"Reduce, reuse and recycle" are the new watchwords for manufacturing managers looking to set a new standard for manufacturing excellence. And just like any other improvement idea, there are benefits to being the first, and the best, at implementing it.Take Subaru of Indiana (SIA). The automotive facility manufactures a number of different models for Subaru's North American marketing effort, as well as manufacturing the Camry under a production partnership with Toyota.
Perhaps the most remarkable thing about this altogether remarkable plant is its achievement of zero--specifically, zero landfill waste. According to safety and environmental compliance manager Denise Coogan, Subaru of Indiana didn't start out with zero even as a stretch goal, but a series of small improvements over time has enabled the team to achieve it nonetheless.
With all the "green spin" these days, this flavor of zero is all the more noteworthy in that SIA management didn't change the goalposts to meet the goal. "We didn't redefine 'zero'," she says. "Zero means zero. Nothing from our manufacturing process goes to the landfill."
Source: Industry Week, http://industryweek.com