FSC Logo - A Piece of Cake
FSC certification in practice: Without an FSC
certificate, ever fewer doors are open in the Print Media
Industry. The road to one's own worldwide recognized logo is
simpler than many think. This example of the German print shop
Kohlhammer & Wallishauser shows how it works and what it comes
down to.
Marc Hellstern still remembers well the day he first had to seriously confront the issue of logos from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). "Like many other things, the initiative came from the customer," says the 40-year-old, who is responsible for production and sales at the print shop Kohlhammer& Wallishauser. In this case it was the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. As the publisher of the magazine Natur und Landschaft (Nature and Landscape), the agency placed two demands. "We were supposed to print the monthly issue on FSC paper," says Hellstern. "In addition, it was expected that we certify our processes according to FSC standards." The print shop felt like most FSC newbies do - they wanted to react immediately but didn't know where to begin. "We only learned which steps to take after looking at the FSC's website and talking with another print shop we know," Hellstern remembers.
Many who are first confronted with the issue of certification have a similar experience. And almost all are surprised at the beginning that the worldwide FSC organization with headquarters in Bonn, Germany, doesn't carry out the certifications itself. Around 20 independent inspection organizations worldwide are authorized by the council and given responsibility for this. The spectrum ranges from the classic eco-forest protagonists like the Rainforest Alliance Smartwood Program in Richmond, USA, to the quality certifiers from The Swiss Association for Quality and Management Systems. Business consultants active worldwide, such as KPMG Forest Certification Services in Vancouver, Canada, or the GFA Consulting Group in Hamburg, are also on board. Those in Hamburg are the market leaders in Germany. GFA has helped more than 500 businesses earn an FSC logo, including saw mills, paper mills and paper retailers as well as building centers or manufacturers of wooden furniture. "We've registered an enormous rise during the last few years regarding print shops," says Eva Weinert from the certification team at GFA. The most important reason for this development is that more and more clients want to see the FSC logo on their print products.
Separation of FSC and other papers
The hunt for a suitable certifier led Kohlhammer & Wallishauser to GFA. This is auditor Joachim Lerche's third time at the print shop - two years ago for initial certification and then every 12 months for a follow-up audit. "The two inspections are more or less the same actually," explains the lumberman. He estimated he would need about three hours this time. "That's enough when the data is well prepared." That's very different to saw mills or paper mills, where the process can often take several days, Lerche says.
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Marc Hellstern still remembers well the day he first had to seriously confront the issue of logos from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). "Like many other things, the initiative came from the customer," says the 40-year-old, who is responsible for production and sales at the print shop Kohlhammer& Wallishauser. In this case it was the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. As the publisher of the magazine Natur und Landschaft (Nature and Landscape), the agency placed two demands. "We were supposed to print the monthly issue on FSC paper," says Hellstern. "In addition, it was expected that we certify our processes according to FSC standards." The print shop felt like most FSC newbies do - they wanted to react immediately but didn't know where to begin. "We only learned which steps to take after looking at the FSC's website and talking with another print shop we know," Hellstern remembers.
Many who are first confronted with the issue of certification have a similar experience. And almost all are surprised at the beginning that the worldwide FSC organization with headquarters in Bonn, Germany, doesn't carry out the certifications itself. Around 20 independent inspection organizations worldwide are authorized by the council and given responsibility for this. The spectrum ranges from the classic eco-forest protagonists like the Rainforest Alliance Smartwood Program in Richmond, USA, to the quality certifiers from The Swiss Association for Quality and Management Systems. Business consultants active worldwide, such as KPMG Forest Certification Services in Vancouver, Canada, or the GFA Consulting Group in Hamburg, are also on board. Those in Hamburg are the market leaders in Germany. GFA has helped more than 500 businesses earn an FSC logo, including saw mills, paper mills and paper retailers as well as building centers or manufacturers of wooden furniture. "We've registered an enormous rise during the last few years regarding print shops," says Eva Weinert from the certification team at GFA. The most important reason for this development is that more and more clients want to see the FSC logo on their print products.
Separation of FSC and other papers
The hunt for a suitable certifier led Kohlhammer & Wallishauser to GFA. This is auditor Joachim Lerche's third time at the print shop - two years ago for initial certification and then every 12 months for a follow-up audit. "The two inspections are more or less the same actually," explains the lumberman. He estimated he would need about three hours this time. "That's enough when the data is well prepared." That's very different to saw mills or paper mills, where the process can often take several days, Lerche says.
You can download the complete article on the top right-hand side.
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