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The circular economy (CE) is now more imperative than ever due to several shortcomings humanity faces due to global economic disruptions. The CE might help initiate a virtuous circle whereby waste materials would be turned into resources for other companies to create closed-loop systems. However, the CE remains a niche paradigm embraced by only a small number of companies in some areas of the world. Some authors have argued that it is essential to encourage stakeholders at different implementation levels of a CE to increase the uptake of this new model among companies, and stakeholders may provide the required framework for the shift towards a circular model. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to answer the following research question: how can the transition towards the CE be accelerated from a ‘stakeholders’ perspective? The study was undertaken in the Spanish region of Basque Country, where a CE strategy is already in place at the regional level, and some companies are already delivering circular solutions. This approach was selected to help understand the lack of widespread adoption of CE initiatives in a local system despite having a regional CE strategy. Data were collected from respondents from various stakeholders and also from desk research to ensure their reliability. The results showed the relevance of understanding how stakeholders can help speed up the transition by proactively exploring new ways to create novel conditions to work together with a broad pool of stakeholders to deepen and scale up the CE implementation.
J. Rincón-Moreno; M. Ormazábal; C. Jaca. Stakeholder Perspectives in Transitioning to a Local Circular Economy: a Case Study in Spain. Circular Economy and Sustainability 2021, 1 -19.
AMA StyleJ. Rincón-Moreno, M. Ormazábal, C. Jaca. Stakeholder Perspectives in Transitioning to a Local Circular Economy: a Case Study in Spain. Circular Economy and Sustainability. 2021; ():1-19.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJ. Rincón-Moreno; M. Ormazábal; C. Jaca. 2021. "Stakeholder Perspectives in Transitioning to a Local Circular Economy: a Case Study in Spain." Circular Economy and Sustainability , no. : 1-19.
Circular economy has been claimed as an approach to foster a systemic change in the current model based on disposability. Though, many companies have sprout to deliver circular solutions through either new business models, products or services, a full shift away from the entire system is lacking. In other words, in order to experience a fully transition toward a circular economy model, an inter-organizational approach needs to be deployed. This approach has been named industrial symbiosis whereby interactions among companies are crucial to start developing a circular economy in the so-called meso level. Collaboration among organizations rises as one of the most important factors in developing industrial symbiosis. In that sense, different projects have developed digital platforms with the idea of promoting active participation and collaboration between organizations. Those sorts of platforms ideally enable industrial symbiosis through gathering information about resources and potential substitutes in order to recommend waste-to-resource exchanges. However, depending on the context the platform was built certain characteristics may not apply. Thus, this paper is focused on the characteristics and usefulness of different available platforms that facilitate the exchange of waste as a resource, product or good. Based on this research, it is likely that none of the existing platforms and the upcoming ones will be one-size-fits-all, thus, for industrial symbiosis to succeed it is still important for companies to determine what their needs are and then explore which platform best covers their requirements.
C. Jaca; J. Rincón-Moreno; P. Barrenechea; M. Ormazabal. Promoting Circular Economy Through Industrial Symbiosis Platforms: A Comparative Analysis. Lecture Notes in Management and Industrial Engineering 2021, 205 -212.
AMA StyleC. Jaca, J. Rincón-Moreno, P. Barrenechea, M. Ormazabal. Promoting Circular Economy Through Industrial Symbiosis Platforms: A Comparative Analysis. Lecture Notes in Management and Industrial Engineering. 2021; ():205-212.
Chicago/Turabian StyleC. Jaca; J. Rincón-Moreno; P. Barrenechea; M. Ormazabal. 2021. "Promoting Circular Economy Through Industrial Symbiosis Platforms: A Comparative Analysis." Lecture Notes in Management and Industrial Engineering , no. : 205-212.
