Selecting Sustainable Manufacturers

Building and maintaining sustainable stores is becoming a top priority for retailers, as green initiatives impact practically every executive decision. When retail executives can track tangible cost reductions to sustainable practices, adopting sustainable processes becomes a no-brainer.

By encouraging distribution centers to increase the reuse of boxes, Gap estimates it will cut its cardboard supply in half, saving an estimated $3.5 million annually. Wal-Mart unplugged lights in break room vending machines and saved $1.4 million. Retailers are looking for truly sustainable products, materials and processes with the smallest environmental impact — and the biggest impact on the bottom line.

As the focus on store-wide sustainability skyrockets, IT executives are bombarded with inflated green claims. How can they look beyond the sheen of superficial claims and one-off press releases to identify manufacturers that lead the way in developing true product lifecycle sustainability?

Being a sustainable manufacturer is a “cradle-to-grave” operational commitment. Green practices can’t be applied in only one part of the manufacturer’s business cycle (like designing energy-efficient products) and ignored in purchasing, manufacturing, delivery and recycling. Truly sustainable manufacturers maintain a lifecycle commitment to build and deliver environmentally friendly products in everything they do, all while incorporating sustainability into worldwide activities to achieve gold-star conservation standards.

IT executives can look to international organizations to rank manufacturers according to sustainability leadership. The Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) are the world’s first equity benchmark to track the financial performance of sustainability leaders on a global scale. It identifies leading companies in terms of economic, environmental and social issues. Leading sustainability companies display high levels of competence in addressing global and industry challenges in a variety of areas, and the DJSI supports the idea that corporate sustainability performance is an investable concept.

Green practices across the board
Sustainability at the product level begins with thoughtful design. Do the manufacturer’s engineers consider the lifecycle of the product from the onset? Does the company consider energy consumption, resource saving (recyclable rates, reduction in cost and impact of assembly and disassembly) and elimination of harmful substances? If the manufacturer’s research, development and design teams fully consider lifecycle planning as part of the product’s design process, IT executives can be more confident that the finished product will be highly sustainable, offer substantial savings throughout its useful life and lower the cost of ownership.

IT executives should ask manufacturers if they maintain 100 percent green purchasing – meaning all components, raw materials and packaging materials. In addition, IT executives should take notice of products that meet — and steer clear of those that don’t meet — industry standards like RoHS and REACH, which regulate use of harmful substances and ensure that products comply with global environmental requirements.

Measurable ROI
A sustainable manufacturer also uses sustainable transportation methods and participates in programs like SmartWay Transport, a collaboration between the EPA and the freight industry designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution during product distribution.

Sustainable manufacturers also comply with Zero Emissions, an initiative proposed by the United Nations University aimed at limiting the generation of wastes and implementing higher levels of recycling. Company-wide zero emissions activities and 100 percent recycling of all waste generated worldwide are excellent indicators that a manufacturer is compliant with the industry’s highest standards when it comes to product development and sustainability.

At the end of the day, “going green” should translate to measurable ROI in the form of more efficient store operations, lower costs, increased standards compliance and, potentially, even higher revenues by attracting shoppers who strive to purchase from responsible retailers. IT executives have an important role to play in the sustainable store of the future. By selecting truly sustainable manufacturers, IT executives can make significant contributions to retail store operations, the retail balance sheet and the retail brand.