Green logistics

So many of us in this industry share deep concerns about the sustainability of our products. We lose sleep over the origins and composition of materials, the carbon footprints of our manufacturing facilities and what will happen to our products once their life is over, yet few of us have thought in depth on how our products get to the end user. Unfortunately I am guilty of this myself.

My company, Phase Change Energy Solutions, Inc., is a world leader in a new technology which will have a huge impact on energy consumption. We are the innovators and manufacturers behind BioPCM™ a line of products which allow building designers and owners to dramatically reduce energy usage by increasing the thermal mass of building structures without dramatically increasing the weight of the buildings. Our products are carbon negative (from bio-based sources) and are Living Building Challenge approved.  We power our operations with solar energy and reduce energy consumption for our customers around the world, yet it was not until a recent meeting with Sustainability Matters Compliance and Logistics Expert, Licia J. Angino, that I even began to think of the path our products take to reach the customer.

Currently Licia is working with our southern California representatives, Sustainability Matters, to assist with the development and implementation of a Sustainable Logistics module to pitch to clients as the last crucial piece to their net carbon zero footprint. This is a challenging enterprise in these trying economic times.

In Licia’s own words: “When I was first approached by Sustainability Matters to assist with the development and implementation of a Sustainable Logistics module to pitch to clients as the last crucial piece to their net carbon zero footprint, I expected smooth sailing. After all, I had been in the Logistics industry for over 18 years, I had implemented procedures all over the world and understood the rules and regulations that governed a good portion of the supply chain. Most importantly, I had always been a champion for the smaller to medium sized providers as they are the fabric of the logistics industry. Though the big players tie the far reaches of the continents together, it is the smaller to medium companies that complete the network.