This week our team got to see two of our favorite types of work — and two of our greatest strengths — come together in one assignment for tissue manufacturing client Kruger Inc. An internal communications effort to stem losses due to workplace carelessness and indifference, the "War on Waste" blends our talent for creating a strategic and cohesive campaign with our passion for making the world a better place.

Calling the reduction of waste their "Number 1 business priority," Kruger plant management was experiencing accidents, damaged product, spoilage, inaccurate product volume and other areas of waste at a rate that, if ignored, would have exceeded $3 million by year end. Fortunately, most of the areas of waste were preventable. What was needed was an increased level of awareness and commitment on the part of every employee — an all-out war in which everyone bands together to defeat the enemy.

The first shot in the Kruger "War on Waste" was a series of WWII-themed posters mounted in protective frames and strategically placed throughout the 1.8 million square-foot manufacturing plant. The Dispatch, a biweekly employee newsletter, introduced the campaign, describing and picturing the enemy, laying out battle plans and featuring the heroic efforts of individual workers. Incentives are planned for waste-reducing efforts with a company-wide family picnic as a final celebration when overall goals are achieved.

And as it turns out, war is a fitting theme for the plant. During World War II, it was an important site for building the infamous B-25 bomber planes.