Supply Chain Sustainability—Drivers, Inhibitors, Solutions - Technology Management for Sustainable Production and Logistics - page 70

suppliers, the public and governments around the world, firms have been developing
a number of environmentally friendly products (Tseng et al. 2013 ). Increasing
attention to environmental concerns has forced firms to develop new green products
and manufacturing processes to satisfy rigorous environmental regulations and
overcome competitors through differentiation strategies (Lin et al. 2014 ). Firms
promote green innovation in the manufacturing making environmentally friendly
products and reducing environmental damage. Many firms developed flexible,
energy-efficient manufacturing strategies. Sustainability within a supply chain
means a systematic view and control of the environmental impacts of a company's
products, services, processes and operations, sourcing of materials, manufacturing
processes, logistics, delivery and disposal of end-of-life product. In some cases,
firms have simply reacted to the environmental regulations while there are also
several firms that have taken a more proactive role in reducing pollution due to
their production and logistics processes. For many companies the opportunity to
improve economic and also environmental performances results from collaboration
through along the whole supply chain. Sometimes it is necessary to reconfigure
the supply chain pulling the collaboration within this structure through common
standards and procedures. Some manufacturers formulate environmental plans,
which are useful in case of analyzing the suppliers, manufacturing and logistics
capabilities needed to achieve eco-efficiency in supply chains (firms in the
service sector also LSP are less likely to do it (Rossi et al. 2013 ). A company may
publish environmental strategy showing who is responsible for environmental
issues within the organization, and to what level the environmental policy is
embedded in the organization (Rossi et al. 2013 ). In the transportation sector and
logistics industry techniques for saving energy and reducing air pollution and
CO 2 emissions have become important issue and principal challenges (Hui 2010 ).
Additionally a significant factor increasing sustainability in the supply chains
became third-party logistics providers' performance. They focus on improving
resource utilization (e.g., cars and warehouses) and making processes more
eco-efficient.
4.1 Benefits and Consequences of Sustainable Strategies
Green innovation can help firms to increase productivity, enhance corporate
reputation, develop new markets, and achieve first-mover competitive advantages.
In the automobile industry, in response to progressively stricter regulations,
automobile manufacturers have developed innovations for the internal combustion
engine, which have increased energy efficiency and reduced emissions of
greenhouse and other toxic gases (Orsato and Wells 2007 ). This may be supported
by the case of the Toyota Prius Hybrid, which has become a status symbol and
an example for green-labeling product strategies (Bonini and Oppenheim 2004 ).
Hybrid vehicle technology in Taiwan appears to be a promising solution to meet
environmental regulations and customer demand (Fontaras and Samaras 2007 ).