CWA 16768:2014

Framework for Sustainable Value Creation in Manufacturing Network CWA 16768:2014

Scope

The current trans-national manufacturing product and service delivery solutions cannot be sustained in the emerging eco-sensitive business environments, where growing trade volumes and commercial operational patterns impose significant environmental and social challenges on companies and society. More specifically, increase in international trade and transport of raw materials, energy, intermediate products and services, wider range of stakeholders engaging with industry, resource limitations and emphasis on social responsibilities of companies has raised the need for businesses to integrate sustainability more fully into their purpose and processes. The challenges related to sustainability include social and environmental concerns such as labour practices, community involvement, waste and packaging, climate change and partnerships, further propagated by demand, global competition, consumer preferences and behaviour.
Manufacturing includes production and wider industrial activities across the value network that involves interdependencies and relationships amongst stakeholders. The European "Vision for 2020" report calls for understanding manufacturing as a network of complex and development-oriented relations. Hence, the constant evolution of manufacturing networks - coordination and cooperation between the capabilities and configurations - become vital for growth. External (macroeconomic stability, trade polices) and internal forces (process innovations, cost benefits, competition, corporate culture, organisational structure) have both led companies to change production systems and locations to maximize benefits. The expansion of manufacturing operations/activities and the changing business environment, which affects the wider society and environment, highlight the requirement for manufacturers to look for new approaches to manage sustainability impacts effectively – from sourcing and production, to distribution, product logistical support and afterlife.
The increasing demands for sustainability have created new challenges as well as emerging opportunities for society and business. In the current manufacturing setting, much of the opportunity to address novel challenges rests on the ability to manage complex value networks for sustainable value creation. Sustainable value creation is the key contribution of business to sustainability, i.e. to create long-term sustainable (social, environmental and economic) value. However, individual businesses, alone, will not be able to deliver sustainable value and the changes required at the value network level. Collaboration among stakeholders across the network to deliver sustainable value is necessary to develop common approaches for sustainable production and services.
Companies have begun to look for new approaches to understand and manage sustainability at the value network level. If the network partners are not capable of managing the future challenges around regulation, reporting and compliance assurance, scarcity of resources, then the ability to manage business risks and opportunities could be dramatically affected with serious impact to the business. Companies need to be pro-active in thinking about the opportunities that the sustainable economy will present. This will need firms to develop new products and markets and optimise their value networks for sustainability.
Thus the CEN Workshop Agreement (CWA) “Framework for Sustainable Value Creation in Manufacturing Networks” covers Good-practices for developing business models, governance models, sustainable solutions and performance management for existing and new sustainable production and service networks.