Sustainability in Manufacturing and Product Design
In the following chapter the author describes some main issues of sustainability in manufacturing and product design. The reasons and benefits of the implementation of sustainability in the working process of some great world companies are also described. The author gives a list of benefits, saying at least one paragraph about each of them, naming companies which has already implemented them as examples just for the readers to realize the main idea.
The list consists of such notions as saving energy, uncovering innovations that provide competitive advantage, eliminating waste, shutting out of large markets and so on (Hitchcock and Willard 56). The author also stresses the existence of two categories of practices which help to avoid danger for manufacturing sector. These categories are called product design and operations. Practices belonging to each category are given and analyzed in the chapter.
Facilities: How to Save Energy and Water, Improve Productivity and Reduce Waste
The chapter describes right and effective use of the resources for the benefit of the owner. The author stresses the fact that buildings cost a lot to organizations, however it depends on the facility manager to make them sustainable. The author also warns common facility manager from making some mistakes and in the manner peculiar for this book gives a list of mistakes to avoid, suggesting 4 most common of them.
They are wasting energy, being pound foolish, making people sick and paying twice (Hitchcock and Willard 154). In short words the author explains why it is important not to make them. The list of usual functions of the facility managers is given in the chapter and it serves to distribute pieces of advice given by the author to some categories. The great number of possible improvements of usual facilities is given.
Information Technology: How to Save Energy, Reduce Waste and Facilitate the Transition to a Low-Impact Operation
These two chapters focus on the influence of the environment and people working in departments which main duty is to deal with the environmental and health care affairs. In chapter X the author underlines the ambivalent character of IT technologies. Being very useful, they allow people to make less efforts in order to achieve some goal.
However, they also have negative impact on health and environment. The author describes main dangers which come from IT technologies. The list consist of information overload, energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, toxic exposure, waste accumulation and the digital divide (Hitchcock and Willard 203). It is easy to understand that the author also gives some strategies to make the influence of IT technologies less negative, concentrating on the idea of making these technologies more effective while being less cost-based.
Continuing to develop environmental issue, the author mentions the importance of the personnel which work in corresponding departments. Being well educated and having some useful technical knowledge, they can provide better functioning for the company helping top management with their pieces of advice. However, they can also meet some obstacles to overcome and the list of the main common hurdles is given.
It consists of such notions as technical jargon being beyond compliance, feel-good activities, voices of doom, getting overwhelmed and so on (Hitchcock and Willard 218). The author suggests to add some new principles to the usual activities of these groups of workers to make their work more effective and substantial.
In conclusion, the author underlines the great role environmental affairs play in the sustainability of any company, however warning environmental departments of being careful and not taking too much responsibility.
Works Cited
Hitchcock, D. and Marsha W. The Business Guide to Sustainability. 2009. Web.