Month: April 2023

Procter & Gamble celebrates our LGBTQ+ employees, and the unique stories that unite us, by raising visibility and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community. P&G Australia recently brought this vision to life by leading activities in support of Sydney WorldPride and the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

Held this year from February 17 to March 5, WorldPride is a global LGBTQ+ festival that promotes and advocates for LGBTQ+ human rights around the world. Sydney was the first city in the southern hemisphere selected to host WorldPride since its inception in 2000, and it incorporated Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras events and activities across arts, sport, theatre, concerts, parties and First Nations programming, as well as a human rights conference.

P&G Australia and several P&G brands, including Pantene, Oral-B, Gillette, Olay, Fairy and VÖOST, joined together as a major sponsor of 2023’s WorldPride and partnered with Aboriginal artist, queer feminist and 2021 NAIDOC National Artist of the Year, Bobbi Lockyer. Lockyer came on board as a creative designer and developed P&G’s Lead with Love float for the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade, an interactive painting wall for Fair Day and in-store assets for the events.

P&G is donating a portion of the sales of participating products from Fairy, Gillette, Olay, Oral-B, Pantene and VÖOST to Minus18, an LGBTQ+ youth charity. The donations will provide anti-bullying resource kits to reach over 50,000 school students across Australia.

Olay is additionally partnering with Australian author, media personality and Miss Universe Australia 2020, Maria Thattil, to support Glow Up Your Own Way, an ongoing national campaign dedicated to destigmatising LGBTQ+ issues and supporting greater self-acceptance and confidence. Maria joined Olay’s float at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade on February 25th, alongside over 70 P&G employees.

Earlier in the WorldPride festivities, P&G hosted a roundtable discussion of its recently released award-winning documentary short film CODED: The Hidden Love of J.C. Leyendecker. Developed in partnership with Imagine Entertainment & Television, Delirio Films and MTV Films, the film explores early representation of LGBTQ+ communities through arts and advertising.

P&G’s commitment to the LGBTQ+ community is grounded in our mission to create a company and a world where Equality and Inclusion is achievable for all. Click here to learn more about how P&G is leading with love, championing LGBTQ+ visibility and inspiring progress.

The World Bank estimates that 2 billion tons of waste is generated, from both businesses and residences, across the globe each year. As one of those companies, Yum! is looking to change this by leveraging the power of its 55,000 KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and The Habit Burger Grill restaurants to be part of the solution by reimagining its iconic packaging like the KFC bucket, Pizza Hut pizza boxes and Taco Bell sauce packets.

In collaboration with parent company Yum!, each brand is shifting its existing packaging to more sustainable options. This includes transitioning away from plastics, while simultaneously developing packaging solutions – via a new policy – that sets sustainability standards for its restaurants and possibly influencing the industry to make broader change. Yum!’s new policy, led by increased investments in circularity, which is the creation of a product with the intent that it gets recycled and thus goes back into the supply chain, consists of the following three measures:

The elimination of unnecessary packagingThe shift to more sustainable materialsThe support of better recycling systems and reusable products

“It’s our responsibility as the world’s largest restaurant company to help solve for the amount of waste that ends up in landfills,” said Jon Hixson, Yum! chief sustainability officer & vice president of global government affairs. “And for years, we’ve been diligently working on this challenge, and it’s now been unified across the 150-plus countries and territories in which we operate, so that’s what’s really exciting.”

While each brand is in a different stage in its sustainable packaging journey, they now have one cohesive blueprint to follow and can lean on each other while striving toward the same three goals. Here’s how they plan to do just that.

Eliminate unnecessary packaging and shifting to sustainable materials

Unrecoverable plastics are often found in wrappers, cup lids, cutlery and bags and are prevalent around the world due to their inexpensive cost and abundance in supply. But they can’t be recycled, which makes them a key focus area in Yum!’s new policy.

As companies move away from unrecoverable plastics, which most likely end up in landfills, there’s an opportunity for them to build their reputation as sustainable stewards when it comes to packaging by shifting to more sustainable alternatives.

“At Pizza Hut, we’re lucky to be starting from a position of strength when it comes to plastics due to using primarily corrugated cardboard,” explained James Watts, Pizza Hut global chief people & Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) officer, adding that plastics in consumer-facing packaging have completely been eliminated from its restaurants in India and Brunei. Pizza Huts in New Zealand and Australia are close to the complete removal of consumer-facing plastics and are 95% and 90% plastic-free, respectively.

