P&G Achieves Zero Manufacturing Waste at 45 Sites Worldwide

Innovative manufacturing solutions are cornerstone of P&G’s zero-waste vision

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), the Company behind consumer brands including Pampers^®, Ariel^®, Always^® and Gillette^® today announced that 45 of their facilities have now achieved zero manufacturing waste to landfill, which marks a major step towards the Company’s long-term vision of sending zero manufacturing and c

onsumer waste to landfills. Over the past 5 years, P&G's work to find worth in waste has created over $1 billion in value for the company.

Bob McDonald, P&G President, CEO and Chairman of the Board said, “We have a vision for the future, where plants are powered by renewable energy, products are made from recycled and renewable materials and resources are conserved, with no waste going to landfill. Changing the way we see waste as a Company has brought us one step closer to this goal at 45 sites worldwide, where all of our manufacturing waste is recycled, repurposed or converted into energy.”

P&G announced its first zero manufacturing waste to landfill site in Budapest in 2007. Since then, the Company has shared a long-term Environmental Vision, pledging to work toward zero consumer and manufacturing waste worldwide. Through quality assurance, packaging reduction, compaction and recycling efforts, the company now ensures that 99% of all materials entering P&G plants leaves as finished product or is recycled, reused or converted to energy. Now, as the Company celebrates its 175th year, less than 1% of all materials entering P&G sites globally leaves as waste.

 

To drive all sites toward zero, P&G has searched for innovative ways to find value in what was once seen as waste. In Mexico, paper sludge from a Charmin toilet tissue plant is turned into low-cost roof tiles used to build homes in the local community. At a U.S. Pampers site, scrap from the wipe manufacturing process is converted to upholstery filling. And, in the U.K., waste created in the production of Gillette shaving foam is composted then used to grow turf for commercial uses.

“There are well-defined systems for recycling materials like paper, plastic and glass, but our product portfolio is incredibly broad, resulting in a diverse set of waste streams to find sustainable solutions for,” shared Dr. Forbes McDougall, who leads P&G’s global zero manufacturing waste program. “We focused on finding solutions for our toughest waste streams at our largest sites, and while initially we saw progress in our overall corporate recycling, the increase in zero landfill sites was slow. Today, we have found ways to divert most of our major waste streams away from landfill, so we’re now seeing new sites achieve zero manufacturing waste to landfill nearly every month.”

 

This announcement coincides with a Company-wide message to inspire employees and consumers to think differently about the everyday things they do and the surprisingly positive impact they can have on the environment.  Throughout April, P&G will share videos, infographics and insights through social media at https://www.facebook.com/PGKenya  and inviting others to share their stories. On April 22^nd, the Company will host the “P&G Sustainability Session: Sharing a Vision and Zeroing in on Waste,” featuring presentations from P&G Sustainability experts with time for discussion and Q&A. To register, visit http://www.cvent.com/d/qcqr7d

 

NOKIA AND MICROSOFT JOIN FORCES TO EMPOWER LOCAL TALENT WITH THE MIDNIGHT DEVELOPER CHALLENGE

Winners of the on-going Nokia and Microsoft’s mobile app development competition will be announced on May 6^th 2013.

The competition dubbed The Midnight Developer Challenge is aimed at providing university students with exposure and training in the latest mobile and app development technologies. The challenge will see university students from 25 Africa (Kenya included) and Middle East countries come up with the next big mobile app idea. Some of the African countries taking part include Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.

The final submissions for the competition are expected to close this Thursday and the apps need to be published by mid-next month. The competition was launched in December last year and the participating students have been receiving advanced technical training and coding sessions with Nokia and Microsoft software experts through weekly webinars and dedicated online support to help them conceptualize their ideas.

 

Both Nokia and Microsoft have been working closely with the universities to ensure faculty support is provided for students who entered the competition.

Commenting on the competition, Head of Developer Experience, Nokia IMEA Joe Devassy said the challenge is providing students an opportunity to get real life experience in designing, developing and distributing a mobile app for consumers in an emerging app economy.

"We designed this competition to maximize the learning process of this entrepreneurial journey - that is, how to go from an abstract idea to a fully-developed Windows Phone 8 app available to millions of consumers worldwide," he added.

