Going Green @ SEMICON West!

For the past several years, SEMI has focused on the "greening" of its trade shows, in particular SEMICON West. As an organization dedicated to sustainable and environmentally positive business practices, it is vitally important to us to do what we can to reduce the environmental impact of our events and enable our exhibitors and attendees to join these efforts.

These pages describe our sustainability efforts around SEMICON West and how you can get involved in the greening of the show.

Measuring success: How SEMI has gone green at SEMICON West

SEMI’s green efforts at SEMICON West 2009 demonstrate our progress toward shrinking the event footprint:

-60 percent of all waste diverted from landfill
-100,000 pounds of material recovered and diverted through Moscone’s recycling, donation and composting programs. (This is one of the highest tonnage diverted from any single event held at Moscone Center)
-Used recycle carpet for aisle carpet
-Online Exhibitor Services Manual only
-Offering Exhibitor Invites™

-Our own SEMI Booth featured:
-Carpet fibers with 25% recycled content
-LEED rated Laminates
-Low VOC adhesives
-FSC certified hardwood
-Formaldehyde free plywood
-Metal extrusions with 85% recycled content and 100% recycled
-Lights with low voltage LEF fixtures
-Corrugated plastic wall made with 65% polyethylene recycled plastic food & soda bottles and 100% recyclable

Read more about it in the Moscone Center’s August 2010 newsletter

The success of SEMICON West is achieved with close collaboration of numerous players, including the City and County of San Francisco, Moscone Center, our general services and specialty contractors, exhibitors, and attendees also help contribute to the “green" success of SEMICON West.

We encourage you to join our green efforts and adopt sustainable practices by taking advantage of the opportunities available at SEMICON West.

What is 'sustainability'?
What is a 'carbon footprint'?
Why go green at the show?
What are SEMI's goals in the area of sustainability?
What is SEMI and our Partner’s already doing?
What Exhibitors can do?
How Visitors can participate?

What is 'sustainability'?
Sustainability is a business practice aligns today's needs in consideration of environmental impact, ensuring that what we do today has a neutral or positive impact on our environment and resources. Sustainable business practices ultimately ensure the continuity of our business and our growth.

What is a 'carbon footprint'?
One's carbon footprint is a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment, climate change in particular. This footprint relates to the impact our day-to-day activities have through the production and emission of greenhouse gases through the burning of fossil fuels used for generating electricity, heating, cooling, transportation, and other applications.

U.S. carbon dioxide emissions were almost 6 billion metric tons in 2005. Statistically speaking, an individual purchase of a few metric tons of carbon offsets does not make a difference. But when scaled up to the level of a large tradeshow or convention, the impact will be significant and does make a difference. – The Green Events Source Book

If you are flying into the San Francisco International airport (SFO), you can check out one of the three new Climate Passportkiosks to help you calculate and purchase carbon offsets.

Why go green at the show?
By concentrating months of sales activities into a week of meetings and events, trade shows themselves have a positive impact on reducing sales-related travel and the accompanying carbon emissions. Events, however, do have their own impact.

A single event serving 2,000 attendees at a time can produce as much waste in one hour as a family of four can produce in one year. An average trade event can produce 1,200 tons of waste. Assuming 25% of this waste is paper goods, the recycling of this portion would result in the saving of 5,100 trees, 2.1 million gallons of water, and 1.2 million kWh of electricity.

By starting green—reducing paper consumption, using recycled materials, lowering usage of electricity, etc.—and by recycling more after the show, every exhibitor can help reduce the environmental impact of the overall show and benefit the local community.

What are SEMI's goals in the area of sustainability?
Worldwide, SEMI is committed to supporting the environment by adhering to and promoting the principles of sustainability—Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle—and to supporting environmentally sound policies and the health and safety of the people who work in the microelectronics supply chain.

The SEMI Global CareInitiative encourages companies in the semiconductor industry to adhere to five key principles of environment, health, and safety: workplace health and safety, resource conservation, product stewardship, community service, and excellence. Through Global Care and our EHS activities worldwide, SEMI facilitates the development and adoption of sustainable business practices. For a listing of EHS-related events at SEMICON West, please click here.