“We remain focused on closing the gaps that exist around unnecessary plastics and have also started to explore how we can use our packaging as a way to educate customers on how to recycle them,” Watts said.

Pizza Hut’s sister brands, KFC, Taco Bell and The Habit Burger Grill, are also in the process of removing unrecoverable plastics from their packaging.

With 27,000 restaurants across 147 countries, KFC is taking “a mindful approach” when it comes to transitioning to more sustainable materials, according to KFC Global Director of Sustainability & Packaging Susan Miles. Globally, the brand has moved from expanded polystyrene plastic (styrofoam) to more recyclable plastic or fiber-based containers for its side items and has purchased most of its paper-based packaging with fiber from responsibly managed forests and recycled sources.

Also, several KFC markets have eliminated plastic straws, cutlery and bags. But, Miles said, that’s just the start, and the brand is now looking to adopt additional practices developed in its individual markets, like a widely recyclable, plastic-free bucket in the United Kingdom (U.K.) and Canada’s compostable poutine bucket made of bamboo.

“By using new materials and methods of making buckets, we are able to source a more sustainable alternative while staying true to our iconic bucket, which our customers know and love,” Miles said.

For its part, Taco Bell is rolling out recyclable wraps and bags for its burritos, tacos, Crunchwraps and more. And The Habit Burger Grill transitioned from plastic to-go bags to paper in 2022, eliminating 288,000 lbs. of plastic in the United States (U.S.). annually. The brand also sources more than 97% of its paper-based packaging from responsibly managed forests and recycled sources.

“These are exciting changes for us because so much of our brand is tied to authenticity and living with purpose, just as our founders did,” said The Habit Burger Grill Chief Operating Officer Iwona Alter. “Creating a platform for packaging that is focused on sustainability ensures that we can continue to serve our guests delicious food that people trust.”

Recycling and reusables

Despite Yum!’s best efforts, not everything in each brand’s packaging suite can be eliminated or sustainably sourced. This is where the implementation of recycling programs is making a difference.

In addition to converting consumer-facing packaging to recyclable, compostable or reusable materials, Taco Bell is also adding recycling and/or composting bins in its restaurants where infrastructure permits. Another important change happened when Taco Bell provided a recycling option for its sauce packets in the U.S., giving customers the ability to mail-in used sauce packets for recycling, thanks to a partnership with TerraCycle, a New Jersey-based company known for recycling hard-to-recycle materials.

“The TerraCycle partnership is one that consumers are enthusiastic about,” said Missy Schaaphok, Taco Bell director of Global Nutrition & Sustainability. “But the big unlock with this program is the fact that we’ve expanded it to include sauce packets of any kind and brand, not just Taco Bell’s. At the same time, we’re also exploring other ways to bring our fans the sauce they love, with less waste.”

Pizza Hut also is focused on making its packaging, primarily made up of corrugated cardboard, more recyclable. Pizza boxes in Australia are made from 100% recycled content while that number is up to 70% in the U.K. At the same time, the brand is looking to educate consumers and work with groups that influence local governments and municipalities on the recyclability of its cardboard pizza boxes.

What the future holds

While Yum! and its four brands remain committed to making a difference, challenges still exist as they must work around fragmented regulations worldwide surrounding packaging and sustainability.

“There has been a lot of progress made, at the global level, in terms of creating a more sustainable ecosystem of products and operational efficiencies throughout our restaurant system. At Yum!, we’re committed to good growth. We can’t do that without a plan to preserve our planet,” Hixson said. “From our packaging initiatives to the work we’re doing on forest stewardship and climate change, we are dedicated to making progress on our Recipe for Good.”

Moving forward, Yum! and each of its distinctive brands have an eye on the future and are working toward their public commitments.

For more information about Yum!’s Recipe for Good, click here.

Originally published on Built From Scratch

ATLANTA, April 10, 2023 /3BL Media/ – The Home Depot Foundation increased its financial pledge to communities impacted by tornadoes and severe weather this spring, taking its commitment up to $400,000 to support relief efforts across the Southeast and Midwest.

The Foundation’s nonprofit partners, including Convoy of Hope, Operation Blessing, Team Rubicon, American Red Cross, ToolBank Disaster Services, Inspiritus and World Central Kitchen, are collectively supporting damage assessments, debris removal, supplies distribution, sheltering and food distribution across Arkansas, Iowa, Indiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia.

