bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The treatment of contaminated water at remedial wood preserving sites
Authors: Grosse Douglas W. , Bates Edward R. , Sahle‐Demessie Endalkachew
Published: February 2007

Contaminated groundwater and surface water have posed a great challenge in restoring wood preserving sites to beneficial use. Often contaminated groundwater plumes extend far beyond the legal property limits, adversely impacting drinking water supplies and crop lands. To contain, treat, and/or remediate these valuable resources is an important part of restoring these impacted sites. Various options are available for remediating the groundwater and other affected media at these sites. Frequently, pump and treat technologies have been used that can provide well‐head treatment at installed extraction wells. This approach has shown to be costly and excessively time consuming. Some of the technologies used for pump and treat are granular activated carbon (GAC), biotreatment, and chemical oxidation. Other approaches use in‐situ treatment applications that include enhanced bioremediation, monitored natural attenuation (biotic and abiotic), and chemical reduction/fixation. Ultimately, it may only be feasible, economically or practicably, to use hydraulic containment systems. Depending upon site‐specific conditions, these treatment approaches can be used in various combinations to offer the best remedial action. A comparison of water treatment system costs extrapolated from the treatability studies performed on contaminated groundwater from the McCormick/Baxter Superfund site in Stockton, California, yielded operation and maintenance costs of $1.19/1,000 gal. for carbon treatment and $7.53/1,000 gal. for ultraviolet (UV) peroxidation, respectively.
Fiberboard plant emissions control using a silent discharge plasma
Authors: Snyder Hans R. , Coogan John J.
Published: February 2007

A silent discharge plasma reactor was constructed to test a potential industrial application for controlling volatile organic carbon emission from fiberboard manufacturing plants. The reactor consisted of a cylindrical single barrier dielectric barrier discharge cell connected to a high‐voltage ac power supply. Various concentrations of turpene in air were introduced into the reactor under dry and wet conditions. The destruction removal efficiencies (DRE) were monitored using a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer (GCMS) and the concentrations of carbon dioxide generated from the oxidation ofturpene were monitored using a Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer (FTIR). It was found that 90 percent of the turpenes could be removed at modest energy densities and that adding water to the gas mix greatly enhanced the destruction of the turpenes. However, even at high energy densities, the oxidation of turpenes did not completely form carbon dioxide. The results suggest that the Silent Discharge Plasma (SDP) system can be used to control the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from fiberboard plants, but that further testing is needed to limit the emission of carbon monoxide.
Analytical, Risk Assessment, and Remedial Implications Due to the Co‐Presence of Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Terphenyls at Inactive Hazardous Waste Sites
Authors: Pagano James J.
Published: February 2007

Investigations conducted at three inactive hazardous waste sites in New York State have confirmed the co‐presence of polychlorinated hiphenyls (PCBs) and polychlorinated terphenyls (PCTs) in soils, sediments, and biota. The PCTs at all three sites were positively identified as Aroclor 5432, with the most probable source being the hydraulic fluid Pydraul 312A utilized for high‐temperature applications. The identification of the lower‐chlorinated PCT formulations in environmental samples is problematical, since PCT Aroclors 5432 and 5442 are not chromatographically distinct from the higher‐chlorinated (PCB) Aroclors 1254, 1260, 1262, and 1268 using conventional gas chromatography–electron capture detection. Results from this study indicate that U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) approved PCB methods routinely utilized by most commercial laboratories based on Florisil adsorption column chromatography cleanup are inadequate to produce valid chromatographic separation and quantitative results with soils, sediment, and biota samples containing both PCBs and PCTs. The presence of co‐eluting PCBs and PCTs precludes accurate quantitation due to significant differences in PCB/PCT electron capture detector response factors, and the potential for misidentification of PCT Aroclors as higher chlorinated PCB Aroclors. A method based on alumina column adsorption chromatography was used, allowing for the accurate identification and quantitation of PCB and PCT Aroclors. The results of this study suggest that the utilization of alumina adsorption column separation may have applicability and regulatory significance to other industrially contaminated sites which historically used Pydraul 312A. Inferences.
Multimedia permitting: A new approach to environmental regulation
Authors: Bryson Nancy S. , Koehn Susan R. , Hemmersbaugh Paul A.
Published: February 2007

Existing federal and state environmental regulatory structures divide the world into three mutually exclusive “media”: air, water, and land. Many experts believe that both pollution prevention and technological innovation would benefit from an integrated, multimedia permitting process. This article profiles groundbreaking programs in the two states that have taken the lead in multimedia permitting—New Jersey and Massachusetts.
Improving public understanding of environmental issues through effective communication
Authors: Shetler Melissa A. , Mangone Flaminia E.
Published: February 2007

