Design-for-Environment
Mitsubishi Electric
One of the more promising applications of systems thinking is a product take-back program soon to be initiated in Japan. In a join venture with the government, Mitsubishi Electric is establishing a network of 46 centers to receive and recycle used electric and electronic products of all kinds, from all manufacturers. Part of the benefit will be recycling. But the highest payback may be the feedback knowledge gained. Mitsubishi Electric is developing sophisticated software to analyze all the products they receive, competing brands as well as their own. Information about the life cycle costs of these products will be fed to their Design for Environment program, as well as product development staff. Product take-back may not only help enable them to constantly improve their designs; it could give them a competitive edge as well.Mitsubishi Electric also took an additional step that reflects principles of industrial ecology. They recently combined their quality management and environmental management programs into one, broadening our definition of quality to encompass the full life of their products, from cradle to cradle.
Because Mitsubishi Electric program combined product take-back with design-for-environment, the United Nations awarded the company its Habitat II award, for business practices that foster sustainable development.
Procter & Gamble
P&G was one of the first corporations to put the "E" into TQM. A corporate brochure states that: "Environmental quality management is a never ending journey of continuous improvement. Total Quality Management creates the systemic changes needed to successfully make that journey." Five components of P&G's programs that are integral to the improvements that have been made are: 1) plant and division waste assessments to track discharges by site and set goals for improvement, 2) process assessments, 3) lifecycle assessments, 4) research on product impacts, and 5) benchmarking. Examples of actions that P&G has taken through this program include:
Employees at the Lima Ohio facility reduced air, wastewater, and solid waste by 77% over four years using quality tool methods.
The paper plant in Mehoopany , Pennsylvania has a waste de-watering and drying process that transforms fibers left over from pulpmaking into pelletized boiler fuel. The innovation has reduced solid waste going to the landfill by 75%. This and other waste minimization efforts such as the elimination of chlorine for converting broke bleaching and pulp washing improvements to decrease sulfur dioxide at the facility yield a benefit of about $25 million a year.
P&G has been a leader in the use of recycled plastic in containers for a variety of products, as well as the use of concentrates and the elimination of secondary packaging (outside boxes) for products, leading to a reduction in packaging of millions of pounds annually.
AT&T Cleaning Processes
As the impact of CFCs on the ozone layer and toxicity of chlorinated cleaning solvents in general has become apparent, there is an increased incentive to eliminate those materials, in particular CFCs, from cleaning and manufacturing processes. AT&T redesigned their cleaning processes in the late 1980's to eliminate CFCs. The result was a reduction in the cost of cleaning circuit boards from 25 cents a square foot to 15 cents, and an overall annual savings of $3 million. This development is part of AT&T's broader environmental management approach that is based on corporate-wide stretch environmental goals -- moving beyond regulation. The stretch goals are aligned with the TQM process within the company. Examples of some of the process changes that have been developed at AT&T to reduce hazardous wastes:AT&T developed a low solids flux and application equipment, eliminating the need to remove the residue with CFCs or other solvents after soldering. This product is now being marketed commercially, due to its success.
In addition to the new flux equipment, terpene cleaning systems were developed to replace CFCs and other solvents in the process. Terpene, a citrus based cleaner, provides excellent removal of both organic and ionic compounds. In addition, terpene rinse baths may be used for six months to a year before they are disposed of through fuel blending.
The Richmond Virginia AT&T facility converted from a solvent based system after etching to use of sodium carbonate and sodium hydroxide, which can be easily treated in the plant's acid-alkali wastewater system. Emissions of trichloroethane and methylene chloride were reduced from over 3 million pounds a year in 1987 to less than 80,000 pounds per year in 1990.
Sources: Joe Romm, Lean and Clean Management, and Hal Bretan, Barry F. Damback, and Thomas S. Davis "Case Study: AT&T is setting and achieving stretch goals." Pollution Prevention Review, Autumn 1991.
Xerox
An important component of Xerox's Environmental Leadership Program is the Asset Management Program, which includes the Design for the Environment and Cartridge Return Programs. Asset management refers to the management of products and inventory to minimize their environmental impact at all stages of the product life-cycle. Even when the program began in 1991, Xerox recognized the business potential of remanufacturing and design for the environment. In those early program efforts, Xerox repaired or remanufactured more than one million parts that would have cost $200 million to build new. In its first 12 months , the Asset Management Quality Improvement team realized savings of over $50 million through changes in logistics, inventory, and raw materials purchasing. Efforts included: ensuring that recycling was included during the first stage of product design, training of design engineers in issues related to asset management, building remanufacturing capability into the product delivery process more explicitly, policies to remanufacture machines in house, and remanufacturing parts through original suppliers and contractors. Design for the environment, that is designing the product with principles of pollution prevention and resource conservation in mind, is a powerful management tool for implementing asset management at Xerox.
