ARC Advisory Group on September 15 announced an important new strategy report that summarizes the major environmental and business benefits that can be gained by implementing sustainable manufacturing practices. According to the report, in addition to reducing a manufacturer’s environmental footprint, these practices can help reduce energy and raw material costs, reduce risk, reduce costs associated with future carbon or other emissions taxes, improve public image, and increase customer acceptance.
According to the report’s author, Greg Gorbach, vice president of collaborative manufacturing at ARC, “Sustainable manufacturing is as much about improving business performance as it is about being environmentally responsible, since the two clearly go hand in hand. In the future, a company’s market valuation will be directly tied to how well that company has mastered sustainable manufacturing practices.”
“There’s no question in my mind that manufacturing executives around the globe understand the importance of operating their enterprises in a more environment- and resource-friendly manner, not just for the future success of their companies, but also for the health and well-being of future generations,” said Andy Chatha, ARC Advisory Group president and founder. “Unfortunately, while some companies have actually begun to implement sustainable manufacturing practices, often this is being done in a piecemeal manner. Many other companies are taking a ‘wait and see’ approach. Part of the problem is a lack of relevant information and functional models that apply to real-world manufacturing environments. Our focus at ARC today, is to fill this information void and help manufacturers better understand how today’s advanced automation technology, information technology, and management approaches can be applied in a cohesive manner to help jump start their sustainable manufacturing efforts.”
ARC’s Strategy Report, “Sustainable Manufacturing: Remaking Today’s Manufacturing Enterprise for Tomorrow’s Economy,” is directed at executives in both the process and discrete manufacturing industries. Readers can download a copy of the 40-page report at no charge from the ARC Web site at www.arcweb.com/res/forumorl/.
A related ARC Advisory Group strategy report, “Understanding the Kyoto Protocol,” is now also available. This report was authored by Steve Clouther, vice president of Enterprise Applications at ARC. For more information about either report, or to learn more about ARC’s upcoming, “Best Practices for Sustainable Manufacturing Forum,” February 2-5, 2009 in Orlando, Fla., readers can contact ARC Advisory Group at 781-471-1000 or visit www.arcweb.com.