A lack of understanding about the environmental implications of a proposed project may cause the public to perceive a risk of inflated value and, ultimately, bring the project to a complete and permanent standstill. The authors outline an approach to public education and involvement that focuses on two‐way communication and promotes the development of acceptable solutions to critical environmental issues.
Economic incentives for TQEM: Are they in your future?
Authors: Bergeson Lynn L. , Campbell Lisa M.
Published: February 2007

Traditional command‐and‐control regulations provide few opportunities for total quality environmental management because they usually do not take into account cost and efficiency factors. However, in the past several years both Congress and EPA have shown increasing interest in using incentive‐type approaches to regulate the environment. These include taxes, marketable pollution privileges, deposits and refunds, information disclosure provisions, and subsidies. The author details examples of each and discusses how they can effectively complement a quality program.
Packaging waste measurement—A key element in digital's total quality program
Authors: Nielsen Larry J.
Published: February 2007

Measurement of packaging waste is a key element of the Total Quality Management program at Digital Equipment Corporation. This case study shows how the company uses measurement techniques to set priorities for which areas of packaging waste should be addressed first and to track improvements over time. To date, an 1,800‐ton annual reduction in packaging waste has been achieved, with associated annual savings of $2.7 million.
Environmental leadership plus total quality management equals continuous improvement
Authors: Bhushan Abhay K. , MacKenzie James C.
Published: February 2007

Xerox was one of the first U.S. companies to discover that environmentally sound practices not only result in good community relations, but also often more than pay for themselves. This case study describes the application of the quality process to environmental management at Xerox and shows how a focus on prevention, employee involvement, teamwork, and the use of quality principles and tools can improve profitability for any company.
A quality approach to environmental communication
Authors: Harrison E. Bruce
Published: February 2007

Too often in the past, public relations professionals were consulted only when there was a problem—or a crisis—that needed explaining. The author provides a model for a process‐oriented approach to environmental communication that focuses on building and sustaining positive public relationships over time. The key is dialogue with critical publics as well as links with other important actors in the environmental drama that can help position you as part of the solution, not the problem.
Total quality practitioner. Improving environmental process
Authors: Greenberg Richard S. , Unger Cynthia A.
Published: February 2007

Quick fix. Putting out firs. Do it over. Fix it again. Bottlenecks. Come back to it later. Out of stock. Back order. Not what we ordered. Is that the best you can do? It's the contractor's fault. Not within specs. Defective. Nobody's perfect. Lost in the system. Over budget. Delayed. Late penalities. Fines.
ANSI/ASQC E4: A unified management standard for quality assurance of environmental programs
Authors: Johnson Gary L.
Published: February 2007

The need for a national consensus standard for quality assurance (QA) for environmental programs emerged from efforts to clean up sites contaminated by hazardous chemical and/or radioactive wastes. The waste management community has been using several different standards or sets of requirements for establishing the QA and quality control (QC) procedures for use during the cleanup of contaminated sites. Some of these requirements have been imposed by federal agencies, including the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Defense (DOD), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Often, requirements have been chosen to fit a particular mission or regulatory requirements. The remediation and restoration of federally owned or operated hazardous waste sites has created a situation in which multiple organizations (including federal and state regulators, site operators, and remedial contractors) are overseeing or addressing the same technical problem, often at the same site, and using different QA requirements. The occurrence of multiple QA/QC requirements has resulted in costly and time‐consuming duplication of effort. In addition, the perception of inconsistent and often conflicting requirements has created confusion and frustration. The need for a single set of QA/QC criteria to bring order and consistency to the application of QA in the environmental waste management area became increasingly clear, and led to the development of ANSI/ASQC E4, which may be approved and issued by this year.
Environmentally conscious manufacturing: A technology for the nineties
Authors: Weissman Suzanne H. , Sekutowski Janine C.
Published: February 2007

Editor's note: Companies embracing TQEM must evaluate and change their manufacturing processes to stay globally competitive in the nineties. This article shows how an environmentally conscious manufacturing program incorporating new approaches to waste reduction will help companies achieve their corporatewide TQEM and strategic goals.
Corporate environmental management study shows shift from compliance to strategy
Authors: Lent Tony , Wells Richard P.
Published: February 2007

The Abt study of forty‐one mostly Fortune 200 nonservice firms forms a new picture of environmental management. We present data indicating that environmental management is becoming central to corporate strategy and is being managed as an arena of competition rather than as a compliance‐driven function. We look at environmental management's new role through four lenses: its relationship to strategic planning; its evolving management structures that show environment increasingly integrated into the main functions of the business; innovation in corporate environmental investments reflecting new drivers beyond compliance; and new management systems and measures of firm‐wide performance that demonstrate that environment is being seen increasingly as an arena of competitive concern.