Purpose: The circular economy has multiple benefits and opportunities to achieve sustainability and a better future for the next generations. The purpose of this paper is to propose a methodology that guides step-by-step any industrial SMEs in the transition from the linear to a circular model. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have a crucial role in the sustainable development transition, considering that they represent most of the world's companies.Design/methodology/approach: To develop this methodology, two research techniques were used: a focus group and storyboarding.Findings: The resulting methodology, called Ecopyme, comprises five steps: 1) Firm identity, 2) Diagnosis, 3) Planning, 4) Get the ball rolling, and 5) Assessment and feedback. In addition, two key criteria that must be included in the whole process were identified: value creation in the firm through a circular economy and organization commitment from the top management to the staff.Research limitations/implications: The Ecopyme methodology has two limitations: It does not propose either implementation tools or involve consumers and actors at the meso (e.g., Eco-industrial parks) and macro (e.g., cities, provinces, countries) levels.Practical implications: This study will help policymakers understand the SMEs' perspective and remove barriers that may hinder the paradigm shift. The methodology is also a useful tool for consultants and entrepreneurs to incorporate the circular economy (CE) principles into their business.Originality/value: In the CE literature, little attention has been paid to proposing a structured methodology to implement CE in SMEs. Thus, the study provides a step-by-step methodology that guides any industrial SMEs to transition from linear to circular. Also, it provides additional evidence concerning the importance of human commitment in changing firms' paradigm because people can encourage the adoption of responsible production practices if firms commit CEOs, sustainability managers, and staff.
Vanessa Prieto-Sandoval; Luz Elba Torres-Guevara; Marta Ormazabal; Carmen Jaca. Beyond the circular economy theory: Implementation methodology for industrial SMEs. Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management 2021, 14, 425 -438.
AMA StyleVanessa Prieto-Sandoval, Luz Elba Torres-Guevara, Marta Ormazabal, Carmen Jaca. Beyond the circular economy theory: Implementation methodology for industrial SMEs. Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management. 2021; 14 (3):425-438.
Chicago/Turabian StyleVanessa Prieto-Sandoval; Luz Elba Torres-Guevara; Marta Ormazabal; Carmen Jaca. 2021. "Beyond the circular economy theory: Implementation methodology for industrial SMEs." Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management 14, no. 3: 425-438.
Defining the circular economy (CE) as a material and energy model coincides with the definition given by multiple authors in which Industrial Symbiosis (IS) has been deemed as a foundational strategy to support the implementation of the CE. The consumption of secondary materials is essential to achieve a successful transformation from a linear economy to a CE focused on IS practices. In this scenario, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a major role as stakeholders in developing CE systems as it is not possible to create this model with each company working in isolation. However, there is a lack of empirical studies on the role played by relevant local stakeholders such as individual firms interacting in the development of a local CE system. This study aimed to study the challenges that SMEs face in developing a CE system. A case study is selected as a research strategy using a mixed-method approach: a sequential quantitative (questionnaire) and qualitative (semi-structured interviews) data collection techniques were employed for this research. It was observed that an absence of inter-organisational collaboration and a misunderstanding of the roles played by SMEs may impede the implementation of a local CE system level.
John Rincón-Moreno; Marta Ormazabal; Maria Álvarez; Carmen Jaca. Shortcomings of Transforming a Local Circular Economy System through Industrial Symbiosis: A Case Study in Spanish SMEs. Sustainability 2020, 12, 8423 .
AMA StyleJohn Rincón-Moreno, Marta Ormazabal, Maria Álvarez, Carmen Jaca. Shortcomings of Transforming a Local Circular Economy System through Industrial Symbiosis: A Case Study in Spanish SMEs. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (20):8423.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJohn Rincón-Moreno; Marta Ormazabal; Maria Álvarez; Carmen Jaca. 2020. "Shortcomings of Transforming a Local Circular Economy System through Industrial Symbiosis: A Case Study in Spanish SMEs." Sustainability 12, no. 20: 8423.
Current research on the circular economy (CE) reveals that, while the concept and its application have been extensively explored as shown in several case studies, the definition of tools and criteria measuring “circularity” of products, companies or regions are not well-defined. Therefore, indicators for measuring the different levels of a CE (micro, meso, and macro) should be a high priority for stakeholders (governments, companies, NGOs, civil society, etc.) in order to track progress on CE initiatives. However, the increasing interest on CE has caused a still open debate on the conceptualization of CE which hampers the creation of indicators based on a common conceptual framework. As a result, the absence of standard indicators to track progress on circularity is leading to contradiction and misunderstanding, which represents a challenge to the implementation of CE strategies. Thus, this study tries to address this gap by advancing a set of indicators adapted from existing indicators that guarantees simplicity and effectiveness, closely based on indicators proposed by government bodies. This research carried out an exploratory study to formulate the indicators requirements based on literature, refined through experts’ opinion and then they were tested in Spanish companies located in the Basque Country region through an empirical work to assess this theory. A mix of research methods (e.g. semi-structured interviews and surveys) were used to seek applicability of CE indicators for organisations. The study showed that the proposed indicators currently used for assessing the CE at the macro level were applicable at the micro level based on companies’ responses. This fact demonstrated that the indicators serve the purpose of being applicable to companies regardless of the type of economic activity they were in. Also, it shows that indicators used to monitor progress on CE at the macro level can be translated to the micro level. Consequently, it is recommended that the set of CE indicators focused on the methodology proposed in this study should be used across different industrial sectors in order to observe performance in companies to facilitate the transition to a CE model.
