Industrial companies consume over half of the energy and produce one-fifth of greenhouse gas emissions globally, giving the sector a significant opportunity to support climate initiatives.
A new report from Manufacturers Alliance Foundation and Infosys, “Delivering on Carbon Neutral Goals,” outlines the progress manufacturers have made to-date on reducing carbon emissions across three scopes: direct emissions, indirect emissions from electricity purchases, and indirect emissions derived from a manufacturer’s value chain.
The report also shares steps on how manufacturers can move forward in reducing emissions and provides examples from manufacturing executives across sectors at various stages in their carbon neutrality journey.
“The manufacturing sector is an important player in helping reduce the global carbon footprint,” notes Stephen Gold, President and CEO of Manufacturers Alliance. “This report shines a light on where U.S. manufacturers are today and how they can continue to support sustainability and growth.”
Findings include:
45% of manufacturers are exploring how to expand their carbon footprint initiatives, with 28% already expanding initiatives beyond factories.
The aerospace and automotive industries are ahead of the pack with over 30% of respondents, (which is more than double other industries covered in the survey), saying they are tracking across all three scopes of emissions.
94% of respondents noted that capturing a product’s carbon footprint was difficult as only 28% have a system in place to track the carbon footprint of their products.
Digital technologies were identified as a key resource for emission tracking, with four stages of maturity identified in the digitalization journey. 45% of respondents are already using data to track and monitor emissions.
“Providing visibility and insights from manufacturing operations data is key to accelerating progress on sustainability goals,” says Jasmeet Singh, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Manufacturing, Infosys. “Digitalization tools will enable manufacturers to meet the sustainability goals while continuing to optimize performance.”