We argue that much of the change is driven by three realities. First, as customers integrate environmental values into their conceptions of product quality, they are buying more products with identifiably environmental attributes. This change translates environmental management, historically a cost center, into a potential source of sales revenue, a change which cannot be underestimated. Second, recent life‐threatening damage to the global ecosystem and atmosphere reframes environmental management. This moves firms toward a systemic and global approach matched to the globalization of competitive and market concerns, and it places environmental management in the strategic sphere. And third, pollution prevention in its cross‐fertilization with total quality management is driving firms to focus on managing environment as an integral part of product management, and is helping them to reassess environmental performance as a contributor to productivity and innovation.
Questions and answers. TQEM performance indicators—how do you measure up?
Authors: Johannson Lynn
Published: February 2007

I have seen a number of corporations accept the philosophy of TQEM and start the process of total quality environmental management with great enthusiasm. I believe that many organizations are attracted because TQM principles demand measurements of success and results that are definable for the environment. It reduces the emotionalism that frequently tends to surround environmental issues. Emotionalism has perhaps been the bane and boon of efforts by corporations and advocacy groups to incorporate environmental issues into the day‐to‐day functions of organizations. Abt Associates, a well‐known research‐based consulting firm, recently completed a study of U.S. Fortune 250 firms' environmental management programs. Abt found evidence that environmental performance is a competitive issue. Benchmarking is hotly pursued to develop firm‐wide indices of performance. One third of the benchmarking is against competition, another third is against worldwide firms. There is a race to develop “Best in Class” standards now. E2M and Abt Associates have combined resources to study corporate Canada's environmental management programs and compare these with those of the United States. This research will help companies benchmark activities and will build a strong North American data base. Unfortunately it will not be ready in time to answer TQEM's question for this issue. (The study results will be released to participating companies in Fall 1992.)
Business environmental initiatives: Beyond waste reduction and recycling
Authors: Bhushan Abhay K.
Published: February 2007

Xerox was one of the first U.S. companies to discover that environmentally sound practices not only result in good community relations, but also often more than pay for themselves. This article presents ideas and guidelines companies can use in their waste reduction and recycling programs.

Implementing a waste reduction and recycling program is an important step toward improved environmental performance. Given the numerous ways businesses affect the environment—through purchasing, manufacturing, and resource consumption—waste reduction and recycling are just two of many potential environmental measures. This article will highlight further initiatives your business can take toward sustainable development, defined as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Certification of environmental management systems—for iso 9000 and competitive advantage
Authors: Jackson Suzan L.
Published: February 2007

ISO 9000 has become the buzzword of many industries worldwide as they strive to gain competitive advantage by registering their quality systems. At the same time, environmental performance and improvement is becoming increasingly important in the global marketplace. Work has begun to integrate these two important concepts into a new one: certification of environmental management systems. This article explains the new standard and why companies need to recognize and react to their international environmental impact.
Finding green in clean: Progressive pollution prevention at hyde tools
Authors: Paluzzi Joseph E. , Greiner Timothy J.
Published: February 2007

Hyde Tools, Inc., of Southbridge, Massachusetts, is a medium‐sized firm employing about three hundred persons. In 1988, it learned of a company that eliminated its wastewater discharge after being threatened with massive Clean Water Act fines resulting from a suit brought by a Massachusetts environmental group. Hyde decided to devise a similar program to attain zero water discharge and do it within five years. More than 75 percent toward its goal, Hyde'S environmental success, detailed in this article, still relies heavily on the company'S Total Quality Management system and the efforts of a dedicated environmental staff. Hyde'S success typifies TQEM in action—showing how small continuous improvements can lead to significant financial paybacks.
Supporting tqem with boeing's environmental assessment monitoring program
Authors: Rodenhurst Glenn , Spens Cindy
Published: February 2007

This article describes how Boeing'S program to conduct environmental assessments has developed since its inception five years ago, and has contributed to the company'S overall Quality Improvement process.
Measuring environmental performance: Theory and practice at ontario hydro
Authors: Wolfe Anita , Howes Helen A.
Published: February 2007

When an organization embarks on the path of environmental leadership, how does it track and quantify its efforts? This article describes a system for identifying, tracking, and communicating environmental efforts.

