Original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are an infallible part of the manufacturing
process –where a right partnership not only offers products and services for value
for money but also assures of best technology and green production process.
With sustainability of processes with least environmental impacts becoming one
the most important cogs in the entire manufacturing line, it is pertinent that
even the smallest OEMs toe the line of least carbon technology.
Adoption of
new processes can be intimidating and the return to investment is viable only
in the long run. Thus, imbibing green manufacturing rules while maintaining
production scale and profit is a challenge that the entire manufacturing sector
is facing with Industry 4.0. Especially with smart technologies paving the way forward,
it has become a necessity to maintain continuous power supply, data analysis
equipment and response mechanism, which all adds to further carbon generation.
As
effectively said, “Responsible Manufacturing is Smart Manufacturing,” and
changes towards Climate Effective Manufacturing needs to start right at the
grassroots where the MSMEs are the owners of the products. Though they do not
have a say over the last product that is reaching the customers, 7.9 million
MSME/ OEM enterprises will definitely have an impact over the carbon emission
from manufacturing sector.
However as
understood and also discussed in many forums, in most cases, given the size of
the OEMs, it is difficult for them to make these changes. Technology
implementation, sustainable processes and changes for environment friendly
manufacturing by OEMs will need handholding, at least in the short run, by the
larger organisations along the manufacturing chain for whom the cost of
remaining ‘Unsmart’ can result into becoming ‘Uncompetitive’.
In the long
run, awareness creation about the benefits of green manufacturing and
Sustainable practices can also help the OEMs remain efficient with materials,
giving better returns to investment. In turn, these Smart OEMs will have lesser
waste to deal with and hence disposal costs will also decrease. Furthermore, with
government also appreciating efforts for sustainability, they can qualify for
reduction in environmental taxes. Eco-friendly measures can not only help to
gain access to new markets but also enables the OEMs to demonstrate sustainable
credentials.