Asheville based Silver-Line Plastics recently became the first North American plastic pipe producer to be certified to Plastic Pipe & Fittings Association’s (PPFA) “Sustainable Manufacturing Conformity Assessment Program for Plastic Piping Components” (SM-CAP). The program certifies reductions in a manufacturer’s year-over-year environmental footprint by careful analysis and measurement of resource use.
Certification to SM-CAP means that a manufacturing facility meets the requirements set forth in PPFA’s “Sustainable Manufacturing Standard (SMS-01-2012)”. The new standard establishes requirements for measuring both the existing environmental performance and the continuous improvement thereof by manufacturers of plastic piping system components. SMS 01-2012 applies to those who manufacture plastic piping system components and to the resources used in their production process.
With facilities in Asheville, NC, Ft. Pierce, FL, and Lawton, OK, Silver-Line operates above a 98% material efficiency and must continually improve in all areas every year to maintain its certification. SM-CAP creates year-to-year reductions in water use, energy use, packaging materials waste, material conversion efficiency, and product material waste. In addition, criteria are set to promote plant safety, safe product use, continual participation in industry Life Cycle Analysis, maintaining certification for American National Standards governing product quality and safety, and generally lowering a manufacturer’s environmental footprint.