Anita Wolfe wishes to recognize Richard P. Wells'S article, “Point of View: Environmental Management in Mexico,” TQEM, Vol. 2, No. 3, as an invaluable source in helping to develop this system.

In addition, it examines the experience of Ontario Hydro, Canada'S largest public utility, within a similar framework.
Applying tqem practices to pollution prevention at AT&T's columbus works plant
Authors: Thompson Barbara C. , Rauck Albert C.
Published: February 2007

In recent years AT&T changed its focus on environmental policies from compliance to pollution prevention. Pollution prevention is an integrated program that includes design for the environment, “green” manufacturing, and a comprehensive program to reduce existing waste in production. The principles of Total Quality Management can be applied to pollution prevention as well as the more traditional manufacturing concepts. The project described in this article is one of several concurrent programs being conducted at AT&T'S Columbus Works to reduce overall waste produced by the facility by applying TQM practices.
Applying tqm to environmental site assessments under the astm standard
Authors: Apsan Howard N.
Published: February 2007

Total Quality Management was initially developed to facilitate an ethos of continuous improvement of the production process. It entails both an internal and external focus. The former depends on a cooperative effort among employees at all levels of the organization to analyze work processes, minimize process variance, and thereby maximize productivity. The latter requires close collaboration with suppliers to ensure that raw or processed materials can be readily and efficiently integrated into the production process and constant communication with the end user—the customer—to ensure that the process generates the expected level of quality.

Applying TQM to service industry processes is a bit more complex. In addition to having to tailor the TQM approach to the specific service industry, the processes are seldom identical and tend not to lend themselves to the same type of statistical variance analysis that is considered a hallmark of TQM. Nevertheless, numerous case studies have shown that TQM is applicable to the service industry and can help to generate a culture of continuous improvement and enhance customer satisfaction.

Environmental site assessments provide a unique challenge to proponents of TQM. Construction, geological, and hydrological characteristics are unique at each site; regulatory requirements differ by jurisdiction; access to historical information is inconsistent; auditors have varying backgrounds; and client needs and expectations differ. Nevertheless, as the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard practice gains acceptance as a benchmark for environmental site assessments, the application of TQM practices to this service process becomes more practicable.
Environmental auditing roundtable establishes formal standards for environmental, health, and safety audits
Authors: Yodis William A. , Hedstrom Gilbert S.
Published: February 2007

The Environmental Auditing Roundtable recently promulgated the Standards for the Performance of Environmental, Health, and Safety Audits that are featured in this article. With many global initiatives converging in the development of environmental auditing and management standards, this document represents a vital building block, unique from many others in that it was built by a broad‐based consensus effort of actual practitioners. Over 95 percent of the Roundtable members who voted on the standard endorsed it.
Applying the baldrige quality criteria to environmental performance: Lessons from leading organizations
Authors: Craigmcgee E. , Bhushan Abhay K.
Published: February 2007

Over the last thirty years, we have seen a dramatic shift in values that people and corporations place on environmental responsibility. People have become more aware of how the earth's limited resources are being rapidly depleted. High levels of consumption have resulted in increasing manufacturing and transportation needs which in turn lead to greater energy use, higher usage of hazardous and toxic substances, and decreased air and water quality. Leadership for environmental protection has shifted from vocal environmental advocacy groups to corporate executives. Driven by shifting customer requirements, competitive pressures, and resource conservation technologies, environmental issues are becoming embedded in the fundamental business strategies. In this article we will describe the application of the Malcolm Baldrige quality award criteria to environmental management and show how the focus on quality principles and tools can improve profitability. Examples from the Xerox Corporation and other companies will be provided to illustrate the breadth of environmental improvement initiatives that are being implemented.
Kodak's framework and assessment tool for implementing TQEM
Authors: Wever Grace H. , Vorhauer George F.
Published: February 2007

Total Quality Management provides a powerful management foundation and framework to implement an organization's environmental vision and principles. The elements of TQM include customer/stakeholder focus, a high degree of senior management commitment, a long‐term focus, and tools such as continuous improvement, empowerment, and a prevention‐based approach. This article describes a matrix developed by major U.S. and Canadian firms that serves as (1) a guide to organizations implementing TQEM from the ground floor up and (2) an assessment tool that can be used internally or externally to measure progress toward environmental management excellence and to identify opportunities for improvement. The matrix is based on categories adapted from those used in the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award process. The relationship between individual matrix cell criteria and key concepts such as pollution prevention and sustainability is also described.
Making pollution prevention part of the coors culture
Authors: Woods Sandra K.
Published: February 2007

This article is about Total Quality Management and its relationship to corporate environmental affairs. As the TQM movement expands, the commitment to continuous quality improvement, customer satisfaction, and collaborative, team‐oriented workplaces is finding new applications. Just as the success of Federal Express, AT&T, and other winners of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award shows that Total Quality Management can transform a business, we also are learning of successes companies are having applying TQM principles to environmental management.

