As the price of fuel and raw materials has skyrocketed, industry has been forced to find cost reduction methods, including the evaluation and implementation of green technologies that will not only improve their environmental footprint, but reduce energy, water, and labor costs, DuBois stated. Hence the company’s ongoing efforts to develop products and applications that focus on these areas.

“DuBois has a long-standing tradition of developing products that reduce environmental impact and total operating cost, and we must strive to do even more,” said Blair Imbody, DuBois’ vice president of marketing and R&D. “Our sustainability initiative has been a central part of who we are and it serves as the cornerstone of our total cost of ownership approach through partnership with our customers.”

Kevin Davis, DuBois training manager, said the initiative is all about “focusing our resources to be our customers’ partner in sustainability. It’s this partnership that allows us to work in unison to do what’s right in protecting our environment, creating a win for us all.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently released a lean manufacturing case study that highlights the results of such a partnership between DuBois and Steelcase, a global leader in the office furniture industry. Working together, they have implemented metal cleaning and finishing solutions that have reduced process costs in energy, water, and labor in excess of 50% while reducing waste stream discharges in excess of 80%.

DuBois has been actively working to provide similar savings to many of its customers by surveying their current processes, looking for sustainable cost-reduction opportunities, and implementing those solutions that best meet their needs. DuBois specializes in the areas of water/wastewater treatment, surface finishing/paint pretreatment, maintenance, equipment, transportation, and paper machine cleaning solutions.