Measuring environmental improvements image in companies implementing green manufacturing, by means of a fuzzy logic model for decision-making purposes

Green manufacturing is becoming an important strategy that manufacturing companies are implementing in their facilities to differentiate themselves from competitors. Several research efforts have been done aiming to understand the improvements achieved with green manufacturing. However, additional research needs to be conducted on how companies differ from each other, and how they can compare themselves to leading companies in environmental terms. The objective of this research was to design, verify, and validate a model able to deliver a positioning index ( environmental improvement index , EII GM ) that measures the environmental image of a company as a function of their environmental improvements, and as compared to achievements in the same areas by leading companies implementing green manufacturing. The model was developed using a fuzzy logic approach. Main findings indicate that the highest levels in the EII GM are achieved when simultaneously improving the four variables considered (water, waste, energy, and CO 2 emissions), with energy savings being the most important variable for companies improving only one variable. The environmental improvement index developed shows its importance as a planning and decision-making tool for manufacturing companies pursuing a higher environmental image, and a differentiation strategy from competitors based on environmental improvements.