Infor launches green and sustainability programs
By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 12/14/2007 8:26:00 AM
Enterprise systems supplier Infor announces Going Green, an initiative to educate customers on how Infor software can help them achieve their green and sustainability goals, including:
1) Reducing energy consumption through enterprise asset management (EAM);
2) Decreasing carbon footprint through supply chain management (SCM); and
3) Using product life-cycle management (PLM) to minimize landfill waste and the environmental impact of product manufacturing.
Infor offers a new Web site that is dedicated to helping manufacture “going green,” including white papers, Webinars, podcasts, and product information.
Organizations are implementing green programs to decrease waste and improve asset utilization, maintain compliance with government regulations, and reduce energy and materials costs. There also is growing demand from consumers for products created and distributed in harmony with the precepts of environmental stewardship and social responsibility.
Enterprise software can help organizations address both of these concerns.
“The common thread for organizations that are going green is the need to meet sustainability objectives and drive a return-on-investment,” says Melissa Puls, senior director of solutions marketing for Infor. “These objectives aren’t mutually exclusive. Infor is focusing its efforts to help customers achieve both.”
Infor EAM helps organizations drive efficiencies in asset utilization, leading to improved performance and reduced energy consumption. Through Infor EAM, organizations can track the energy consumption of individual assets to identify underperforming equipment and take corrective action that results in cost-savings and energy conservation. Through preventive maintenance programs, Infor EAM helps organizations keep assets in optimal condition, extending their life and reducing waste.
As globalization continues to drive longer and more complex supply chains, organizations are striving to minimize the carbon impact of their distribution activities while simultaneously improving their service levels and total cost to supply. Infor SCM software can led to reductions in carbon footprint and maximize cost efficiencies in areas such as supply chain design, planning and execution, and warehouse management. Infor SCM allows customers to model and optimize transportation networks to reduce fuel usage and carbon emissions. Using forecasting tools, organizations can predict customer demand to minimize excess inventory, reducing the waste associated with manufacturing, distributing and stocking unneeded products.
Infor PLM provides visibility into the environmental impact of products, such as landfill content and hazardous material exposure that are relevant to government regulations like the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive and the Clean Water Act. Infor PLM helps manage this throughout the production life cycle, enabling manufacturers to maintain socially responsible supplier networks. Interactive feedback throughout the product life cycle helps minimize compliance exposure and can enhance products by allowing manufacturers to design green considerations into materials and manufacturing processes. Additionally, Infor PLM can help reduce nonvalue-added material content or dematerialization, which improves the carbon footprint of the manufacturer.
Infor’s other products that help customers go green include Infor ERP and Infor Performance Management (PM). Among other benefits, Infor ERP helps organizations integrate and optimize manufacturing processes, resulting in reduced energy consumption and less material waste. Infor PM enables organizations to develop and model green strategies, align the strategies with the necessary resources, and then monitor key performance indicators to support continued success and compliance.