"This initiative, which empowers young local talent with world-class opportunities to develop and learn about the latest advances in mobile app technology, is testament to our commitment to the region. Windows Phone 8 is a great mobile platform and there is immense opportunity for developers to leverage and utilise the innovative features of the Nokia Lumia range including augmented reality navigation, NFC and imaging," said Amintas Lopes Neto, Academia and Startups Lead, Microsoft MEA.

The contest is divided into two categories - Apps and Games. Each category will have a winner and a runners-up prize. The winning team will walk away with $10,000, a trip to a Nokia Global event, plus an XBOX and Lumia 920 for each team member. The runner-up team will receive $5,000, an XBOX and a Lumia 920 for each team member.

Additionally there will be a People's Choice category, whereby the winner will receive $3,000 plus an XBOX and a Lumia 920 for each team member. Participants of The Midnight Developer Challenge also have the opportunity to be eligible to participate in the Microsoft Imagine Cup 2013 Windows Phone Challenge - a high level global Window Phone app development contest organised by Microsoft.

Teams of up to three members were required to register online for The Midnight Developer Challenge. The apps and games must be developed using the newly released Windows Phone 8 SDK (Software Development Kit).

P&G AND CARE ANNOUNCE COMMITMENT TO PROVIDE 100 MILLION LITERS OF CLEAN DRINKING WATER THROUGH INNOVATIVE PARTNERSHIP

Over 18,000 thousand families have been provided with clean safe drinking water through Procter & Gamble’s Purifier of Water (formerly Pur) and Care Kenya’s Safe Water system program in Nyanza province reducing the occurrence of water borne diseases in the region.

 

This follows an earlier commitment by the two organizations to provide 100 million liters of clean safe drinking water in Kenya and Ethiopia through an investment of over $1 million dollars. The Safe Water System (SWS) is an inexpensive program of providing safe water at point of use through treatment, safe storage and behavior change. The system makes use of the P&G Purifier of Water sachet is a powdered mixture which purifies previously dirty and turbid water making it safe for drinking. SWS has so far provided  over 3.5 million sachets of P&G purifier of water supplies translating to 35,571,180 liters of safe drinking water to communities in Siaya, Gem, Ugunja and Ugenya and reaching out to  over 18,000 families.

 

Procter & Gamble Brand PR Manager Ms. Irene Mwathi said that the program continues to focus efforts on provision of clean drinking water through partnerships like the CARE schools program.

 

“Introducing the P&G Purifer of Water to children through school programs has a dramatic impact on the community-  the children are educated and empowered at an early age. They then take the benefits of  that knowledge back to their  home to their families. By investing in children, we enable them to make a difference every day in their communities,” said Ms. Mwathi.

 

The P&G program dubbed ‘Children’s Safe Drinking Water’ (CSDW) program was initiated in Kenya in 2006 to provide a solution to communities living in areas with water sources that are turbid. The program works with various implementing partners such as PSI and Care. In executing this particular program, CARE trains two teachers in each school as patrons of the program responsible for teaching improved hygiene behaviors, including hand washing, either directly or through school hygiene clubs. P&G then provides the sachets used to purify the water. The program provides over 17,000 liters of clean drinking water each day to students and their families.

 

"P&G and CARE have brought us a solution to our water problem, said Mr. Michael Ochieng Limbe, Head Teacher at Wambusa Primary School. “We are very pleased that now we have healthy school children free of dysentery.” Wambusa Primary is one of the 20 schools in the program.

 

An evaluation of the program identified a reduction in school absenteeism of more than 25 percent and because students took the messages home, there was nearly a 3-fold increase in household water treatment.

 

“P&G purifier of water is a simple, affordable and convenient   way to bring clean water to people,” explains Project Manager, Care Kenya. “CARE uses the P&G Purifer of Water packets to bring safe drinking water to homes, provide clean water to school children and help expectant mothers stay healthy and help prevent the spread of disease in Kenya, including HIV/AIDS.” He added “They are also an important part of our global emergency response programs”.

 

P&G’s collaboration supports CARE’s distribution of the water purification packets to reach over 350,000 people through community-based programs in schools and clinics in Kenya .

