SAPPHIRE Technology, the leading manufacturer and world-wide supplier of AMD/ATI based graphics products is aware of the increasing awareness of the impact of excess packaging on the environment, and has an ongoing programme to play its part in conservation. In another industry first for SAPPHIRE, the company is now introducing paper pulp trays as the inner packaging for graphics cards. SAPPHIRE already offers its customers the option of 'Lite Retail' packaging - in which cards are shipped in a smaller display box with a basic bundle of essential cables and driver disc. This smaller size and weight reduces shipping costs for the customer and material waste both in manufacture and for the end user.Outer boxes for SAPPHIRE products already use environmentally friendly inks and are completely recyclable. Now SAPPHIRE is introducing a new type of inner packaging for many of its mainstream models and looking to roll it out across the range.

In another industry first for SAPPHIRE, the company is introducing paper pulp trays. These are made from recycled paper materials and are further recyclable. Most of SAPPHIRE's graphics cards have previously shipped with an inner cardboard box - which in some cases have multiple folds and cut-outs to retain the cards and accessories. Now many of these can be replaced with the pulp tray which is moulded to hold the components safely during shipping. Work is ongoing to further develop this method and apply it to even the heavier models which currently ship in plastic carriers or foam packaging.

SAPPHIRE is committed to being environmentally friendly, and where existing package designs cannot be replaced by the new method, the company is specifying recycled materials wherever possible.