Our experience with TQM and environmental management at Coors Brewing Company is in the area of pollution prevention. In addition to our brewing operations, we also operate the country's largest aluminum can manufacturing plant, where we produce 4 billion cans a year, a separate facility that makes the can tops, a glass bottle manufacturing plant, and various support facilities.

In all, we have some 7,000 employees, and building a commitment to pollution prevention in an operation of that size requires much more than just adopting quality principles. In this article we show how it also means understanding how those principles will mesh with the corporate culture. What we found is that before TQM can begin its magic, a company must review its own culture to see how problems have traditionally been solved and how challenges have been met.
The european ecolabels and audits scheme: New environmental standards for competing abroad
Authors: Kirchenstein John J. , Jump Rodger A.
Published: February 2007

Businesses outside the European Community (EC) will soon discover that pressure is mounting for their products to meet minimum environmental standards now being drafted by the EC. Companies will be pressed to demonstrate that their products and production facilities and operations (1) help preserve, protect, and improve the environment, (2) contribute toward protecting human health, and (3) ensure a prudent and rational use of natural resources. The EC is offering two avenues to companies: the Ecolabel to provide evidence that a product complies with the EC environmental standards and the Audit Scheme to assure potential consumers that a company's operations and facilities do likewise. This article presents an overview of the EC Ecolabel and Audit Scheme processes and requirements in order to help prepare foreign businesses for commerce with the EC.
Benchmarking: Survey profiles the who and what of environmental auditing practice
Authors: Coulter Paul D.
Published: February 2007

In late 1990, the Environmental Auditing Roundtable's Auditor Training and Qualification Work Group determined that it needed reliable information about those in industry currently doing health, safety, and environmental audits. The work group would use this information to develop appropriate standards for auditors. It was also felt that such information would be helpful to others establishing internal audit programs. The work group, under the leadership of Donald P. Duffy, developed and refined a survey questionnaire during 1991. This article details the results of this survey and provides companies with timely information to benchmark their TQEM auditing efforts.
The jurassic executive park: How esh managers can get out
Authors: Owen C. W.
Published: February 2007

Managers living in the Jurassic past find it difficult or impossible to deal with changes demanded by today's environmentally challenged operational arena. The highly technical environmental issues were once thought to be the sole province of the individual with “environmental” in his or her job description. Environmental professionals spent most of their time learning all the regulatory constraints on the company's processes. Sharpening these technical skills has not prepared ESH managers to get things done with others from outside the environmental field. In this article, the author argues that managers must learn to use team empowerment to remain competitive and improve environmental performance.
Toward effective environmental auditing at the TVA: Management audits versus compliance audits
Authors: Iwanski Myron L. , Thurman John R.
Published: February 2007

Companies that incorporate Total Quality Management into their operations are placing increased emphasis on identifying the root causes of deficiencies and problems. This is in keeping with the TQM principles identified by Deming in Out of the Crisis. Deming states that quality comes not from inspection or from management by objectives or results, but from improvements made in the process and products in order to meet customer needs. Deming's approach demands a shift in focus from addressing symptoms to addressing causes. In this article, environmental management audits are presented as the best means to assure that adequate management controls are in place to protect the company, its managers and its employees from penalties associated with civil and criminal enforcement actions.
Corporate performance standards at Kodak
Authors: Bober Maria M. , Mitchell James W. , Bell R. Hays , Hart William L.
Published: February 2007

Creating an effective and consistent corporate health, safety, and environment program for a decentralized, international company poses unique challenges. This article describes how, with global company input, Kodak has established a set of twenty‐eight corporate HSE performance standards. Worldwide facility compliance with these standards is monitored through Kodak's Corporate HSE Assessment Program and through the Corporate Self‐Appraisal Program.
The team solution for effective project management
Authors: Lipnack Jessica , Stamps Jeffrey
Published: February 2007

