Supply Chain Management Essay example

Sustainability
Through the Value
Chain
A Focused Study on Greening a Product Through the
Various Stages of the Value Chain

Greening an entire value chain within a company can seem like an overwhelming task, it’s important to prioritize where you can make the most impact and start with focused and more attainable goals to get going. This paper will cover the process of greening a company’s value chain, but through a smaller, more manageable scope: making a single product’s supply chain more sustainable. Readers will learn how to evaluate a product’s carbon footprint and understand the opportunities for reducing that product’s environmental impacts. The paper will then explore ways to best implement these changes, detail some associated costs and benefits, and review a successful case study. Finally, it will provide actionable steps upon which companies can start or continue the journey toward reducing environmental impacts of their operations.

Diana B. Wilkinson
March 2013

2

Contents

Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................... 3

Greening Your Product’s Value Chain ............................................................................................. 4
The Life Cycle Assessment .................................................................................................................. 5
Understanding the Life Cycle Assessment................................................................................ 5
Dimensions of a Life Cycle Assessment ..................................................................................... 6

Opportunities for Operational Changes ......................................................................................... 7
Raw Materials ...................................................................................................................................... 7

Packaging .............................................................................................................................................. 8
Transportation .................................................................................................................................... 8
End of Life Disposal ........................................................................................................................... 9
External Partners ............................................................................................................................... 9

Standards and Measurements ........................................................................................................ 10

ISO Standard ..................................................................................................................................... 11
SCOR Model ....................................................................................................................................... 11

Implementation in Supply Chain Management ........................................................................ 13
Best Practices.................................................................................................................................... 13

Operational Advantages and Challenges .................................................................................... 14

Benefits ............................................................................................................................................... 14
Operational Challenges ................................................................................................................. 15

Case Study: UPM ................................................................................................................................... 15
Green Initiatives

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