Companies falling short on environmental impact reductions

Report indicates greater awareness of need for green and efficiency initiatives across supply chains, but lack of leadership and standardized sustainability metrics hamper efforts.

Manufacturing Business Technology Staff -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 8/7/2009 2:59:53 PM

According to a new study by the Business Performance Management (BPM) Forum and E2open, a provider of visibility, collaboration, and control solutions, it appears that operations, logistics and supply chain executives need a better understanding of how to go green and save green across complex, global, multi-tiered supply and distribution networks.

78% of companies rate the level of synergy and accountability in their global trading network as suboptimal.

Ninety percent of supply chain and operations professionals surveyed say their management subscribes to enhanced trading partner visibility, flexibility and sustainability across the entire supply and demand chain, yet nearly two-thirds have marginal or no visibility across all tiers and levels of their value chain. Even more concerning is the fact that 78% of companies rate the level of synergy and accountability in their global trading network as suboptimal.

The study, "Acceleration of ECO-Operation: Achieving Success & Sustainability in the Supply Chain," gathered insights from more than 125 supply chain, operations, finance, and executive professionals around the world across multiple industries. It set out to measure and quantify how companies are managing the complexities of supply chain demands, distribution costs and environmental concerns. The research was conducted in Q2 2009.

The study looks at progress in achieving optimal visibility, collaboration, and sustainability throughout the multiple layers of supply and demand chain networks. Among the key findings of the study are:

* The top benefits achieved through better ECO-Operation programs include more environmental responsibility, better sustainability compliance, more efficient product manufacturing and better customer responsiveness
* Lack of leadership, visibility and standardized sustainability metrics are holding companies back from achieving bottom line benefit;
* 42 percent of companies have yet to consider carbon footprint or greenhouse gas emissions across their entire extended supply chain;
* 76 percent of respondents say their customers have not requested information on carbon and emissions containment, but two-thirds expect customers to demand this in the next year;
* More than half of respondents say that their competitors use sustainability practices for competitive advantage;
* An overwhelming 85 percent of respondents say they are actively involved in new programs that drive operational efficiency, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and cost-savings across supply and demand chains.

Visit the website for more information and to download the new ECO-Operation report.

 

Roberto Michel blog posting: Davos watchers: the environment will lose out the economy in 2009