J. Rincón-Moreno; M. Ormazábal; M.J. Álvarez; C. Jaca. Advancing circular economy performance indicators and their application in Spanish companies. Journal of Cleaner Production 2020, 279, 123605 .
AMA StyleJ. Rincón-Moreno, M. Ormazábal, M.J. Álvarez, C. Jaca. Advancing circular economy performance indicators and their application in Spanish companies. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2020; 279 ():123605.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJ. Rincón-Moreno; M. Ormazábal; M.J. Álvarez; C. Jaca. 2020. "Advancing circular economy performance indicators and their application in Spanish companies." Journal of Cleaner Production 279, no. : 123605.
Existing resilience-building plans and strategies for addressing climate change in urban areas are not as effective as they were intended to be due to city stakeholders' fragmented efforts and adopted passive behaviour. Developing awareness about climate change have proven to be key in the climate change resilience-building process, as it encourages partnership and a transformation in behaviour. This paper presents a framework for developing city stakeholders' awareness in urban areas. The conducted triangulation approach composed by a systematic literature review, semi-structured interviews and a case study results with the framework that defines the ideal process for developing awareness in urban areas. The resulting framework encapsulates three main elements: awareness-development mechanisms (experience, attention and knowledge), awareness-development over time graphs and a learning ladder. The three mechanisms explain the behaviour of the awareness-development process, the awareness-development over time graphs illustrate the evolution of the mechanisms and their effect over time, and the learning ladder specifies the gradual process of developing awareness. After presenting the ideal path for developing awareness, we further discuss the contribution of the conducted triangulation approach to the framework.
M. Iturriza; L. Labaka; M. Ormazabal; M. Borges. Awareness-development in the context of climate change resilience. Urban Climate 2020, 32, 100613 .
AMA StyleM. Iturriza, L. Labaka, M. Ormazabal, M. Borges. Awareness-development in the context of climate change resilience. Urban Climate. 2020; 32 ():100613.
Chicago/Turabian StyleM. Iturriza; L. Labaka; M. Ormazabal; M. Borges. 2020. "Awareness-development in the context of climate change resilience." Urban Climate 32, no. : 100613.
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are key actors in the implementation of the circular economy (CE) concept as a basis for creating sustainable societies. Thus, the main objective of this study is to identify key strategies and resources that may favor CE implementation in SMEs. These key strategies should encourage SMEs to develop eco‐innovations to gain competitive advantage and create and capture value that is coherent with nature. A mixed‐method approach that consisted of a literature review and a focus group for gathering qualitative data was used. This focus group was made up of experts such as researchers and practitioners from universities, sustainable SMEs, and consultancy firms in Spain. A set of strategies and internal and external factors were identified to help SMEs to implement the CE. Finally, some useful dynamic capabilities for implementing the CE in business performance were identified.
Vanessa Prieto‐Sandoval; Carmen Jaca; Javier Santos; Rupert J. Baumgartner; Marta Ormazabal. Key strategies, resources, and capabilities for implementing circular economy in industrial small and medium enterprises. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management 2019, 26, 1473 -1484.
AMA StyleVanessa Prieto‐Sandoval, Carmen Jaca, Javier Santos, Rupert J. Baumgartner, Marta Ormazabal. Key strategies, resources, and capabilities for implementing circular economy in industrial small and medium enterprises. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management. 2019; 26 (6):1473-1484.
