Product sustainability has been a priority for Lexmark since its inception. Continual work on energy efficiency, circular design and durability contribute to our mission of minimizing the impact on the environment. Lexmark performs life cycle assessments (LCAs) on all branded product families. These assessments enable us to understand each phase of the products lifecycle and focus in on areas where we can improve.
The Printers are independently certified as CarbonNeutral® products by Climate Impact Partners. This ensures that the carbon footprint of your printer is offset through verified climate projects for the life of the device, right out of the box. It’s all part of Lexmark’s commitment to help minimize the impact on the environment.
The carbon footprint is determined by the LCAs, as defined by the UL Environment, Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL) Product Category Rule Guidance v2 for Printers and Multi-Function Printing Units and the IEEE Standards Association IEEE Std 1680.2a™-2017 standard. The assessment includes all phases of product life, including 5 years of use with Lexmark-branded supplies, and is based on historical usage data for similar Lexmark product segments. Paper is not included. For more information please click here.
Sustainable concepts are integrated throughout the life of the product. Products are designed to meet or exceed the strict criteria of many global standards and certifications. These certifications require testing, analysis, audit and third-party review.
Our CarbonNeutral products are ENERGY STAR®, certified. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy awards certification to the most energy-efficient models in a product category. In addition, the products are registered EPEAT Silver. The Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) program recognizes products that meet their qualifications and adhere to IEEE 1680.2 standard.
Post consumer recycled (PCR) content
Lexmark engineers select PCR plastics in hardware and supplies to lower the product environmental impact. With a goal of 50% PCR content in plastics in both devices and supplies by 2025, in 2021, we achieved an average of 39% in both products. The B3442dw contains 35% PCR and MC3326i contains 11.6% PCR.
The metal content in Lexmark printers is dominated by steel products, primarily used for the sturdy steel frames, that provide extended product life. Published industry averages indicate that commercial grades of steel commonly contain between 30% and 80% recycled content.
Recyclable design
Over 90% of the materials used in hardware products by weight are recyclable. Our cartridges are primarily comprised of the same materials as the hardware and are designed for zero waste to landfill. We favor the use of post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials over the use of biobased materials for durability and recyclability.
Cartridge recycling
Through our award winning Lexmark Cartridge Collection Programm (LCCP), cartridges are collected and recycled in our R2 certified Recycling center. The LCCP facility utilizes the materials from the returned cartridges back into our own products for a true closed-loop process. Our engineers innovated our own in-house extrusion and compounding process to produce high quality, 100% recycled resin that is reintegrated into new toner cartridges. We have qualified over 60 components with up to 100% closed-loop PCR plastic.
Lexmark prioritizes reusing components over recycling in alignment with the EPA's waste management hierarchy. Lexmark is an industry leader in the use of reclaimed plastic with 39% of the plastic content, by weight, in Lexmark branded toner cartridges coming from post-consumer plastic. In fact, 65% of this reclaimed plastic is from remanufacturing reuse, with 10% coming from the LCCP PCR feedstream and the balance coming from purchased PCR resin. Our goal is to increase the use of reclaimed plastic through the PCR and product reuse processes to 50% by 2025.
Durability is a key part of Lexmark product design. Products are intentionally designed to last over 7 years. Materials are selected to ensure products are robust, durable and meet strict ecolabel and regulatory compliance requirements. This longer life avoids additional manufacturing and the creation and use of virgin material.
