For many manufacturers, following environmentally sustainable practices is not only the right thing to do for the future; rather, it has become a business imperative—part of the “triple bottom line. Often impacts are not unearthed until one examines the complete lifecycle of a product. This approach begins with gathering raw materials from the earth to create the product and ends when all materials are returned to the earth.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has started to evaluate whether it should set new minimum energy efficiency standards for a suite of industrial and commercial heating and cooling products. Looks like the EPA is going to give companies that use biomass a free pass from having to obtain clean air permits related to greenhouse gases (GHGs).

The demand response aspect of smart-grid technology has changed the face of energy forever. Once a one-way street, electric power is now a bidirectional, two-way street, putting manufacturers in greater control of their electricity demand and costs.

The loading dock can be a major hole-in-the-wall pain in the neck which can account for tremendous energy loss, both in terms of heating/cooling escaping through the doorway and fuel consumption at mis-managed docks as trucks idle while waiting for a slot. There are 8 ways to rock the dock.

Pretty Products President Jeffrey Willis calls the company’s community Victory Garden the most important part of the green strategy. “Everybody works in it.”

When Jeffrey Willis bought Pretty Products four years ago, the company was losing a million dollars a month. Willis determined that sustainability strategies were needed to reverse its economic descent.

A serendipitous event—a happy accident—has become a hero in the efforts to help Japan recover from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant crisis stemming from meltdowns at three reactors in the wake of an earthquake and tsunami on March 11.