Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Going Green and its Impact on SCM

Going Green!

Large companies are increasingly adopting environmental stability as one of their mandates and are making conscious efforts to improve their processes. These companies are taking a big-picture approach. They are applying green supply chain management practices at every step of their product life-cycle. A few of these companies and their goals and methods are discussed in this write-up.
  • eBay Eco-Initiatives

eBay is an online retail and auction site people all over the world use to exchange and reuse goods rather than throwing them away. This practice helps in lengthening the lifespan of these products.

They also have local community classified sections which can be used by local people to sell and re-sell larger household appliances and furniture. This ingenious process eliminates the need for shipping and packaging, and keeps functional items out of landfills.

Further, to reduce the environmental of shipping goods from one use to the other, the company partnered with the United States Postal Service (USPS). Together, eBay and the USPS created a co-branded line of environmentally friendly Priority Mail packaging that has earned Cradle-to-Cradle™ certification.

  • Starbucks Stores Go Green

Starbucks is focusing on creating green stores and has been able to reduce both operating costs and the environmental impact of its business practices. The company’s green building strategy includes adjusting the temperature in air-conditioned stores from the standard 72°F to 75°F, purchasing cabinetry made with 90% post-industrial material and incorporating low-flow water valves.

  • Walmart’s Environment Sustainability Goals
    • To be supplied 100% by renewable energy
    • To create zero waste
    • To sell products that sustain people and the environment
  • HP

Hewlett-Packard says it will decrease its first-tier manufacturing and product transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions intensity 20 percent by 2020, compared to 2010. 

'Going Green!' initiatives will definitely impact the future of diverse supply chains and how they are managed; I am curious to see how many of these companies actually stick to their mandates and actually implement these business process changes in the future. 


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