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Sustainable Industrial Systems

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a plant in Canada



Towards a sustainable industrial system
With recommendations for education, research, industry and policy

Case study evidence

There are many examples of changing industrial practice. We have chosen a range of cases that illustrate the scale of potential improvement and cover a range of sectors and operational scales. We do not claim that these examples are either best practice or ultimately sustainable. Notwithstanding the significant levels of improvement the companies have achieved, each recognises that they are at the early stages of a long journey. In their different ways they have each looked into the future and identified a need to change, and targeted key aspects of their business for change. These cases are a first step in creating a library of such cases, for use by all industrial academics and practitioners. If you want to add your own example please email David Morgan for a proforma.


  • VITSÅ’: timeless designs that encourage reuse
  • Brandix: factory goes green
  • Philips: designing for green
  • Xerox: managing documents not printing copies

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