How Can the Idea of the Sustainable Supply Chain Help Your Business?
I just learned about a concept that is not well-known yet, but you will be hearing more about it in the next few years - the sustainable supply chain.
The concept stems from the idea that we will run out of natural resources in the next few decades if we continue to use them up at the current rate.
As more emerging markets develop, their use of natural resources will increase, further creating pressure on the amount of natural resources our planet has.
The whole idea of a sustainable supply chain is to reduce costs while helping the environment.
Sustainability could be a tremendous weapon for companies to reduce costs.
It could form the starting point of thinking how to make a product that uses less energy than current similar products.
How can your business re-engineer its products and the way you use them to make them cheaper to use? Is your business using its waste in ways can save your company money? Waste is material and supplies that are paid for, and subsequently rendered useless.
It can mean different things to different businesses.
It can be excess food that you buy for your food business that can be made into a different food product for sale.
Or it can mean buying fewer products and using each one in more than one way or more than one time.
It can be a re-design of your packaging to use fewer materials.
It involves time and creativity but it can lead to more money in your pocket.
Environmental issues can also be a catalyst for how you transport your products.
Is there a way that you can pack more onto the trucks you use? Can you find a local supplier so that your transportation costs go down? There is a lot of help for you to tap if you want to develop your own sustainable supply chain.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has written a guide called the "The Lean and Green Supply Chain: A Practical Guide for Materials Managers and Supply Chain Managers to Reduce Costs and Improve Environmental Performance.
" New Jersey has Sustainable Jersey, a program for municipalities to go green and save money.
This can give your business ideas of how to save money and develop products that these municipalities will want to buy.
Check with your local colleges to find out what courses they have developed to teach the latest ideas in sustainable supply chains.
There are sustainability consultants and non-profit agencies that can give you inspiration and provide networking opportunities to brainstorm new action ideas.
Your local utility company may offer some programs to help you curb your energy use (these programs may be mandated by state law but you get the benefit).
Or you can try to find a program those results in a "green" certification.
When you take the courses to get certified, you will learn new methods to go green and you will have classmates who may have ideas that you can adapt for your business.
At some point in the future, we may all be using sustainable supply chains to help the planet and save our businesses money.
If you start thinking of sustainable supply chains now, you can be on the cutting edge of new business practices and new products.
It is a win-win for you.
The concept stems from the idea that we will run out of natural resources in the next few decades if we continue to use them up at the current rate.
As more emerging markets develop, their use of natural resources will increase, further creating pressure on the amount of natural resources our planet has.
The whole idea of a sustainable supply chain is to reduce costs while helping the environment.
Sustainability could be a tremendous weapon for companies to reduce costs.
It could form the starting point of thinking how to make a product that uses less energy than current similar products.
How can your business re-engineer its products and the way you use them to make them cheaper to use? Is your business using its waste in ways can save your company money? Waste is material and supplies that are paid for, and subsequently rendered useless.
It can mean different things to different businesses.
It can be excess food that you buy for your food business that can be made into a different food product for sale.
Or it can mean buying fewer products and using each one in more than one way or more than one time.
It can be a re-design of your packaging to use fewer materials.
It involves time and creativity but it can lead to more money in your pocket.
Environmental issues can also be a catalyst for how you transport your products.
Is there a way that you can pack more onto the trucks you use? Can you find a local supplier so that your transportation costs go down? There is a lot of help for you to tap if you want to develop your own sustainable supply chain.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has written a guide called the "The Lean and Green Supply Chain: A Practical Guide for Materials Managers and Supply Chain Managers to Reduce Costs and Improve Environmental Performance.
" New Jersey has Sustainable Jersey, a program for municipalities to go green and save money.
This can give your business ideas of how to save money and develop products that these municipalities will want to buy.
Check with your local colleges to find out what courses they have developed to teach the latest ideas in sustainable supply chains.
There are sustainability consultants and non-profit agencies that can give you inspiration and provide networking opportunities to brainstorm new action ideas.
Your local utility company may offer some programs to help you curb your energy use (these programs may be mandated by state law but you get the benefit).
Or you can try to find a program those results in a "green" certification.
When you take the courses to get certified, you will learn new methods to go green and you will have classmates who may have ideas that you can adapt for your business.
At some point in the future, we may all be using sustainable supply chains to help the planet and save our businesses money.
If you start thinking of sustainable supply chains now, you can be on the cutting edge of new business practices and new products.
It is a win-win for you.
