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| Green Supply Chain |
Green supply chain thinking needs to go holistic. In
this short article, Supply Chain Station takes a quick look at the trucking
industry, and how it can move towards achieving a green supply chain. In order to make any progress towards
sustainability, all aspects of its fuel supply chains have to be put under the
microscope. As the well-known saying goes, “there’s more than one way of
skinning a cat.”
The trucking industry
When it
comes to environment concerns about carbon emissions, global warming, and
fossil fuels, the trucking industry is public enemy number one. That is of
course setting aside the petrochemical industry.
The
automotive industry has made some significant strides in the last two or three
years towards producing more eco-friendly automobiles. Hybrid autos that are
propelled by both petrol and electric are becoming more popular. But we’re
still a million miles away from developing automobiles that are truly green, and
that manage to accelerate faster than a snail, and travel further than just
across town.
Still awaiting a significant
breakthrough
Some companies
operating in the trucking industry have introduced the latest hi-tech Hydro Fuel Injection (HFI) technology which can go some way towards
improving fuel consumption. But as far as a significant breakthrough goes in
terms of some practical sort of hybrid halfway house, the industry is still
waiting. But that doesn’t mean that nothing can be done, and this is where the
holistic approach to developing a green supply chain mentality, in spite of the fuel situation,
comes into being.
Let’s go holistic
Faced with
the fait-accompli of having to buy oil based fuels, some trucking companies are
now looking at a more holistic approach by examining all other aspects of their
fuel supply chains to establish where green thinking can be applied. For
example, if companies can buy fuel that is produced locally, or at least that
is produced as near to home as possible, the fact that less transportation is
required to get the raw material from A to B will contribute to a smaller
carbon footprint.
Transport is an important component
of product cost
Everyone has
a part to play in this scenario. Trucking companies would normally opt for the
cheapest source of fuel. But does that contribute to green supply chain philosophy? The answer is; very probably not.
But if trucking companies do source “locally produced” fuel, and it puts their
costs up, they will need to pass those costs on. In the end, because transport
is a fundamental part of every supply chain for the great majority of products,
that means that those products’ prices have to increase too. In the end, it’s
the consumer who foots the bill.
Other aspects of the holistic green
supply chain
Other areas
of a holistic approach to the green
supply chain include things like paperless administration. This was
something that many companies have lost sight of since it was first talked
about; back when the PC began to be introduced into the business environment.
Now that so much business can be done in the cloud, it’s time this was taken
off the back burner and brought to the front of stove again.
Championing the holistic approach
throughout the green supply chain
The other
thing that trucking companies can do is to talk to all their partners within
the fuel supply chain to make sure that these businesses all have aggressive
policies to reduce the size of their own carbon footprints. By championing
green thinking in this way, companies will also be championing the green supply chain.
We’re
talking about the trucking industry as an example because, as it stands at the
moment, they are stymied in terms of the fuel they use. Some of course use
natural gas power, but that too has sustainability and environmental issues. Whichever
ever way you look at it, the trucking industry, (like the aircraft and shipping
industries) are stuck when it comes to fuel, which is why a holistic approach,
looking at all aspects of the fuel supply chain, can and will reap rewards.
We must all take a holistic approach
the green supply chain issue
Of course
it’s not just these industries who should take a holistic approach; every
industry and every company should do so too. Developing holistic green supply
chains is something we should all be doing. So green supply chain managers everywhere – go holistic.
What other aspects of the green
supply chain would benefit from the holistic approach?