Chicago/Turabian StyleVanessa Prieto‐Sandoval; Carmen Jaca; Javier Santos; Rupert J. Baumgartner; Marta Ormazabal. 2019. "Key strategies, resources, and capabilities for implementing circular economy in industrial small and medium enterprises." Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management 26, no. 6: 1473-1484.
Nowadays companies are trying to become ‘greener’, which requires integrating the environmental dimension into their traditional performance metrics. However, managers may not have the complete information and data for their environmental problems and, crucially, there is a lack of knowledge about how these environmental issues affect a company’s productivity. Even though the availability of technology has increased and it is easier than ever to obtain all kinds of data, there is a lack of agreement on how to correctly measure environmental performance, and companies could suffer from an overload of environmental information. The biggest challenge, therefore, lies in how to measure and obtain the appropriate environmental data and how to interpret and relate these data to the company’s productivity. In this context, this paper presents a new and innovative approach, called Plug&Glean, for diagnosing and improving productivity and environmental performance in a defined production system. The approach is applied to a case study in the north of Spain. The findings suggest that it is possible to improve productivity and environmental performance at the same time, as well as reinforce the notion that waste elimination has a positive impact on improving environmental performance.
Javier Santos; Andrés Muñoz-Villamizar; Marta Ormazábal; Elisabeth Viles. Using problem-oriented monitoring to simultaneously improve productivity and environmental performance in manufacturing companies. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing 2018, 32, 183 -193.
AMA StyleJavier Santos, Andrés Muñoz-Villamizar, Marta Ormazábal, Elisabeth Viles. Using problem-oriented monitoring to simultaneously improve productivity and environmental performance in manufacturing companies. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing. 2018; 32 (2):183-193.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJavier Santos; Andrés Muñoz-Villamizar; Marta Ormazábal; Elisabeth Viles. 2018. "Using problem-oriented monitoring to simultaneously improve productivity and environmental performance in manufacturing companies." International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing 32, no. 2: 183-193.
The increase in environmental and social awareness has triggered numerous green initiatives at companies. Traditionally, companies’ training related to environmental management focuses on technical aspects and theoretical concepts. In addition to these theoretical contents, it is necessary to carry out practical activities to impart the desired behaviors and skills. Serious games have been found to improve employees understanding of practical environmental sustainability challenges, by offering opportunities to obtain first-hand experiences that may otherwise be too costly and difficult to reproduce in reality. This work presents [email protected], a serious game which simulates the productive and environmental efficiencies generated by the improvements of processes in a pizza shop. The purpose of the game is the practical learning of the environmental impact caused by the production processes of a company.
Javier Santos García; Andrés Muñoz-Villamizar; Elisabeth Viles; Marta Ormazabal. Using a Serious Game for the Practical Learning of Productive and Environmental Efficiencies. Lecture Notes in Management and Industrial Engineering 2018, 275 -282.
AMA StyleJavier Santos García, Andrés Muñoz-Villamizar, Elisabeth Viles, Marta Ormazabal. Using a Serious Game for the Practical Learning of Productive and Environmental Efficiencies. Lecture Notes in Management and Industrial Engineering. 2018; ():275-282.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJavier Santos García; Andrés Muñoz-Villamizar; Elisabeth Viles; Marta Ormazabal. 2018. "Using a Serious Game for the Practical Learning of Productive and Environmental Efficiencies." Lecture Notes in Management and Industrial Engineering , no. : 275-282.
The circular economy has become an important issue in recent years because it makes sustainable development feasible by creating value in the economy and by closing the energy and materials loops. However, since most companies continue to operate under a linear model, it is particularly important to start providing companies with tools that facilitate their shift to the circular paradigm. The main objective of this research is to establish the key elements that are necessary for assessing the level of circular economy implementation. To that end, the Delphi method is used to validate and define the key elements of three categories: circular economy fields of action, industrial symbiosis, and environmental certifications. As a result, this study identifies the key elements that assess the degree of circular economy implementation and that allows small and medium‐sized enterprises to understand where they are and what they need to do to improve their performance.
Vanessa Prieto-Sandoval; Marta Ormazabal; Carmen Jaca; Elisabeth Viles. Key elements in assessing circular economy implementation in small and medium-sized enterprises. Business Strategy and the Environment 2018, 27, 1525 -1534.
