Time for manufacturing sector to go green
The manufacturing sector is creating economic opportunities that contribute to growth and development. however, the sector has been consistently linked to various environmental problems, such as solid waste, air and water pollution. But the sector can be developed to support the United Nations sustainability goals by refocusing efforts to operate sustainably.
Imperative to go green
The Center for energy, ecology and Development (Ceed) said since the manufacturing sector is one of the major sources of pollution and a big contributor to greenhouse-gas emissions, it is only right for the sector to take a greener and more sustainable path.
“It is imperative for the manufacturing sector to go green and contribute in reducing pollution as this sector, besides energy and transport, is one of the major sources of pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions in the country,” Ceed executive Director Gerry Arances told the Businessmirror via Messenger on April 8.
Arances said as major corporations globally are now compelled to do their share in contributing in mitigating the impacts of climate change and stabilization of ecosystems, it is incumbent upon the manufacturing sector in a vulnerable country like the Philippines to do its share with haste.
After all, he said, the manufacturing sector will not be the only one to greatly benefit from going green, but the country as a whole.
Reducing carbon footprint
IT is simply time for the manufacturing sector to go green, said George Santiago, Philippine country manager of RS Components, in his reply to the Businessmirror when asked on how the sector can be part of the solution on environmental woes.
RS Components, a global solutions partner for industrial customers in designing, building or maintaining industrial equipment and facilities, believes that the use of innovation and technologies to integrate sustainable practices are essential to make sure the industry is reducing its carbon footprint and becoming more energy efficient.
The company provides a choice of industrial and electronic products as well as innovative solutions. It aims to make it easy to do business through the firm’s e-commerce platform.
RS Components is the trading name of electrocomponents, headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It has over 7,000 employees worldwide and is present in key markets across Asia Pacific, including the Philippines.
Right tech, solutions; aligning with SDGS
ACCORDING to Santiago, implementing technologies like automation and Industry 4.0 solutions throughout operations enable manufacturers to experience productivity and efficiency, in addition to reducing energy consumption and lowering emissions.
“We are raising awareness and helping customers to identify and access the right technologies and solutions for these types of requirements,” he said.
he said that while the Philippine government has committed to reducing its greenhouse-gas emissions by 70 percent by 2030, the company’s goal is to help the manufacturing and industrial customers to contribute to the drive and meet their own sustainability and energy efficiency targets.
he said there is now a greater focus among businesses and manufacturers on sustainability issues and opportunities to reduce their carbon footprint and become more energy efficient.
“Many organizations, including RS, are aligning with the UN’S Sustainable Development Goals, too,”he said. Santiago said in order to keep emissions down, changes must be made in various businesses, transport and manufacturing industries to be more sustainable and environmentally friendly.
“Adopting green approaches to cities and implementing strategic practices will make the change happen faster,” he said.
The United Nations environment Programme includes climate change, resource efficiency, chemicals and waste and air pollution among its priorities in the Asia Pacific, Santiago noted.
“From my perspective as one working in industrial distribution, it’s important for manufacturers to also look at how or where they are sourcing raw materials because it can significantly reduce their carbon footprint. Sourcing locally or regionally helps firms minimize their footprint and transport costs, compared to sourcing from international sources that require further or longer transport,” he explained.
Reducing pollution contribution
IN the Philippines, as the government is pushing for more manufacturers to practice sustainable operations, a roadmap was developed to guide manufacturers forward, touching on steps encouraging product and process innovation. That was in 2015, Santiago said.
“We’ve already seen some firms in six different manufacturing industries adopting this roadmap, including automotive, pulp and paper, plastic, furniture, housing and copper,“he said.
“on top of this roadmap, Philippines Green Jobs Act of 2016 gives incentives to companies that reduce energy consumption and minimize waste and pollution,” he said.
Santiago said manufacturers and procurement specialists are interested in becoming more sustainable with their operations.
“To support our customers’ initiatives to minimize emissions we stock products locally. For example, in Southeast Asia, we hold stock in Singapore. We also host energy efficiency conferences. our last one was held in Cagayan de oro in which we saw great interest from Philippine manufacturers to go green,” he said.
Local initiatives
SANTIAGO said the firm’s local technical and sourcing staff help customers select compliant products or quality alternatives, such as LED bulbs and sensors, so they can achieve energy efficiency and improve productivity levels in their plants and facilities.
“We also have esolutions and eprocurement solutions to give customers better control and visibility over their supply chain, ultimately reducing wastage on their end,” Santiago said.
“Customers’carbon footprint shrinks when they leverage their eprocurement solution as it eliminates the need to travel back and forth to the warehouse to get a hold of products,” he added.
Customers also benefit from the transparency of having purchasing data accessible online, allowing better planning of procurement, managing costs, and less wastage.
Accountability, social acceptability
Leon DULCE, national coordinator of the Kalikasan-people’s Network for the environment (Kalikasan-pne), underscored the need for environmental accountability.
“The manufacturing sector should be accountable for its entire value and supply chain. The sourcing of raw materials could be coming from destructive large-scale mines or agribusiness land-grabs,” Dulce, told the Businessmirror via Messenger on April 8.
For one, he said the semi-processing and other value-adding could be operating pollutive factories in areas where regulations are lax.
“The packaging could be using cheap but wasteful plastic materials,” Dulce added.
Finally, he said the sector should be obliged to do environmental due diligence across its value chain. “They must ensure 100 percent responsible sourcing and adhere to the highest standards of environmental and social-acceptability compliance,” he said.