In their new book The TeamNet Factor: Bringing the Power of Boundary Crossing into the Heart of Your Business, authors Jessica Lipnack and Jeffrey Stamps claim that businesses that form teamnets—networks of teams that cross conventional boundaries—will be winners in the twenty‐first century global economy. From the smallest to the largest companies, businesses are climbing over their own walls. Customers, competitors, and even people in different industries traverse their traditional limits to work together. When business teams cross boundaries, benefits accrue. Whether three‐person shops or multinationals, these companies can achieve something that by themselves would be impossible. By definition, teamnets are on a mission for mutual benefit. Large firms in many industries are using internal teamnets to bridge barriers inside their companies and external teamnets to bridge boundaries with suppliers, customers, and competitors. The following excerpt presents insightful ideas and techniques for quality professionals on how to implement more effective project management through teams.
Environmental cost accounting: The bottom line for environmental quality management
Authors: Russell William G. , Skalak Steven L. , Miller Gail
Published: February 2007

Recent years have seen the environment emerge as one of the most pressing issues facing American business. Eventually, environmental costs will affect the bottom line of every American company. A recent study in the National Law Journal estimates that cleanup of the nation's known hazardous wastes sites will cost $752 billion over thirty years under current environmental policies.

Environmental legislation and regulations impose annual compliance costs estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency at more than $30 billion. In the near future, environmental expenses for cleanup, regulatory compliance, and management are anticipated to grow to between 2.5 and 3 percent of GNP. Corporations that wish to be competitive must successfully manage these costs while maintaining or improving their role as responsible corporate citizens.

Implementing a comprehensive system for identifying and managing environmental costs requires a multidisciplinary team effort. Environmental costs impact product selection, design and pricing, capital budgeting, and future strategic direction. In order to make informed and meaningful managerial decisions on environmental programs, real cost data are vital. An environmental management systems (EMS) requires information to set goals and then monitor progress towards those goals over time. This article will discuss the current cost accounting systems (CASs) available to support the myriad goals of environmental management systems.

In addition, the article will outline a framework for plotting the location of your current EMS on a matrix of regulatory and information requirements and evaluating whether your corporation's CAS is adequate to support the goals and objectives set by your environmental management program. By anticipating future regulatory and information requirements, flexible systems can be developed to adapt to new and more stringent regulations and more complex information requirements.
Benchmarking for continuous performance improvement: Tactics for success
Authors: Kleiner Brian M.
Published: February 2007

Benchmarking is a powerful management technique that can help improve an organization's environmental performance on a number of dimensions. Benchmarking is not a cookbook solution but a systematic process of searching for the organization that is the best at a given process (“best‐in‐class”) and continually adopting or adapting new processes to accelerate improvement. As a continual process including planning, analysis, integration, action, and maturity phases, benchmarking should be integrated into the planning stage of the management system. Once processes are strategically identified, they can be improved within the company's Total Quality Management program. Many benefits, such as teamwork and job satisfaction, accompany benchmarking, but the greatest companywide advantage is becoming more competitive.

Finding a suitable partner is crucial to the success of the benchmarking process. This article shows the traditional one‐on‐one approach is the most effective because it saves time and money that allows organizations to learn from each other. In addition, examples of where benchmarking partners may be found, as well as several success indicators in the benchmarking process, are presented. Since the ultimate intent of benchmarking is positive change, the difference between reengineering and continuous performance improvement and the role benchmarking plays in each is also discussed.
Preparing quality audit reports: Ten steps (and some leaps) to improve auditing
Authors: Cahill Lawrence B.
Published: February 2007

Good writing is never easy, but it is critical to the effectiveness of environmental audit reports. This article discusses ten issues to consider while producing audit reports that will enhance a company's quality effort.
Corporate environmental performance expectations in the 1990s: More than just compliance
Authors: Cahill Lawrence B. , Kane Raymond W.
Published: February 2007

What do General Motors and Ben and Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream have in common? Both companies have endorsed the CERES principles, a model corporate code of environmental conduct developed by the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES). This model code generally goes well beyond what is now typically required of industry to maintain compliance with already stringent requirements established by regulatory agencies.

And the CERES principles are not the only game in town. Many other environmental initiatives have surfaced both in the United States and abroad over the past few years. This article discusses six sets of current initiatives and provides managers with a vital tool for discussing these initiatives with top management and others throughout their organizations.
Continuous improvement at EG&G: The waste reduction pays (WARP) initiative
Authors: Parker William H.
Published: February 2007

EG&G is a Fortune 200 company with annual sales of $2.7 billion. It designs and manufactures laboratory and field‐test instruments and electronic and mechanical components for commercial customers. EG&G provides systems engineering, precision component manufacturing, and test‐site operating and management services to many government agencies and laboratories. It employs 34,000 people worldwide.

