Performance Measurement for Environmentally-Conscious Manufacturing

Environmental performance measurement is a key corporate challenge in an era of global competition, rapid technological change and increasing concern for the environment, health and safety. Industry has made major strides in reducing environmental burdens associated with products and processes. This paper describes an approach to tracking toxic releases and associated risks over time based upon the data of the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and relevant toxic indices. We provide examples for companies, an industry, and products. We discuss how this environmental performance methodology can be used in green design and manufacturing efforts.