AMA StyleVanessa Prieto-Sandoval, Marta Ormazabal, Carmen Jaca, Elisabeth Viles. Key elements in assessing circular economy implementation in small and medium-sized enterprises. Business Strategy and the Environment. 2018; 27 (8):1525-1534.
Chicago/Turabian StyleVanessa Prieto-Sandoval; Marta Ormazabal; Carmen Jaca; Elisabeth Viles. 2018. "Key elements in assessing circular economy implementation in small and medium-sized enterprises." Business Strategy and the Environment 27, no. 8: 1525-1534.
The important role of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in most economies underpins this research, which develops an empirical analysis that allows us to explore the potential for implementation of the Circular Economy in SMEs and the barriers and opportunities they may distinguish from it. To that end, a survey was carried out in Navarra and the Basque Country, Spain. The main results show that companies are focused on complying with the law and, in many cases, they are worried about their company’s image. Moreover, they do not tend to be committed to environmental issues because they do not think it would increase their profits and competitiveness. The focus on cost savings became clear from the Factor Analysis applied to the Take-Transform and Recovery phases of the Circular Economy. In this sense, three factors were associated with the companies’ perception of the Circular Economy: 1) Material Provision, 2) Resources’ Reutilization and 2) Financial Advantage. With regard to the barriers, another Factor Analysis suggested two different categories of barriers: Hard barriers and Human-based barriers, each requiring different strategies for addressing them, must be considered. Finally, the study briefly examines the integration opportunities between SMEs with other companies and industry associations or clusters to develop industrial symbiosis and close their materials loop.
Marta Ormazabal; Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Rogerio Puga-Leal; Carmen Jaca. Circular Economy in Spanish SMEs: Challenges and opportunities. Journal of Cleaner Production 2018, 185, 157 -167.
AMA StyleMarta Ormazabal, Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval, Rogerio Puga-Leal, Carmen Jaca. Circular Economy in Spanish SMEs: Challenges and opportunities. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2018; 185 ():157-167.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarta Ormazabal; Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Rogerio Puga-Leal; Carmen Jaca. 2018. "Circular Economy in Spanish SMEs: Challenges and opportunities." Journal of Cleaner Production 185, no. : 157-167.
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a methodology that is based on the concept of environmental comfort and can serve as a tool that can help companies and employees to implement Kaizen projects. This methodology focuses on the worker’s participation in analyzing and developing improvements related to their workplace. Design/methodology/approach This research is focused on the development of a methodology that encourages worker participation in improvement activities, through the analysis of their working conditions. For this purpose, the proposed methodology was developed in accordance with the dimensions of workplace comfort proposed by Vischer. The employees start working on the analysis of problems and their solutions through the logical framework approach, as it is a tool that encourages worker participation and consensus. The developed methodology was applied in a company, with three different groups of people, which enabled the authors to test its utility. Findings The findings reveal that the proposed methodology is effective in initiating workers in the path of Kaizen. The employees who applied this methodology were able to propose improvement actions that addressed the problems and opportunities that they had previously detected. Moreover, the questionnaire that was used to validate the methodology and was administered to employees shows that the methodology is useful in preparing them for adopting continuous improvement (CI) programs. Research limitations/implications The methodology presented in this paper has been applied and evaluated by a small number of employees. These limitations suggest future research recommendations. Practical implications This participatory methodology could be used by different types of companies to initiate employees on the path of CI, even if they are not familiar with improvement programs or methodologies. In addition, its use could improve the capabilities of employees in areas such as participatory analysis, problem identification and proposal of objectives. These capabilities are necessary in any Kaizen project. As a result of the application of this methodology, the companies could obtain a list of areas of improvement related to their work and propose actions to work on. Originality/value The paper presents the use of environmental comfort in the workplace as the first step in accomplishing a Kaizen project, with a focus on the employee involvement and consensus.
Carmen Jaca; Marta Ormazabal; Elisabeth Viles; Javier Santos. Environmental comfort based (ECB) methodology as a tool for preparing Kaizen application in a catering service company. The TQM Journal 2018, 30, 281 -295.
AMA StyleCarmen Jaca, Marta Ormazabal, Elisabeth Viles, Javier Santos. Environmental comfort based (ECB) methodology as a tool for preparing Kaizen application in a catering service company. The TQM Journal. 2018; 30 (4):281-295.