 

“The work being done through this partnership is a perfect example of our company’s Purpose in action,” said Ms. Mwathi. “P&G improves the lives of Kenyans through its innovative brands, dedicated employees, and educational and social programs made possible by partnership with others."

 

School, clinic and community programs are part of P&G’s long-term commitment to save one life every hour by providing clean drinking water around the world. These efforts were most recently recognized when P&G’s Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program won the 2012 Economist Social Innovation Award for delivering more than 5 billion liters of clean drinking water to families in developing countries, helping save nearly 30,000 lives. The program has also received more than a dozen awards including: national inventor of the year award, popular mechanics breakthrough innovator awards, world technology awards among others. P&G has invested over $ 35 million (ksh 2.9 billion) towards this program since inception.

 

Your South African Orange AFCON Shopping Experience Awaits

 

The AFCON South African end of season retail sale brings fantastic bargains to football fans in malls across the length and breadth of South Africa

 

 

 

Imported furniture, designer clothes, kitchenware, computers, techno gadgets, audiovisual equipment, jewelry …. whatever you are looking for, you will find it in South Africa.

 

From big, bright air-conditioned shopping malls to street vendors selling home-grown vegetables, you can buy anything and everything in our cities and towns, which each have landmark shopping hubs where all the major retail chains, and many others, are trading.

 

 

Edgars, Clicks, Mr Price, Foschini, Stuttafords, Truworths and Woolworths are just some of the retail chains in South Africa that you may be familiar with. In-between are dozens of other globally recognised retailers, including top-end international stores like Zara, Louis Vuitton, Gucci and The Body Shop, and IT brands like Apple and Vodacom.

 

 

And then there’s the infinite charm of independent shops and retailers, too. These are smaller business that are big on choice, personalised service and variety in everything from designer baby gear to bathroom accessories; footwear to collectable books; kitchen gadgets to high-end computers and smart phones; and hand-crafted chocolates to diamond, gold and other precious trinkets to adorn yourself with.

 

 

All five AFCON host cities offer at least one mall experience, and a chance to shop till you drop, finding excellent bargains along the way.

 

 

An added and exciting bonus is the fact that if you come to South Africa for AFCON, you will be in the country during a nationwide end of season retail sale in January 2013 where South African Tourism has formed a partnership with VISA and hundreds of malls across the length and breadth of the country to bring fantastic special offers to all visiting AFCON fans.

 

 

In Johannesburg, Sandton City is one of Africa’s leading and most prestigious shopping centres, home to close to 300 leading local and international retailers. This is an energetic hub of Afro-cosmopolitan glamour - international shopping with South African flair. If fashion is your passion, head north of Sandton to Fourways Mall shopping centre, where you’ll find 50 retailers focusing exclusively on fashion. Here is where you’ll find your style.

 

 

Budget shopping might be a more pressing agenda, and again there are dozens of shopping centres to choose from in each host city, most notably the Oriental Plaza and China Mall close to the Johannesburg city centre, and the Victoria Street market in Durban.

 

In Durban are two distinctive malls, Gateway, which is the largest shopping centre in the southern hemisphere, and The Pavillion, each home to hundreds of retail outlets selling everything from fashion, homeware and curios to jewelry, leather goods and audiovisual equipment. 

 

In Port Elizabeth, the economic hub of the Eastern Cape, is the one kilometer Greenacres Mall, which is currently undergoing a US$48 million facelift to get it looking its best 9and being its most efficient) in time for the AFCON crowds. In Nelspruit, meanwhile, is the Riverside Mall, Mpumalanga’s premier shopping centre, as well as the newer I’langa Mall, with direct access off the N4 highway.

 

 

In Rustenburg is the Waterfall Mall, with 133 shops selling just as diverse an array of products as its bigger counterparts.

 

 

So wherever you travel to support your team, South Africa invites you to indulge in some retail therapy, and take home some excellent value-for-money purchases to add convenience and sparkle to life after the tournament.

 

ENDS.

 

 

 

Epson targets the region’s movie enthusiasts and sports lovers

….launches Full HD, 3D home cinema projectors

 Epson has announced the launch of a range of Full HD projectors offering 3D experience targeted at film enthusiasts, sports lovers and gamers in the East African market.

