Milliken Men

Mike Baird and Cassidy Carlile, Milliken & Company

By Stefanie Caraviello

More than half-a-century of experience exists between these two men, who work for a company that has devoted more than 100 years in finding alternative uses for manufacturing waste, and is a certified carbon-negative manufacturer.

Cassidy Carlile has worked at Milliken for 23 years and is the director of the Corporate Environmental Department. Mike Baird has been with the company 30 years and is the director of the Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling Program. Today, these Milliken men are using their decades of experience to help a company that’s already rich in environmental stewardship become even more eco-friendly.

Cassidy Carlile began his Milliken career as a college summer intern at the Abbeville plant. After graduating from the University of Florida, he was offered a full-time job in Milliken’s chemical division at the Dewey Plant in Inman, S.C.

For Mike Baird, Milliken was a second career. He first taught school at Spartanburg High, where he opened the economic department and helped develop a state program for economic education. A friend, who worked at Milliken, suggested Baird should give the company a try. He went for an interview, received an offer and began work at the Gaffney, S.C. plant.

Water is circulated through a sculpture fountain, which also serves as the cooling tower for Milliken’s air conditioning system.

Today, both men are responsible for carrying out Milliken’s environmental mantra to operate “with respect for our earth,” which is Milliken’s mandate to responsibly use natural resources and reduce the company’s imprint on the environment.

Carlile deeply values this mission. “I’d say environmental is more than just an initiative. It’s a core value. So, it’s an integral part of what I do here at Milliken.”

Baird says because environmental protection is part of the Milliken culture, it’s easy to get people on board. “People have an interest in being a part of a company that is environmentally conscious and interested in doing the right thing.”

Part of Baird’s job is to keep waste from going into landfills. It’s a continuous project that’s already had tremendous success. Worldwide, Milliken recycles 99 percent of its solid waste. Less than one percent is landfilled. Baird says it hasn’t been easy getting to that 99 percent level. “There’s always that low hanging fruit. Some of the more difficult things to work with have been, for example, biosolids from wastewater treatments. Our engineers have figured out a way for us to use that as a fuel, which is replacing coal,” said Baird.

Milliken isn’t afraid to spend money to achieve its mission of eliminating waste to landfills.

	Milliken headquarters in Spartanburg sits on more than 600 acres of manicured green space – one of the largest corporate green spaces in the Southeast and home to a nationally recognized arboretum.

“There are certainly things in the environmental area that we have taken a more costly approach in order to do the right thing for the long term,” said Carlile “Part of not sending things to the landfill is an example of that. The waste that we can’t recycle goes to a waste-to-energy facility where we pay to have that dealt with. It’s more expensive, but we believe it’s the right thing to do.”

Landfill reduction is just one of Milliken’s many environmental accomplishments. Energy use has reduced by 30 percent annually since 1991. Water use has reduced by more than 50 percent in the past two decades.

In fact, Milliken reuses its water to help air condition the corporate headquarters in Spartanburg, S.C. The fountains, duck ponds and waterfalls all are on a continuous recirculating circuit. The water is circulated through a sculpture fountain (pictured), which also serves as the cooling tower for the building’s air conditioning system.

Carlile believes how the environmental measures are conducted at the corporate headquarters is important in sending the right message. “I think Milliken has walked the walk in the environmental area for a long time, long before we were even thinking about it. So it makes it easier to do things because it’s part of the culture.”

The sheer size of Milliken’s worldwide operations is helping achieve the environmental mission on a global scale. Milliken has 30 facilities in the United States and 10 international facilities. “There are literally thousands and thousands of projects across the company. There’s a lot of work and a lot of innovative things we share across the company,” said Carlile.

Baird says this institutional knowledge base helps Milliken achieve zero waste generation regarding land, air and water. “We know there is going to be some quantity or byproduct associated. So we take a look at our pyramid, and if you can’t eliminate it, you reuse it. We just keep trying to eliminate an item from the landfill to waste energy to recycling and then reused in the next cycle.” said Baird. Carlile says at the end of the day, it’s not just about what Milliken is doing, it’s about protecting the future.

“Every society and every individual should have the idea of zero waste generation. It’s hard to achieve, but if everybody can move in that direction, eventually we will get to a place that will improve the environment as a whole and ensure things are available for future generations.”

Stefanie Caraviello is the multimedia managing editor at the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.