Over the past two weeks, Team Depot, The Home Depot’s associate volunteer force, has partnered alongside nonprofit organizations in more than 14 cities, building disaster relief kits, distributing food, supporting cleanup efforts and more. Through Team Depot, local stores have donated nearly $100,000 in relief supplies to more than a dozen organizations, including local school districts, police departments, city governments and nonprofits.

“We’re heartbroken to see the number of communities facing such significant loss after weeks of severe weather systems across several states,” said Shannon Gerber, executive director of The Home Depot Foundation. “The Home Depot Foundation and its nonprofit partners stand with these communities and pledge to support both immediate needs and long-term rebuilding efforts in the weeks, months and years ahead.”

The Homer Fund, Home Depot’s employee assistance program, is providing emergency financial support to every impacted associate in need of safe housing, food or clothing. Since inception, The Homer Fund has granted more than $28.6 million to support associates impacted by natural disasters.

The Home Depot Foundation is committed to supporting communities with natural disaster preparedness, short-term response and long-term recovery. In 2022, the Foundation committed more than $7.3 million to disaster response efforts across the country.

Keep up with all the latest Home Depot news! Subscribe to our bi-weekly news update and get the top Built from Scratch stories delivered straight to your inbox.

In episode 8 of Source De[Code], host Ben Coffin interviews Derek Ong to explore Big Data’s place in the manufacturing world. Derek and Ben play with analogies from the Marvel Comic Universe (MCU) to illustrate how Big Data is helping to transform this data-rich sector. I am not an expert in Big Data, manufacturing, or engineering; I am, however, an expert in the MCU. Framing the conversation this way painted an entertaining and informative picture of how Big Data is influencing transformation in the industrial sector– and beyond.

Every MCU comic leverages advanced technologies as a compelling plot device. At their core, however, these comics have become a blockbuster franchise because the heroes we root for are relatable– witty, flawed, and above all else, human. Technologies developed at Stark Industries or the Wakandan Design Group are means to an end that enable our heroes to defend the multiverse. This story is no different.

“Data gives us superpowers,” says Ben Coffin. “It gives you insights to be able to sift between processes and operational efficiencies to determine what’s working and what isn’t.”

BEFORE BIG DATA: THE ORIGIN STORY

This hero’s journey, like every comic book series, begins with a winding origin story filled with broken processes, frustration, and the faintest spark of change. Our story begins in the early days of Industry 4.0 when computing was still a nascent industry– the 1980s. In the film adaptation, the narrative would be set to Kraftwerk’s 1981 album, Computer World. This oracular magnum opus presaged the marvels and mysteries of today’s ubiquitous digital connectivity. During this time, factories were adopting computerized manufacturing systems with limited automation capabilities that captured data. This data enabled factory managers to coordinate processes with an eye toward improving productivity and efficiency.

These integrated systems created onion-like data pyramids that, while a vast improvement on what they replaced, were far from ideal. Each layer sanitized and condensed valuable data at each stage. Hardware and software that comprise the core’s Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system collect equipment- and systems-level operational data to facilitate automation processes. The SCADA feeds the captured information detailing machine temperature, equipment status, and whether machines are operating within thresholds into a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) which looks at the factory from an operational level to assist factory managers in asset optimization. The MES data is then fed into an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system which takes an even higher-level view of operations. ERPs are the domain of corporate decision-makers who use the information to track and control inventory for resource and shipment planning.

Every comic book fan knows that their favorite heroes are the product of circumstance. In their origin stories, these bright everyday men and women are head-down, trying to get through the grind of day-to-day life in a much less complex environment than what we, the readers, know is coming. Our hero, like Marvel’s main characters, is naturally bright, curious, and diligent; doing their best with the limited tools and resources at their disposal. What sets the nascent superhero apart from their peers is vision.

“Technology holds infinite possibilities for mankind and will one day rid society of all its ills,” Howard Stark eloquently states in the second Iron Man film, foreshadowing his son’s heroic future and demonstrating the power of vision. “Soon, technology will affect the way you live your life every day. No more tedious work, leaving more time for leisure activities and enjoying the sweet life.”

Those of us who were alive in the 80s and 90s will vividly recall the sounds of exertion that came from computers processing the most basic requests. Despite these factory systems being objectively more powerful than the Apple II or Commodore we had at home, their bandwidth and computational powers were limited. If a comic book artist were to illustrate this scene, we would see our hero type a query into the system, hit enter, and wait. And wait. And wait as their computer heaved, whirred, and groaned to run the issuant report. In the next panel, we would see our pre-powers hero hunched over in his office chair, his head buried in his hands still clutching the crumpled read-out.

