American Cleaning Institute’s Sustainability Report demonstrates the continued value of print

“Foundations for Transformation: 2017 Sustainability Report,” from the American Cleaning Institute (ACI), has won first place in the “Annual Report” category of Ragan’s 2017 PR Daily Awards. 

The report documents the strides made by organizations throughout the cleaning product supply chain to minimize the industry’s environmental footprint. It also, as ACI notes, “serves as a call to action for ACI member companies to consider bold collective actions that can drive momentum toward sustainable development within the entire industry.” 

The data in the report is drawn from an impressive program that captures annual progress by aggregating the environmental metrics of ACI member organizations that participate in the program. ACI turned creative development over to CooperKatz & Company, which used an open design with simple graphics and well-written, descriptive text to deliver an eminently readable narrative that makes a strong case for an industry committed to ongoing reduction of its impact on the environment. 

The online version of the report is solid, along with ACI’s strategy to attract social media attention, but the print version of the 2017 report was gorgeously printed and made available to ACI’s member companies. The report also attracted news media attention, resulting in multiple stories in industry and environmental publications. It stands as an archetype for what a sustainability report can do for an organization or industry.

Congratulations to those who oversaw the production of the report, ACI’s Brian Sansoni and Melissa Grande.