Can companies profit from greener manufacturing?

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the trend and effect of environmentally friendly manufacturing on the financial performance of companies in the European automotive and pharmaceutical industries. Specific attention was given to resource utilization.

Design/methodology/approach

The method of research was a survey of annual and sustainability reports published by companies and recording the change in resource usage as well as the financial performance of the companies.

Findings

The study showed no significant relationship between greener manufacturing and corporate performance, however a trend in decreasing resources, specifically electricity, was found. Furthermore, a trend in reducing CO₂ was found.

Research limitations/implications

The lack of available data was a significant obstacle in finding a trend and a meaningful relationship. Furthermore, the data that was published was restated in following reports to account for divestments or acquisitions. For further research, case studies on solely the production process of a company should be conducted and specific costs and benefits relevant to the production process need to be found.

Originality/value

This paper aims to quantify the growing trend of environmentally conscious production in European companies.

Citation

Menzel, V., Smagin, J. and David, F. (2010), "Can companies profit from greener manufacturing?", Measuring Business Excellence, Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 22-31. https://doi.org/10.1108/13683041011047830