During this time, data was viewed through a short-term, action-specific lens as the means to a more efficient end. Perhaps because of this, little research had been done into effective, cost-efficient data storage methods. These factors resulted in data being stored on an as-needed basis until it served its specific efficacy or operational purpose before it was jettisoned and replaced. Our hero’s report would have lacked a more global context and, if they made the wrong inference in their query, hours would have been lost awaiting an incomplete, potentially inaccurate, answer.

FROM THE DIGITAL CLOUD, A HERO EMERGES TRANSFORMED

There is a long-standing and (mostly) friendly rivalry between the MCU and the DC Comics Universe (DCU). In the DCU, the hero leads a solitary, double life. The banal mask they present to the world comes off in secret to fight crime from the shadows. By contrast, it is only the MCU’s friendly neighborhood Spiderman who (unsuccessfully) obfuscates his true nature this way– but only because an awkward, book-smart teenager doing that sets him apart so spectacularly would break the fourth wall. Even then, Peter Parker does not operate in a silo. Like Spidey, each Avenger undertakes their hero’s journey aided in navigating their burgeoning superpowers by human and technological sidekicks. It is only when the Avengers assemble, however, that they have what it takes to save the day. Collaboration and the humility to seek out support are important to true success.

In the three decades since the computer revolution began in earnest, progress has followed Moore’s law and, for the manufacturing sector, given rise to three complementary technologies that, like the Avengers, equip our hero with the ability to fully access the superpowers Big Data affords them. First, advanced technologies have emerged in recent times that can process the vast wealth of data being generated from a growing number of sources. Next, data mining, advanced analytics, machine learning (ML), and artificial intelligence (AI) scrape those data sets to identify correlations and accurate predictions. Thirdly, a scalable and highly elastic cloud architecture has evolved which allows these immense data sets to be scaled up or down depending on the scope of insights needed. These three technologies combine to create a detailed data landscape that can be seen from views as high as Captain Marvel’s space lab, as granular as Antman in the Quantum Realm, or anywhere in between.

This culmination of technologies would represent the critical juncture in our hero’s evolution from brilliant but beleaguered to superhero. The comic’s next panel would show our hero, radiating with newfound power, tossing the crumpled report built from inferred, stripped-down, and summarized data into an overflowing bin. Subsequent pages would create a montage where our hero uncovers the extent of his capabilities.

“To manage and use big data,” says Derek Ong in the podcast, “you’re like Dr. Strange– you can turn back time. You can put the layers back on the onion the way he turned back time from an apple core to the full fresh apple.”

Like Dr. Strange’s dramatic scene in the Infinity Gauntlet series, our hero can traverse space and time to go backward and identify the root cause of an issue, then sift through contextualized data to identify influencing factors and determine the best path forward for achieving success. This origin story would end with our hero peering out over a happily productive facility, hands on hips, and realizing that he could not stop with his own success. Rather than hoarding these powers, our hero’s ongoing mission is to create new superheroes who eschew the old, data-constrictive processes and embrace the power of Big Data already at their fingertips.

ABOUT THE GUEST: DEREK ONG

Derek has over 15 years of experience in the electronics industry. Currently, he spearheads innovation in software applications and Big Data analytics for the Smart Factory and Industry 4.0 applications at Keysight. He received his electrical engineering degree from the University of New Brunswick in Canada.

What was the ‘aha’ moment that started you down the path and influenced you on your journey to where you are now?

It was the moment when I discovered I could help customers realize tangible benefits by demystifying big data analytics, machine learning, AI, and software to create something actionable, applicable, relevant, and practical.

If you hadn’t chosen your current profession, what would you have pursued instead? Why?

I would have studied finance or computer science and then gone into fintech, pay my dues, and ultimately make tons of money while jet-setting the world in business class.

Where can we find you when you’re not innovating the future of technology?

Right now, this is my focus. But I’ll make up for it when I’m retired in Penang having the time of the rest of my life.

LISTEN TO SOURCE DE[CODE] TODAY

Tune into Source De[Code] on your favorite podcast streaming app to follow host Ben Coffin as he slips on his magic decoder ring and translates the secret language of the mystic sciences fueling innovation that influences the future. Visit Source De[Code] online and build your own metaphorical decoder ring with resources that go deeper into topics explored on the podcast. Better yet, take a note from Dr. Strange and put on Kaelcilius’ Sling Ring to open a portal to the Source De[Code] universe at your fingertips by subscribing to the mailing list.