Sustainability Association
SUSTAINABLE MANUFACTURING TRANSFORMATION IS HERE
The Sustainability Association is a place where manufacturing leaders work together with world-leading researchers to identify and overcome common challenges in making their operations more sustainable.
The sustainability field is complex and offers many competing approaches. And the rate of change is accelerating. Organisational resistance to change may be declining but presenting a convincing case to the board can still feel daunting.
That’s where the Sustainability Association can help.
Member companies form a “Community of Practice” which supports them in accessing the right knowledge, right expertise and right network to accelerate sustainable change in their organisation.
MEMBER EVENTS – PAST AND UPCOMING
Membership enables two people from a member organisation to join four events each year. The events include expert speakers, workshops, presentations from start-ups and networking sessions. Past and upcoming events include:
13 September 2022 – Supply chain sustainability
At this meeting, we will present back our findings as well as bring together expert external speakers to provide new insights as we look to make progress with the scope 3 challenge.
- Insights – Developing supplier programmes for net-zero
- Workshop – Making sense of supply chain sustainability
19 May 2022 – A path to net-zero
At this meeting we covered a case study from an exemplar in resource efficiency and reflected on setting sustainability targets and building a net-zero strategy.
- Case study – Resource efficiency at Toyota
- Workshop – Net-zero manufacturing
9 March 2022 – Quickly wins in resource and energy efficiency
A report was created for this meeting that investigates the role of continuous improvement initiatives in achieving rapid sustainability improvements and driving resource efficiency
17 & 18 November 2021 – The emerging role in digital transforming the sustainability journey
How to achieve Carbon Zero and secure quick wins using existing technology and know-how. These are topics that were identified by members as collective problems for the Association to address.
14 July 2021 – Emerging stronger: Accelerating sustainable manufacturing post COVID-19
There are many challenges facing organisations in relation to sustainability – in this launch webinar, experts gave insights on where to start and what to tackle next when there is so much to do.
OUR MEMBERS
Report: Driving resource efficiency through rapid sustainability improvements
Created for and by the Sustainability Association, this study looks into how to achieve rapid sustainability improvements, including a 20-stage checklist on steps you can take to accelerate sustainability in your organisation.
WHY JOIN?
Network
Set challenges
Understand
Collaborate
Learn
with manufacturing experts from industry and academia who share a collective drive and are making sustainability a reality in their organisations.
to the Sustainability Association for them to work on throughout the year to better understand and solve collective problems that you and your peers identify.
the impact emerging sustainability thinking could have on your organisation (including net zero, circular economy and resilience), prioritising what you need to do and by when.
with University of Cambridge academics, commissioning new research projects in areas of mutual interest.
about exciting new sustainability technology and solutions from ground-breaking start-ups and research groups.
WHY JOIN?
Network
with manufacturing experts from industry and academia who share a collective drive and are making sustainability a reality in their organisations.
Set challenges
to the Sustainability Association for them to work on throughout the year to better understand and solve collective problems that you and your peers identify.
Understand
the impact emerging sustainability thinking could have on your organisation (including net zero, circular economy and resilience), prioritising what you need to do and by when.
Collaborate
with University of Cambridge academics, commissioning new research projects in areas of mutual interest.
Learn
about exciting new sustainability technology and solutions from ground-breaking start-ups and research groups.
“Bringing about change sustainably is complex so it was good to share common challenges with like-minded peers. I’m looking forward to next year’s programme which will help us understand which areas should be central and how can I prioritise actions for our business.”
Patricia Lorton, Director of Sustainability, Worthington Industries
“The Sustainability Association is a fantastic way for us to increase the impact of industrially proven tools that can make a difference in member companies straight away. We are excited about supporting members in accelerating the pace of change in their organisations, as well as hearing about challenges they are facing so we can focus our research in areas which will lead to the development of new solutions and insights.”
Professor Steve Evans, Director of Research in Industrial Sustainability, Institute for Manufacturing, University of Cambridge
“The Sustainability Association is a fantastic way for us to increase the impact of industrially proven tools that can make a difference in member companies straight away. We are excited about supporting members in accelerating the pace of change in their organisations, as well as hearing about challenges they are facing so we can focus our research in areas which will lead to the development of new solutions and insights.”
Professor Steve Evans, Director of Research in Industrial Sustainability, Institute for Manufacturing, University of Cambridge
MEMBER BENEFITS
Build
Discover
Avoid
Navigate
Stay
a supportive network of peers with similar challenges to you, giving you a sounding board for ideas and opportunities.
how others are dealing with challenges of net zero, circularity, disruption, resilience and more, hearing about solutions that work in practice.
making mistakes that
others have made.
your options more effectively by making smarter decisions with more evidence and less risk.
abreast of emerging thinking, which will become increasingly pertinent in board-level discussions in the future.
MEMBER BENEFITS
Build
a supportive network of peers with similar challenges to you, giving you a sounding board for ideas and opportunities.
Discover
how others are dealing with challenges of net zero, circularity, disruption, resilience and more, hearing about solutions that work in practice.
Avoid
making mistakes that
others have made.
Navigate
your options more effectively by making smarter decisions with more evidence and less risk.
Stay
abreast of emerging thinking, which will become increasingly pertinent in board-level discussions in the future.
“Hearing about areas of progress and innovation is always inspiring – even those that were not directly applicable to my company – sparked a conversation with other attendees that helped to develop ideas and plans for driving sustainability. Next year, I am looking forward to more inspiration from those leading in the sustainability arena, and in sharing and learning from other association members on how they are overcoming challenges and taking action to approach net zero.”
Peter Lake, Director Operational Excellence, BTG Specialty Pharmaceuticals.
BECOME A MEMBER
If you are interested in becoming a member of the Sustainability Association, contact us for more information.
