Growing together and helping each other

We want to have a lasting positive impact on the communities in which we operate – from nurturing the packaging technologists of the future to educating people about plastics, paperboard and recycling.

Goal:
Offer career-enhancing work experience and opportunities

We will open the door to opportunity for people

We believe in investing in the future workforce. Several of our sites offer internships and apprenticeships to young people in our local communities in partnership with colleges and universities and through regularly participating in careers fairs. We are formalising partnerships with these educational institutions to provide real opportunities in the specific fields of plastics science and engineering, as well as other business areas such as human resources and information technology.

Sustainability studies

Putting sustainability studies into practice

Robinson has a history of helping students develop their careers and offering work experience. In 2020, Alice Armstrong, a postgraduate at Swansea University, worked with Nigel Morley, Operational Excellence Director, for eight weeks on two specific sustainability projects.

The first project sought to optimise injection stretch blow moulding for the manufacturing of food-grade recycled PET bottles from post-consumer recycled (PCR) waste. Alice explored the viability of turning PCR PET flakes into food-grade pellets as raw material to produce bottles made from 100% recyclate and the possibility of using new technology that would improve the efficiency and sustainability of both the production process and the finished bottles. The eventual implementation of this technology could produce savings of more than 30 tonnes of carbon emissions per year, and the use of PCR PET instead of virgin PET could avoid emissions of 200 tonnes.

Alice made such impressive progress that she assumed another project, this time defining energy reduction opportunities at our Kirkby-in-Ashfield site. Alice participated in the energy use mapping initiative. By monitoring specific machines, such as the water chillers, we aim to track energy usage in specific business areas. The objective is to implement a series of updates to aspects of machines such as chillers, vacuum pumps and compressed air distribution to improve our energy usage and prevent any further energy wastage.

Goal:
Engage on the benefits of packaging and recycling

We will educate the next generation of change-makers

We want younger generations to understand the power and benefit of packaging. We are developing a campaign to introduce students to plastic and packaging, from the high-tech science that is used to engineer it to its social and environmental benefits. Part of this includes joint events with customers and suppliers and the sponsoring of awards, such as the IOM3 Starpack award.

Students

Challenging students to find the future of packaging

The Starpack Students Competition, run by the Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining (IOM3), introduces young people to the packaging design process and encourages them to think about packaging as a career. The competition, established for over 50 years, engages college and university students to submit solutions to challenges set by brand-leading FMCG companies, design agencies and manufacturers. The expectation and key criterion for judging success are for students to really push conventional thinking and break the rules with off-the-wall creativity.

Briefs in previous years have included packaging to promote children’s healthy eating, packaging to help reduce consumer food waste and social interaction at home through packaging during the pandemic. Robinson is proud to sponsor the competition. We are developing briefs to engage young creative minds in finding solutions, aligned with our sustainable packaging commitments.

Goal:
Give back to our communities

We will be a good neighbour

We know how important it is to give back to the local people that help make our work successful. That is why we are setting up local community projects at each of our sites, identified and managed by local teams. These projects could range from partnering with supermarkets on plastics and paper packaging recycling collection and pick-up points, to food and clothes banks, to consumer engagement on reducing food waste.

Supporting local fire services in Poland

Supporting local fire services

Our teams in Minsk and Lodz, Poland, have partnered with local fire brigades since 2018. Our financial contributions help towards the purchase of fire service equipment, while the fire service provides us with training on fire safety and checks, identifying specific areas for improvement. This support is provided with both professional firefighters and trained fire marshals, some of which are Robinson employees volunteering. In 2020, we helped fund a fire exhibition and received tickets for a gala.

A closer look at our five pillars of sustainability