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savings of water, virgin material and electricity, supported by senior leadership to
reach corporate awareness. The business value was cost reduction, brand enhancement, improved business environment as well as top line revenue growth.
Another example is a city development in the United Arab Emirates designed to
rely on solar energy and other renewable energy sources. The goals are to monitor
embodied carbon in supply chain and construction to achieve a “carbon neutral”
goal of 475 g/m
2 and to set up a database of sustainable building processes and
materials. Features are to produce environmental product declarations (EPDs)
and carbon footprints, linked to a city portal and consistently setting targets,
benchmarking and monitoring the performance. Main outcomes here is decisionmaking support e.g. in the progress of building completion vs. total carbon
emissions to date.
A third example of a value adding screening phase activity is a national dairy
service acting as a body for dairy farmers and the industry to help farmers adapt to
a changing operating environment, and achieve a profi table, sustainable dairy industry. The challenge was to establish the industry’s carbon footprint, from farm to a
representative national dairy product. Further to generate a reliable basis for product
carbon footprinting and environmental labelling. The solution was a web-based data
collection and integrated analysis approach. The benefi t are verifi able greenhouse
gas footprints at industry level and an auditable and expandable platform reporting
solution leading to customized greenhouse gas footprints for individual farmers.
2.2 Scoping to Grow Project Phase
After successful screening of the company specifi c pathway, the companies typically aim to merge many environmental and social topics under one common
umbrella of life cycle based sustainability approaches.
Related ISO standards are in most cases the solid basis of environmental related
work in companies. The companies’ data foundation – consisting of in-house and
own site data, specifi c supplier data, representative generic upstream and downstream data as well as background data – typically evolved and grew from the starter
projects.
In the scoping phase the companies evaluate the magnitude and impact that can
be reached within their given goal and scope.
The pathway successful companies follow is in principle comparable or often
even identical. However, the speed and the needed measures differ and are specifi c
to each company. Competency and persistence of the person in charge of the topic
are decisive. However the most important differentiator is if a dedicated in-house
team – dealing more or less exclusively with the topic – is available in the respective
company or not. Without a dedicated in-house team the chances to succeed are
equal, just the measures to reach it are different.
M. Baitz
savings of water, virgin material and electricity, supported by senior leadership to
reach corporate awareness. The business value was cost reduction, brand enhancement, improved business environment as well as top line revenue growth.
Another example is a city development in the United Arab Emirates designed to
rely on solar energy and other renewable energy sources. The goals are to monitor
embodied carbon in supply chain and construction to achieve a “carbon neutral”
goal of 475 g/m
2 and to set up a database of sustainable building processes and
materials. Features are to produce environmental product declarations (EPDs)
and carbon footprints, linked to a city portal and consistently setting targets,
benchmarking and monitoring the performance. Main outcomes here is decisionmaking support e.g. in the progress of building completion vs. total carbon
emissions to date.
A third example of a value adding screening phase activity is a national dairy
service acting as a body for dairy farmers and the industry to help farmers adapt to
a changing operating environment, and achieve a profi table, sustainable dairy industry. The challenge was to establish the industry’s carbon footprint, from farm to a
representative national dairy product. Further to generate a reliable basis for product
carbon footprinting and environmental labelling. The solution was a web-based data
collection and integrated analysis approach. The benefi t are verifi able greenhouse
gas footprints at industry level and an auditable and expandable platform reporting
solution leading to customized greenhouse gas footprints for individual farmers.
2.2 Scoping to Grow Project Phase
After successful screening of the company specifi c pathway, the companies typically aim to merge many environmental and social topics under one common
umbrella of life cycle based sustainability approaches.
Related ISO standards are in most cases the solid basis of environmental related
work in companies. The companies’ data foundation – consisting of in-house and
own site data, specifi c supplier data, representative generic upstream and downstream data as well as background data – typically evolved and grew from the starter
projects.
In the scoping phase the companies evaluate the magnitude and impact that can
be reached within their given goal and scope.
The pathway successful companies follow is in principle comparable or often
even identical. However, the speed and the needed measures differ and are specifi c
to each company. Competency and persistence of the person in charge of the topic
are decisive. However the most important differentiator is if a dedicated in-house
team – dealing more or less exclusively with the topic – is available in the respective
company or not. Without a dedicated in-house team the chances to succeed are
equal, just the measures to reach it are different.
M. Baitz