Managing Automation - May 2008 - (Page 16)

joshua greenbaum NOTES Back in 1974, I was part of group of students conducting a teach-in on the “greenhouse effect” that presaged concerns about global warming and the “green” movement. What none us anticipated then is that global warming would be turned into a media play that is often more about scoring PR points than doing something real to alter what many believe is an inexorable march toward disaster. What does this have to do with technology and manufacturing? Plenty. You need to be aware that issues such as green, corporate social responsibility, and sustainability are all heading your way as the latest reason why you should buy a particular vendor’s products or services. As a professional cynic, I urge you not to be fooled by the disingenuousness of some of those pitches. But disingenuousness shouldn’t be an excuse for inaction because if you play the green card right, you can actually save your company money, increase your productivity, and otherwise do better by your investors. And you get to give yourself a big, green pat on the back. The trick is to separate the meaningless, symbolic actions from the ones that can have a positive impact. And that means looking carefully at opportunities to better manage your business and its assets, and in the process spin green into gold. Two genuinely green opportunities come from developing more comprehensive asset management and supply chain management functions. What these two capabilities do is ensure that you are optimizing your company’s carbon footprint at the plant level and that your acquisition of raw materials and supplies is done in a way that minimizes the environmental costs of shipping and storage. These rather basic remedies will require a not insignificant change in technology and process for Shades of Green josh@eaconsult.com If you look past the hype surrounding “green,” you can find ways to save money and increase your productivity while reducing your carbon footprint. many manufacturers. I spent much of last summer talking to large manufacturers about how they manage their supply chains, and I came away with a picture of monumental waste, fueled largely by a lack of strategic knowledge about such basic issues as actual demand for finished goods, availability of key supplies, and the market value of excess inventory. I had similar discussions about asset utilization at the plant level and heard tales of huge waste fueled by a lack of knowledge of what plant assets were being used and at what cost. What’s ironic is that all these discussions took place with companies that also understood lean manufacturing and had invested in high-end supply chain management software. But they still lacked the crucial business intelligence needed to make the kinds of improvements that would impact their bottom line and their carbon footprint at the same time. What should you be looking for from your newly green vendors? Technology that helps you understand and fix your company’s intelligence deficit regarding waste and poor asset utilization, and that goes well beyond tallying up how many carbon offsets you need in order to deal with the problem. There’s a lot you can do directly to make a difference, instead of just passing the buck — and the problem — to someone else. Solving global warming won’t take a press release or even a heartfelt corporate sustainability report. It will take real measures against waste in all its inglorious manifestations, and that means actually doing something proactive — now, before another 34 years go by. I Joshua Greenbaum is principal of Enterprise Applications Consulting, based in Berkeley, CA. maonline managingautomation.com For more of Joshua Greenbaum’s views, visit: K Third-Party Influence www.managingautomation .com/notes49 K Performance Anxiety www.managingautomation .com/notes48 K ERP’s Shop Floor Grab www.managingautomation .com/notes47 ma 16 2008 May Photo: David Toerge http://managingautomation.com http://www.managingautomation.com/notes49 http://www.managingautomation.com/notes48 http://www.managingautomation.com/notes47

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Managing Automation - May 2008

Managing Automation - May 2008 Contents Take 1 Award-Winning Shoe-Maker Otabo Alters Course, Shifts Production to China IBM Partners with Universities for Cloud Computing Getting Noise in Production Under Control Incuity Embarks on a Vertical Market Strategy Foundation Intensifies OPC Standard Testing Mailbox Notes PM Roundtable Cover Story: The Business of Going Green Special Report: Night and Day Delivering on Promises Finding the Right Fit for Wireless Driving RFID Product Scan Advertiser Index Next

Managing Automation - May 2008

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