Pratt Industries: Celebrating 25 Years with the Chamber
Did you know that the world’s biggest, privately held 100% recycled paper and packaging company is right here on Staten Island? It’s true: the company is called Pratt Industries, and they’re changing the recycling industry one day at a time.
Pratt, which also has the distinction of being the 5th largest corrugated packaging company in the United States, has manufacturing facilities in more than 25 states across the country, including New York’s branch on our very own Victory Boulevard. Our Pratt Paper Mill is not only the sole paper mill in Staten Island but also the largest industrial manufacturing facility throughout New York City. This year, Pratt Industries is celebrating 25 years of membership with the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce.
One of Pratt Industries’ key slogans has always been “Harvesting the Urban Forest,” which is why the company decided to open a location in New York in 1997. As a major urban city, New York produces mass amounts of raw material in the form of wastepaper each year. This raw material is exactly what Pratt gathers to manufacture recycled paper and sustainable packaging.
In addition to being the obvious choice for a new location, New York was also a challenge. “The owner, Richard Pratt, was constantly being told that you can’t build a manufacturing facility in New York City,” says Austin Davey, President of the Pratt Industries Paper Division, USA. “At the time there hadn’t been a new facility in New York City since about 1945. Pratt was determined to prove everyone wrong that you could build a manufacturing facility in New York City, and more than that, make it successful. After being here for 25 years, that’s a testament to his determination.”
The Pratt Paper Mill is unique in that it exists within a city rather than outside of one. Before Pratt, building a paper mill in any city, let alone New York City, was practically unheard of. “The other significant part of the building of the mill on Staten Island is that at the time, they were in the process of closing the Staten Island landfill,” adds Davey. “The mill became an automatic outlet for the wastepaper that had been going into the landfill, which Mayor Giuliani was a huge proponent of.” The City of New York provides Pratt with almost 300,000 tons of wastepaper each year, with the remaining 200,000 tons coming from surrounding areas like New Jersey, upstate New York, and Connecticut.
Pratt Industries operates the most modern containerboard system in North America, using a process of waste diversion, recycling, and reconstruction of 100% recycled paper products. Pratt prides itself on being a vertically integrated company, ensuring that each step of the process, from waste collection to retail, is monitored and manufactured in-house by Pratt Industries. This also allows Pratt to stay true to its commitment to sustainability by only using Pratt’s innovative and environmentally friendly machinery, transportation, and technology. Between the five paper mills across the United States, Pratt saves more than 85,000 trees every day by converting discarded wastepaper into high-quality packaging materials. Additionally, with each ton of paper that Pratt produces, the company saves 7,000 gallons of water, 3.3 cubic yards of diverted waste, 4,000 kWh of power, and 1 ton of CO2.
Employees of Pratt Industries are the behind-the-scenes superheroes when it comes to transforming our everyday recycling into the highest quality packaging paper. “DSNY does the pick-up job, so they are the face of recycling,” says Muneer Ahmad, General Manager of Pratt Paper New York. “But what happens to that paper once it gets picked up? That’s all on us.”
Pratt Industries joined the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce in 1997 when they opened their Staten Island location to connect with the community, promote the Pratt name, and make themselves accessible to Staten Island residents at large. “We want to be involved in Staten Island, and we want to be good neighbors and corporate citizens,” says Davey on Pratt’s Chamber membership. “If anyone has any issues, we’d rather them come talk to us directly than going to external sources. We want to have a presence within the business community.”
Pratt quietly, but always successfully, turns our trash into brand-new paper products, bettering Staten Island every single day. We are proud to celebrate 25 years of partnership with Pratt Industries, and we thank them for their dedication to our community and the environment at large.