Green Intiatives as Source of Long Term Savings
While the "greening of the supply chain" has been in the works for decades, the movement has really taken off in the past few years for numerous reasons.
First, consumers have become more and more conscientious about the environmental impact of the products they buy, which has spurred many companies into thinking about how their business processes can be made more green in order to attract environmentally-conscious buyers. Second, the volatility of fuel prices seems to be never-ending so organizations are looking for strategies that can lessen the impact of sharp price increases. Companies continue to come under increased scrutiny to operate in more environmentally friendly manners because it’s a necessity for the long term. One of the largest opportunities for organizations to be green is to identify ways to more efficiently manage their logistics practices. A truly efficient supply chain, after all, is a green supply chain.
In order to survive in today’s tumultuous economic climate, companies need to become more efficient while providing even greater value to their customers. To say this is a challenge is an understatement considering most companies feel they are being squeezed on two sides of the market. Green initiatives provide the ultimate opportunity to simultaneously meet these needs. By modernizing business practices to be as energy efficient and carbon conscious as possible, companies help the environment where customers live and work while also making operational changes that provide considerable financial benefit. One way to do this is to increase the efficiencies of loading and vehicle routing. By maximizing utilization of available trailer space and building the most efficient multi-stop routes possible, a company can take a significant number of resources off the road annually. This greatly decreases the freight spend incurred by the company while also substantially reducing the carbon footprint of its fleet operations.
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