Chicago/Turabian StyleCarmen Jaca; Marta Ormazabal; Elisabeth Viles; Javier Santos. 2018. "Environmental comfort based (ECB) methodology as a tool for preparing Kaizen application in a catering service company." The TQM Journal 30, no. 4: 281-295.
Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Carmen Jaca; Marta Ormazabal. Towards a consensus on the circular economy. Journal of Cleaner Production 2018, 179, 605 -615.
AMA StyleJulieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval, Carmen Jaca, Marta Ormazabal. Towards a consensus on the circular economy. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2018; 179 ():605-615.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJulieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Carmen Jaca; Marta Ormazabal. 2018. "Towards a consensus on the circular economy." Journal of Cleaner Production 179, no. : 605-615.
Carmen Jaca; Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Evangelos L. Psomas; Marta Ormazabal. What should consumer organizations do to drive environmental sustainability? Journal of Cleaner Production 2018, 181, 201 -208.
AMA StyleCarmen Jaca, Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval, Evangelos L. Psomas, Marta Ormazabal. What should consumer organizations do to drive environmental sustainability? Journal of Cleaner Production. 2018; 181 ():201-208.
Chicago/Turabian StyleCarmen Jaca; Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Evangelos L. Psomas; Marta Ormazabal. 2018. "What should consumer organizations do to drive environmental sustainability?" Journal of Cleaner Production 181, no. : 201-208.
Andrés Muñoz-Villamizar; Javier Santos; Elisabeth Viles; Marta Ormazábal. Manufacturing and environmental practices in the Spanish context. Journal of Cleaner Production 2018, 178, 268 -275.
AMA StyleAndrés Muñoz-Villamizar, Javier Santos, Elisabeth Viles, Marta Ormazábal. Manufacturing and environmental practices in the Spanish context. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2018; 178 ():268-275.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAndrés Muñoz-Villamizar; Javier Santos; Elisabeth Viles; Marta Ormazábal. 2018. "Manufacturing and environmental practices in the Spanish context." Journal of Cleaner Production 178, no. : 268-275.
The increase on environmental awareness has triggered numerous green initiatives at companies. This paper presents the Overall Greenness Performance (OGP), a metric based on the well-known Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE). The OGP is a hierarchy of metrics based in the Lean Manufacturing framework that measure how environmentally efficient a manufacturing operation is executed. The purpose of the metric is to quantify improvements in productive and environmental efficiencies, relative to a company’s initial situation, after implementing a lean-green manufacturing system.
Andres Muñoz-Villamizar; Javier Santos; Jairo R. Montoya-Torres; Marta Ormazábal. Environmental Assessment Using a Lean Based Tool. Econometrics for Financial Applications 2018, 41 -50.
AMA StyleAndres Muñoz-Villamizar, Javier Santos, Jairo R. Montoya-Torres, Marta Ormazábal. Environmental Assessment Using a Lean Based Tool. Econometrics for Financial Applications. 2018; ():41-50.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAndres Muñoz-Villamizar; Javier Santos; Jairo R. Montoya-Torres; Marta Ormazábal. 2018. "Environmental Assessment Using a Lean Based Tool." Econometrics for Financial Applications , no. : 41-50.
Purpose Environmental management (EM) is becoming increasingly important in all types of organizations. The food industry represents the top industrial sector of the Spanish economy; however, there is still little knowledge about how it is managed environmentally. The purpose of this paper is to present a descriptive analysis of the Spanish food sector. Design/methodology/approach This study undertook a descriptive analysis based on probabilistic sampling surveys from food companies in Spain. The survey was sent out to 900 companies obtaining 128 answers. Findings The results of this study show that companies with an EM standard tend to have a more developed system and a greater presence of EM tools and actions. Moreover, statistical differences were identified among the characteristics of companies and various factors that affect the evolution of their EM. Originality/value There are no studies that reveal a clear picture of the status of EM in the Spanish food industry. This study presents a clear starting point that might help policy makers, consultants, researchers and other parties to set new improvement routes so companies do not get stuck in their progress toward environmental excellence.
Marta Ormazabal; Elisabeth Viles; Javier Santos; Carmen Jaca. An overview of environmental management in the Spanish food sector: a survey study. Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal 2018, 29, 49 -62.
