SUSSEX, Wis., Feb. 1 -- Quad/Graphics, the world's largest privately held commercial printer, has become the first corporation in the printing and publishing industry to join the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) SmartWay(SM) Transport Partnership, a collaborative voluntary program to increase the environmental performance of freight shippers. Members of the partnership agree to utilize SmartWay-recommended techniques to increase the energy efficiency and energy security of our country. Consequently, SmartWay Partners significantly reduce air pollution while saving money for their operations. Quad/Graphics -- which has been using emission-reducing and efficiency-enhancing methods in its distribution operations for close to a decade -- just officially became a "qualified member" of the SmartWay Partnership. The "qualified" status of its membership signifies that the printer has demonstrated "superior environmental performance" according to the EPA. The process to become "qualified" took Quad/Graphics nearly two years -- first measuring the greenhouse gas emissions of its operations and then developing and implementing a plan to reduce those emissions even further. Measures taken by the printer included switching over to aerodynamic trucks, implementing anti-idling technology and installing small diesel engines that heat and cool the cab of the truck so drivers do not have to keep the entire truck running while parked. The smaller engines consume just one pint of fuel per hour -- one-eighth as much as the entire gallon used by an average truck engine. Using an EPA formula, Quad/Graphics calculated it reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 9,614 tons via SmartWay-recommended techniques in 2004 alone. This is the equivalent of taking 1,888 passenger cars off the road for a year. "Because Quad/Graphics owns and operates an extensive fleet of trucks, joining SmartWay was an environmentally responsible action to take," said Joel Quadracci, President & COO of Quad/Graphics. "We are proud to be the first in the printing industry to become a SmartWay Partner and we hope, for the environment's sake, that other companies will soon follow suit." By 2012, the initiative aims to reduce between 33 million and 66 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions per year. EPA officials also project SmartWay Partners will realize fuel savings of up to 150 million barrels of oil annually -- the equivalent of removing approximately 12 million cars from our nation's roadways.