Assessment of the current state of sustainability in a manufacturing firm
International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management
ISSN: 1741-0401
Article publication date: 6 January 2021
Issue publication date: 8 April 2022
Abstract
Purpose
Sustainable manufacturing is gaining prominence in light of the rising environmental and social concerns worldwide. One major task to enhance manufacturing sustainability is assessment of the current state of sustainability of a manufacturing firm. This paper reviews the existing sustainability assessment approaches applicable for manufacturing firms and observes that most of these approaches are not easy to apply for reasons such as high amount of skill, data and time requirement. Towards bridging this gap, this study proposes a sustainability assessment approach.
Design/methodology/approach
The assessment approach proposed in the paper uses a predefined list of potential sustainable manufacturing practices (SMPs) covering the primary and support activity domains of a manufacturing firm's value chain. It proposes a method to assess the extent of implementation of SMPs and identify associated drivers and barriers for each SMP area/category along the value chain of a firm as well as at overall firm level. A case study from textile industry is presented to demonstrate the utility of this approach.
Findings
The sustainability assessment approach adopted in this study uses less time and skills as well as ensures comprehensive coverage of SMPs. It provided valuable information to the management of the case company on how sustainable their practices are and why?
Originality/value
The study highlights the importance of sustainability assessment at SMP area/category level as well as explores practice area/category specific drivers and barriers. It provides a useful approach for a quick assessment of the current state of sustainability in manufacturing firms.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to express their gratitude to the respondents of the case company for participating in this research and for their valuable inputs and time. We also thank the anonymous referees for their valuable feedback to improve the paper.
Citation
Pande, B. and Adil, G.K. (2022), "Assessment of the current state of sustainability in a manufacturing firm", International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Vol. 71 No. 4, pp. 1254-1276. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPPM-04-2020-0151
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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