Towards a sustainable industrial system
With recommendations for education, research, industry and policy
Background
It is now widely accepted that manufacturing industries are having a major influence on the deterioration of the global environment. Some experts suggest the industrial system can account for 30% or more of greenhouse gas generation in industrialised countries. Businesses, governments and consumers are beginning to react, but the complexity of the problem and diversity of views, make it difficult to identify widely acceptable courses of action. This confusion occurs at a time when the window of opportunity for action is rapidly closing. The academic community has the opportunity, indeed arguably the responsibility, to contribute to the discussion and to the formulation of courses of action. Whilst climate change and environmental experts have made substantial contributions, there are major opportunities for academics concerned with the design and operation of the industrial system to use their particular expertise. This paper therefore seeks to highlight opportunities for the academic community to contribute to the development of sustainable, global industrial systems. It does not provide all the answers but hopefully provides a platform for an informed debate about the future shape of these systems, and identifies possible routes to achieve them.
The report, published in September 2009, calls for a collaborative effort by academics, teachers, industrialists and policy makers to create a sustainable, global industrial system. The report's lead authors are Professor Steve Evans of Cranfield University, Professor Margareta Norell Bergendahl of the KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden, Professor Mike Gregory of Cambridge University Institute for Manufacturing and Professor Chris Ryan of the University of Melbourne.
It builds on discussions at the International Manufacturing Professors' Symposium and the UK Manufacturing Professors' Forum. Leading professors from the fields of design, production, operations management and service science gathered with thought leaders from industry and professional organisations to attempt to chart the route to a more integrated and mature understanding of sustainable industrial systems. The report presents cases where industry is already taking action towards more sustainable systems.
These web pages provide a summary of the report. The full version is available as a free download from this website. Printed copies are available for purchase from the Institute for Manufacturing.
Executive summary
The industrial system has been responsible for raising the quality of life of peoples around the world. It is becoming increasingly clear however, that the current system is creating unintended and serious consequences for the environment at a global level. Change on a significant scale is required urgently.
Some businesses are already engaged in reducing their impact through the introduction of new products, processes and business models. Academics concerned with the industrial system have a responsibility to study these emerging models, to interact with them and to synthesise
and spread the knowledge.
Whilst it is important to address the impact of each aspect of the industrial system and to pursue aggressive reduction of the effects of specific activities, we must also examine the operation of the whole system. Only in this way can we hope to bring the benefits of industrialisation to those who have not yet experienced them without exceeding the limits of our planet.
This paper presents cases where industry is already taking action, and argues that:
- dramatic improvements can be made by deploying existing expertise at the level of individual businesses
- relying on technology alone to make the industrial system sustainable is a trap we must avoid
- collaborative engagement of academics is essential to tackle the challenge of reorganising the industrial system
Teachers and researchers, consumers and producers, and practitioners and policy-makers all have the opportunity to shape a future industrial system.
What such a system will look like is still unclear and the journey uncertain. This paper does not provide all the answers but offers a platform for informed debate. The case studies highlight examples of changing industrial practice that illustrate the scale of potential improvement.
It considers the implications of these examples and makes recommendations for education, policy, research and practice.
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