Recognizing the need to improve its business practices as they related to environmental excellence, EG&G initiated policies, procedures, and programs to establish itself as an environmentally responsible company. Waste reduction was designated priority number one in EGG's environmental program. Our major customers are also making waste reduction a high visibility program. For example, on August 3, 1993, the president signed Executive Order 12856 making pollution prevention at federal facilities a goal of this administration. This article describes the EG&G Waste Reduction Pays (WARP) program, developed for use by all its operating entities, and why it is a model program to implement Executive Order 12856. It also depicts how the implementation of the program at federal facilities differs, in some respects, from that at other EG&G operating units.
Pursuing environmental excellence for competitive advantage: Whirlpool's super‐efficient refrigerator
Authors: Willisy Steven P.
Published: February 2007

Environmental advocates, as well as the environmental professionals in industry, are exploring a new opportunity to motivate improvements to environmental management systems. This new opportunity arises from the possible link between environmental excellence and competitive advantage. When this link exists in a given industry or market, the business person's enthusiasm for environmental initiatives is much greater. However, this link is not present unless a company's key customers consider environmental performance and product environmental characteristics when making purchasing decisions. There are a number of reasons to pursue environmental excellence, but it is not correct to assume that competitive advantage will automatically occur.

This article discusses the conditions that are necessary to achieve the link between environmental excellence and competitive advantage. Whirlpool's success in winning the $30 million Super Efficient Refrigeration Program (SERP) competition will also be discussed as a test case for determining whether environmental excellence can lead to competitive advantage in the appliance industry.
Growing an environmental leadership strategy at duke power company
Authors: Davidson Hilary S.
Published: February 2007

This article presents information on Duke Power Company's environmental leadership strategic measures, targets, and results. Information is presented on how each measure is defined, how progress is measured and reported, what behavior changes have been observed, the results achieved, and what challenges are foreseen in the future.
Benchmarking environmental audit programs: Best practices and biggest challenges
Authors: Cahill Lawrence B.
Published: February 2007

As Total Quality Management (TQM) has become an important concept in learning how to manage environmental, health, and safety audit programs more effectively, an especially useful. TQM tool has been competitive benchmarking. Companies are using benchmarking studies to identify “best practices” that could be incorporated into their programs. In conducting benchmarking studies, evaluators often also identify the biggest common challenges facing audit program managers.

This article discusses these best practices and biggest challenges associated with environmental audit programs. The conclusions are based on a number of benchmarking studies and third‐party evaluations of corporate audit programs. As the sources are necessarily limited to the author's own experiences, there are no doubt many other specific best practices that are not discussed in this article. These will surface over time.
Organizational change and the greening process at amoco
Authors: Hoffman Andrew J.
Published: February 2007

Implementing environmentalism in the internal operations of a firm requires a reassignment of responsibilities and functions. New job tasks are created while old ones are altered to incorporate new perspectives and responsibilities that reflect broader societal demands. In essence, what evolves is a new firm, but what exactly does this mean? After a broad analysis of the environmental transformation of American industry, four basic changes within the organizational framework of dealing with environmentalism are identified: an evolution of the environmental management function, alteration of the overall structure of the organization, expansion of the boundaries of the firm, and changes in corporate culture. The author shows how these shifts occur in sequential order as increasing uncertainty promotes the search for answers from more diverse sources. Ultimately, as environmentalism continues to evolve, it increasingly infuses itself into the corporate culture. The following article presents this model and a case study of the Amoco Corporation.
Audits and root cause analysis
Authors: Roig Randy A. , Schneider Peter
Published: February 2007

Many current audit programs are very good at determining the compliance issues at a site, but are less successful in developing long‐term compliance solutions. One method for addressing these issues is the use of root cause analysis techniques. These techniques allow the facility to identify and focus on permanent solutions to compliance issues. The authors note the following:

Conducting a root cause analysis is not a substantial burden on the audit team or the facility. Most information is already collected during the audit, but is not being used.

Looking at the overview pattern of the root cause analysis can provide a picture of the maturity of your audit program.

Pareto charts are excellent methods to convey the results of your analysis. They show both the trends of analysis and help highlight the most significant root causes.
Environmental training fosters bottom‐line education and regional economic development
Authors: Johannson Lynn
Published: February 2007

The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.

