Cleaner Production Assessment

To be able to identify cleaner production options, it is necessary to carry out a cleaner production assessment.

The cleaner production assessment focuses on:

WHERE waste and emissions are generated;
WHY waste and emissions are generated; and
HOW waste and emissions can be minimized in your company.

Cleaner production assessment is a useful tool to systematically investigate the existing production and to identify opportunities for improving the production or the products.

Step 1: Getting Started

Ensure top management commitment.
Form a cleaner production team.
List process steps and identify waste streams.
Prepare process flow charts.
Select focus areas.

Step 2: Analyzing Process Steps

Make material and energy balances.
Characterize waste streams.
Assign costs to waste streams.
Identify causes of waste generation.

Step 3: Generating Cleaner Production Options

Generate workable cleaner production options.
Sort options into: “directly implementable”; “needs further study”; and “rejected options”.

Step 4: Selecting Cleaner Production Options

Analyze the technical feasibility of cleaner production options.
Analyze the economic viability of cleaner production options.
Analyze the environmental feasibility of cleaner production options.
Select cleaner production options for implementation.

Step 5: Implementing CP Options

Make a cleaner production action plan.
Implement cleaner production options.

Step 6: Maintaining Cleaner Production

Monitor and evaluate results.
Report cleaner production results.
Prepare for a new cleaner production assessment.
Continuously integrate cleaner production activities into daily management.

Barriers to Cleaner Production

Myths about cleaner production
There are many myths about cleaner production. All these are wrong:

- Cleaner production is only good for large companies.
- Cleaner production requires big investments.
- Cleaner production requires modern technology.
- Cleaner production has a limited potential.

Mental Blocks Against Cleaner Production.

Cleaner production will improve your company. However, improvements require changes – and there are many mental blocks against changes:

Fear of being seen as a fool.
Fear of disturbing tradition.
Fear of being alone.
Fear of being criticized.
Fear of being misused.
Fear of making mistakes.

Proven and effective idea killers

Do not accept the following answers:

- Let’s think about it later.
- We have already tried it.
- It is not the right time.
- You do not understand the problem;
- Talk to John this is not my field.
- It sounds nice in theory, but it will not work in practice.
- We are too small/big for it.
- It will not work with our products.
- It does not fit into our planning.

AISC GROUP Approach

All enterprises can be defined in terms of:

Operations
Equipment
Processes

By starting with a company’s operations, we introduce awareness training and good housekeeping practices to the production workforce. Process optimization and simple containment or recycling concepts were explored. These are generally low-cost activities, which bring a high return.

Next, the equipment used in production was examined in detail to establish whether the introduction of process control (monitoring equipment) or physical modifications would be effective. Sometimes, waste segregation at the source allows for new profitable uses of the waste.

Finally, the process itself is studied to determine whether the technology that is more complex is required or changes to process, raw materials, or use of catalysts is appropriate. Even reformulation of the product may be required.

A New Paradigm

Cleaner Production turns the traditional pollution control paradigm upside down. Cleaner Production concepts have consequences for the whole life cycle of a product and can foster improvements in product design, selection of raw materials, efficiency in production and/or energy usage, safety during manufacture and consumer use, reparability, and recyclability.

Leaders in Cleaner Production

AISC GROUP senior personnel trained in Cleaner Production strategies and worked with numerous companies in a wide range of industries. Global has established a range of environmental management products and technologies to assist in implementing Cleaner Production and environmental management systems for industry.