Sustainable Production

"Lean manufacturing means operating in an environmentally sustainable way. This philosophy guides us in principle and helps stimulate a creative and competitive sense of urgency with our employees. We strive to improve in all aspects of our operations by utilizing ‘lean and green' thinking to reduce and eliminate excesses from our value streams."

In 2006, the operations team helped create action plans to reduce Steelcase's environmental footprint by 25% by 2012, the company's 100th anniversary year. That has meant careful watch on emissions, water consumption, energy use and waste. Thanks to "green valuestream mapping" that analyzes inputs and outputs, weekly energy audits and other measures, the company is tracking well to all the goals. From 2001 to 2010 (most current reporting year), we have globally reduced VOCs by 95%, greenhouse gas emissions by 60%, water consumption by 73% and waste by 80%. Progress in each category increased by nearly 200% after the anniversary goals were established, a testament to the power of setting aspirations that provide a sense of urgency and stretch an organization beyond established capabilities.

Hamid and his team are already focusing beyond the 2012 goal.

"Lean is a journey. There's never an end to it. Two or three years ago, all our focus was internal. Now we're taking it enterprise-wide, involving our vendors and dealers. We're looking at the entire value stream with a different set of goals focused on materials flow and transportation. Anytime you move materials, it takes energy. We're trying to reduce that by helping our network be more efficient and better linked."

Challenges don't easily burden Hamid and the operations team. They prefer to see them as opportunities. Benchmarking best practices and inspiring others to contribute ideas has become a way of life. If done right, lean can mean that economical and environmental savings are compatible. Establishing objectives and allowing employees to work out the details and best approaches create tremendously positive results.

"It's becoming part of our culture, not just for financial reasons but because everyone benefits from it."

He's watched attitudes change quickly as employees have come to understand the full implications of lean.

"You'll be amazed at what you discover every time you look beyond just the cost-savings." ■