Sustainable Practices in Manufacturing

Free Learning Materials with the Support of Industry Canada

The significant business benefits of implementing seamless sharing of information and sustainable practices are showing up on the bottom line of manufacturing companies around the world. Thanks to the support of Industry Canada, organizations can access a searchable repository of practical materials on these topics in English and French, without charge, and download them for training purposes. The site is called the Information Management and Sustainable Practices in Manufacturing Portal and aims to promote the adoption of practices that lead to operational excellence, environmental leadership, profitability, and jobs on an ongoing basis.

Two new modules which address both the technical and business aspects of sustainable practices in manufacturing are now available.

Introduction to Sustainable Practices in Design and Manufacturing
The module provides an overview of environmental impacts, drivers, barriers, key issues and trends with respect to sustainable practices in manufacturing. Various tools and approaches that companies have been using successfully to improve environmental performance of products and processes are presented. A discussion of how “lean” and “green” principles can co-exist is also included.

Design for Environment
The module provides an overview of Design for Environment and related approaches (i.e. DfX), including the role, benefits, impacts of and an approach for implementing DfE in an organization. Life-cycle Design and Sustainable Product Design are covered, including strategies that apply at the different life cycle stages. Tools and approaches that result in product optimization and the development of eco-efficient products are presented.

For more information please contact Susan Gillies at (519) 238-5370 or gilliess@templet.org. The web site can be found at: http://www.templet.org/imm.