 The EH-TW6100W projector is packed with the latest technology that includes wireless Full HD connectivity, new wireless HD transmitter with five HDMI inputs allowing non-wireless devices to be connected.

 The projector also features a Radio Frequency (RF) 3D technology that provides a strong signal for 3D glasses and is also equipped with 2D to 3D converter. The EH-TW6100W projects Full HD content wirelessly - even from non-wireless devices, which can be connected using the included wireless HD transmitter.

 The EH-TW6100W comes with a pair of USB-rechargeable, Radio Frequency, lightweight, active shutter 3D glasses, which can be used up to 10 metres from the projector.

 Commenting on the launch of the new projectors, Epson Regional Sales Manager for East Africa Mukesh Bector said the company was keen to introduce products that are tailored towards different market segments with a view to increasing the firm’s footprint in the region. 

Mukesh said with the projector, 2D HD content can be converted to 3D at the touch of a button, while automatic colour optimisation, 3D depth adjustment and super-resolution technology further enhances the viewing experience.

 “Since we entered the Full HD 3D home cinema market a year ago, we’ve added some great new functions to our home cinema products, as well as improving our wireless connectivity. Our new wireless Full HD transmitter features five HDMI inputs, four more than previous models. Users can now effortlessly control even more devices with a single remote control,” he said.

  

SAFARICOM, BRITAM, CHANGAMKA MICROHEALTH, PSI, LAUNCH AFFORDABLE HEALTHCARE OPTION FOR KENYANS

Leading integrated communications provider Safaricom Limited has partnered with leading insurer Britam, Changamka Microhealth - one of Kenya’s pioneering mobile Health Financing technology providers and PSI, a leading global health organization to launch Linda Jamii, an innovative and affordable healthcare insurance option.

 

Targeted at more than 35 million uninsured Kenyans, the Kshs.12, 000 per year premium cover will provide clients with access to a comprehensive medical cover comprising in and out patient cover, maternity cover and a hospitalization income replacement benefit of Kshs.500 per day, to take care of lost income while in hospital.

 

The premiums are payable in installments via MPESA, with quality healthcare  being available after accumulating  Kshs. 6,000 and  the balance being saved in a premium deposit facility on the user’s mobile phone.

 

Speaking at the launch event, Britam’s Group Managing Director Benson Wairegi said the health services will be offered through leading public and mission hospitals where starting from when the deposit is paid., families will thereafter have up to six months to pay the difference, for the annual cover.

 

“A majority of the families we are targeting have little disposable income and are therefore not able to raise enough money to get a health insurance cover, given the payment options available. The downside is that these are the same families who delay seeking health care, making treatment more complicated and therefore expensive in the long run, “ he added.

 

Linda Jamii will offer inpatient and outpatient covers for a family of two parents and an unlimited number of children, and will cover HIV and other pre-existing conditions. It will also cater for funeral expenses in the unfortunate event of the death of those insured.

 

Safaricom’s Chief Executive Officer, Bob Collymore said Linda Jamii is yet another innovative proposition that demonstrates the convenience that M-PESA affords customers. He explained that lack of adequate healthcare coverage entrenches poverty among a majority of Kenyans.

 

“Linda Jamii is a timely product at a time when cancer, diabetes and other potentially expensive illnesses are on the rise. It is worrying that more than 35 million Kenyans are still not able to access timely and quality healthcare because most insurance products are designed to suit high income earners,” he noted.

 

“With over 15.2 million customers already using M-PESA, “ Collymore added, “we believe that we can help boost initiatives aimed at helping raise a generation of health Kenyans who will be instrumental in helping achieve the objectives of Vision 2030”.

 

Changamka has installed an end to end internet based electronic platform which is hosted on the Safaricom cloud; and with the capacity to manage more than 100 million insurance policies. The technology enables users to save little by little using MPESA until the required threshold is reached.

 

The product is an innovation that enables individuals register on a mobile phone, thus tackling the age old problem of distribution of Microinsurance products. In addition healthcare services are provided on either a computer or an internet enabled mobile phone