AMA StyleMarta Ormazabal, Elisabeth Viles, Javier Santos, Carmen Jaca. An overview of environmental management in the Spanish food sector: a survey study. Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal. 2018; 29 (1):49-62.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarta Ormazabal; Elisabeth Viles; Javier Santos; Carmen Jaca. 2018. "An overview of environmental management in the Spanish food sector: a survey study." Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal 29, no. 1: 49-62.
Purpose Despite significant amounts of environmental management tools that are available for companies to use, no model guides them toward environmental excellence. As a consequence, the purpose of this paper is to develop an environmental management maturity (EMM) model that helps companies that are on the path toward environmental excellence. Design/methodology/approach An iterative process was used to develop this model, starting with some semi-structured interviews with 19 companies within the Basque Country and two workshops with environmental experts. Following these steps, the initial version of the model was developed. Data from subsequent surveys carried out in Spanish and Italian companies, and a survey and semi-structured interviews in companies in the UK were incorporated into the model, yielding the final, more robust version of the EMM model. Findings The EMM model proposes six maturity stages: legal requirements, responsibility assignment and training, systematization, ECO2, eco-innovative products and services, and leading green company. Each stage details a series of elements: description, agents involved, policies, tools, indicators, structure, and behavior over time graphs. This research confirms that a company’s environmental management evolves through several distinctive stages, regardless of the industrial sector. Originality/value The proposed model concludes that the defined maturity stages provide valuable guidance for industrial firms as it helps them identify their maturity stage as well as the steps they should follow to move to the next stage.
Marta Ormazabal; Jose M. Sarriegi; Elisabeth Viles. Environmental management maturity model for industrial companies. Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal 2017, 28, 632 -650.
AMA StyleMarta Ormazabal, Jose M. Sarriegi, Elisabeth Viles. Environmental management maturity model for industrial companies. Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal. 2017; 28 (5):632-650.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarta Ormazabal; Jose M. Sarriegi; Elisabeth Viles. 2017. "Environmental management maturity model for industrial companies." Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal 28, no. 5: 632-650.
The Circular Economy has become a topic of high interest for policy makers, scholars, and business managers because it is shown as a new paradigm to achieve the sustainability of our society. However, the main efforts in Circular Economy cannot be reduced to professional or experts’ acts. Nevertheless, we consider that if we pretend to meet the current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, we have to teach present generations the principles to achieve the economic, social and economic sustainability in the short and long term. This paper enhances the use of guided and official student clubs at the university to teach and engage engineering students with the Circular Economy practices.
Marta Ormazabal; Carmen Jaca; Vanessa Prieto-Sandoval; Álvaro Lleó. Developing engineering students’ engagement with Circular Economy practices. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Higher Education Advances 2017, 1 .
AMA StyleMarta Ormazabal, Carmen Jaca, Vanessa Prieto-Sandoval, Álvaro Lleó. Developing engineering students’ engagement with Circular Economy practices. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Higher Education Advances. 2017; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarta Ormazabal; Carmen Jaca; Vanessa Prieto-Sandoval; Álvaro Lleó. 2017. "Developing engineering students’ engagement with Circular Economy practices." Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Higher Education Advances , no. : 1.
Companies have made great strides in strengthening their environmental maturity and sustainable production. Nevertheless, many of them have not transmitted their knowledge to their workers, and this makes it more difficult to have employees participate in their company’s sustainability improvement process. In the particular case of Volkswagen Navarra, they have a lot of experience in environmental management, but they don’t have a proper program for teaching their workers so they can be more involved in the environmental aspects of the company. This paper proposes an environmental training program that can be used either as an e-learning course or a face-to-face course with the objective of providing employees with the knowledge and skills necessary to participate in the improvement of environmental aspects.
Marta Ormazabal; Elisabeth Viles; Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Carmen Jaca. Environmental training at companies. The case of Volkswagen Navarra. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Higher Education Advances 2017, 1 .
AMA StyleMarta Ormazabal, Elisabeth Viles, Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval, Carmen Jaca. Environmental training at companies. The case of Volkswagen Navarra. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Higher Education Advances. 2017; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarta Ormazabal; Elisabeth Viles; Julieth Vanessa Prieto Sandoval; Carmen Jaca. 2017. "Environmental training at companies. The case of Volkswagen Navarra." Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Higher Education Advances , no. : 1.