If Einstein was correct, the question that you should be posing to yourself right now is “how can I make the change to a different level of thinking?” This challenge was given to a group of managers from a broad range of businesses in a training program delivered at the Centre for Environmental Training (CET) in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It will be examined in this article as part of a case study about the success of a TQEM approach to improving the bottom line of business. At the heart of this story is the germination of a business vision to make improved environmental performance a key factor in regional economic renewal. In keeping with the TQEM theme, this is a never ending story; this article is just the prologue.
Compliance, commitment, and competition: Improving environmental performance
Authors: McLearn Mary E.
Published: February 2007

A series of terms has been used to describe corporate environmental activities: waste management/waste minimization, pollution prevention, environmental excellence. Each has a different definition and comprises different activities, yet they represent a continuum of environmental response and improvement. This article considers the characteristics of each activity and the necessary balance among internal and external concerns that corporations seek as they progress toward environmental excellence in a competitive business climate.
Managing life‐cycle costs: Applications and lessons learned at leading utilities
Authors: Gess David , Cohan David
Published: February 2007

Life‐cycle cost management (LCCM) provides electric utility staff with a structured process for making decisions based on the true cost of the products and processes they use, rather than on purchase price alone or on other partial life‐cycle costs. Several utilities have used LCCM to evaluate a range of product substitution and process improvement decisions and to implement cost‐saving actions. This article summarizes some of these applications. Each utility applied the LCCM tools and techniques in a way that met their individual needs, such as selecting cost‐effective specific pollution prevention options, making product purchase decisions, making process improvement decisions, managing commodities, and setting priorities for further evaluation. LCCM has helped utilities save millions of dollars by considering the true costs of the materials, products, and processes they use. This article examines the LCCM techniques and tools that help organizations evaluate their options and make decisions with minimum effort.

The authors wish to thank our utility partners for their contributions to developing the LCCM tools and techniques and for their participation in applying these tools and techniques to important decisions: Duke Power Company, Entergy Services Inc., Florida Power Corporation, Niagara Mohawk Power Company, Pacific Gas & Electric Company, and Potomac Electric Power Company. The authors thank the following utility representatives for their valuable contributions: Amy Crews Baxter, Reggie Black, Jay Eingold, Shireen Fahey, Tom Fox, Tom Rooney, and Tyrone Williams. The authors also thank key members of the DFI project team: Nathan Chan, Gillian Lam, Mia Morsy, Jim Mullin, and Valerie Peoples.
An electric utility's challenge: Creating an integrated chemical management information system
Authors: Guggenheim David E.
Published: February 2007

This article examines a research effort undertaken by a large electric utility to integrate a broad range of chemical management information in order to improve regulatory compliance, facilitate chemical management, identify opportunities for waste reduction, and support research applications. The chemical management system (CMS) integrated data from pre‐existing MSDS and procurement databases. While CMS generally proved useful for a range of research applications, using CMS highlighted numerous problems in the underlying data and brought into question the feasibility of the CMS approach. In various ways this project highlighted many issues common to many electric utilities that must be resolved in order to achieve a successful integration of chemical management functions. The problems encountered, particularly those related to procurement data, were related to corporate policy and procedures, not to technical limitations of integrating these databases. This article shows how (as with any TQEM effort) the key to the success of a chemical management system is not to design such a system as a peripheral appendage, but rather as a primary component of mainstream business functions.
Metrics, decisions, and strategies: Environmental performance measurement in the electric utility industry
Authors: Fiksel Joseph
Published: February 2007

The twin challenges of increased competition and environmental consciousness are causing companies in the utility industry to re‐examine their methods for measuring environmental performance. A new paradigm is emerging which has already appeared in other industries—treating environmental quality as a potential source of profitability and competitive advantage. This article discusses how utilities and industrial companies can develop an environmental performance measurement framework, integrate it into their strategic and operating business practices, and use it for evaluation of alternative environmental strategies.
Conducting effective audit conferences for improving environmental performance
Authors: Cahill Lawrence B.
Published: February 2007

Both opening and closing conferences are crucial elements of an effective environmental audit program. As many firms reengineer their auditing process, focusing on the beginning and end points of the on‐site process makes eminent sense. This article discusses a variety of issues that often arise during the preparation and conduct of opening and closing conferences that can ultimately affect the success of the audit.
Voluntary standards at the dawn of ISO 14000: Fit or folly for TQEM?
Authors: Johannson Lynn
Published: February 2007

“There can be no improvement where there are no standards.”1 Masaaki Imai.