Embracing SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

Rohrer actively pursues collaborative approaches, reflecting the spirit of SDG 17 by building strong partnerships to achieve sustainable development objectives.

• Consultative Customer Engagement: The company has adopted a “consultative selling model” that prioritizes understanding customer challenges and collaborating on solutions. This partnership-based approach is particularly effective in guiding clients on their sustainability journeys.
• Market-Specific Collaboration: Rohrer engages deeply with specific market segments, such as cosmetics and personal care, to co-create innovative packaging that meets high aesthetic standards and strong sustainability credentials.
• Industry Engagement: Participation in events like the PLMA Annual Private Label Trade Show demonstrates a commitment to engaging with the broader industry to understand evolving needs and forge partnerships that advance shared cost, performance, and sustainability goals.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

1. SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
   • The article extensively discusses Rohrer’s focus on sustainability, which is the core of SDG 12. It highlights the company’s efforts to create eco-friendly packaging, use recycled materials, and support the circular economy. Specific mentions include the “EcoVolve paperboard line,” the “all-paper blister” that removes petroleum-based plastics, and the company’s commitment to helping customers with their sustainability journey.
2. SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
   • This goal is addressed through the company’s emphasis on innovation and advanced manufacturing. The article states that Rohrer uses “state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies” and is constantly developing new solutions like the all-paper blister to solve design challenges. The ezCombo® program is also an example of an innovative and efficient industrial process.
3. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
   • The article touches upon economic growth and decent work. CEO Tim Swanson outlines a strategy to “double the size of our business through organic growth” and M&A activity. Furthermore, the company’s focus on building a supportive workplace and prioritizing “diversity of thought, experience, and background” in its hiring practices connects to the principles of inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Targets under SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production)
   • Target 12.5: By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse. This is directly addressed by Rohrer’s development of products like the “EcoVolve-30, featuring a blend of virgin and 30 percent post-consumer recycled (PCR) fiber” and the “all-paper blister,” which aims at “removing petroleum-based plastics entirely from the package.” These initiatives align with reducing waste and promoting recycling.
   • Target 12.6: Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle. The article explicitly mentions the company’s pride in its “EcoVadis score rise 12 percent year on year,” which serves as a formal measure and report of its progress in “sustainable manufacturing.”
   • Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources. The company’s commitment to the “circular economy” and its use of post-consumer content directly relate to the efficient use of natural resources by keeping materials in use for longer.
2. Targets under SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure)
   • Target 9.4: By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes. The article describes the “ezCombo® program” as a “unique manufacturing solution” that “streamlines the packaging process,” increases speed, and minimizes set-up times, reflecting an increase in resource-use efficiency. The shift to paper-based solutions is an adoption of more environmentally sound technology.
   • Target 9.5: Enhance scientific research, upgrade the technological capabilities of industrial sectors in all countries, in particular developing countries, including, by 2030, encouraging innovation and substantially increasing the number of research and development workers per 1 million people and public and private research and development spending. Rohrer’s work is described as solving “complex packaging challenge[s]” through “thoughtful design and innovation,” such as creating “windowing concepts” for non-transparent paper blisters. This demonstrates an upgrade of technological capabilities and a focus on innovation.
3. Targets under SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)
   • Target 8.2: Achieve higher levels of economic productivity through diversification, technological upgrading and innovation. The company’s strategy to grow by penetrating “new markets” and using “state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies” and innovation to stand out directly supports this target.
   • Target 8.5: By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value. The article mentions that Rohrer “prioritizes diversity of thought, experience, and background to build a team that drives high performance” and aims to create a “balanced, supportive workplace.” This aligns with the goal of promoting inclusive employment.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

1. Indicators for SDG 12
   • Quantitative Indicator: The company’s “EcoVadis score rise 12 percent year on year” is a direct, measurable indicator of its sustainability performance, relevant to Target 12.6.
   • Quantitative Indicator: The specific material composition of “30 percent post-consumer recycled (PCR) fiber” in the EcoVolve-30 product is an indicator for measuring progress in recycling and waste reduction under Target 12.5.
   • Qualitative Indicator: The development and adoption of the “all-paper blister” serves as an indicator of progress towards eliminating plastic waste (Target 12.5) and achieving sustainable management of resources (Target 12.2).
2. Indicators for SDG 9
   • Qualitative Indicator: The creation of specific innovative product lines such as “EcoVolve” and the “all-paper blister” serves as an indicator of the company’s enhanced technological capability and focus on innovation (Target 9.5).
   • Qualitative Indicator: The implementation of the “ezCombo® program” is an indicator of increased resource-use efficiency in industrial processes, as it “reduces start-up costs, and minimizes set-up times” (Target 9.4).
3. Indicators for SDG 8
   • Qualitative Indicator: The company’s stated business strategy to “double the size of our business through organic growth, penetration of existing markets, and… M&A activity” is an indicator of its focus on economic growth (Target 8.2).
   • Qualitative Indicator: The company’s hiring policy, which includes hiring “both from within the packaging industry and outside” to foster “diverse experiences,” is an indicator of its commitment to building an inclusive workforce (Target 8.5).

4. Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: retail-merchandiser.com