Fundamentally environmental problem cannot be solved by any one company's efforts and it is very complicated matter which involves all concerned bodies from individuals, local communities, a corporate to humankind, and from virgin materials, manufacturing to wasted goods.
Newly emerged sustainable development is one kind of approach to manage global environmental concerns. To achieve this global humankind objective a corporate is adapting environmental management system and trying to get competitive advantage, exploiting an opportunity through environmental capability.
Many studies expressed the necessity of dynamic environmental management strategy considering production type, process, industry conditions and local situations. Therefore any substantial framework is needed to exercise environmental management that is properly inter-related with production process and production function, which may be especially important to manufacturing firms. In this respect some of researches examined the integration between operations management (O.M.) strategy and environmental management (E.M.) strategy and a complementary model was suggested, based on the survey of American companies.
With theoretical background of these examinations and suggestions this study performed a case study on the relationship between production process and environmental management practices against 4 numbers of Korean companies, which are largely grouped into project shop process type company (1 shipbuilding company, 1 heavy machinery company) and continuous process type company (2 petro-chemical plant companies).
With this case study, the following conclusions and implications are identified:
i) The present level of environmental management practices of all 4 companies is a receptive stage which is either just out of end-of-pipe control stage (in project shop type 2 firms) or mainly production process control through process change (in continuous type 2 firms).
ii) In terms of operations management strategy, there is the difference of competitive dimensions between project shop and continuous production process: i.e., project shop companies like shipbuilding and heavy machinery seem to pursue design capacity, delivery speed while continuous process companies to pursue cost and quality as Order Winning Factors.
iii) There is the difference of environmental management practices between project shop and continuous production process: i.e., project shop companies are trying to enhance environmental capability development and corporate image while continuous process companies to achieve waste minimization and restoring.
iv) There is some inter-relationship between O.M. strategy competitive dimensions and E.M. practicing factors. In other words, strong relationship between cost reduction and waste minimization exists at continuous process type companies like petro-chemical plant, but at project shop type companies there is weak connection between design capacity/ delivery speed, and environmental capability/ corporate image. The reason may be estimated that green market does not yet fully emerge from these kinds of product markets (ship, large assembled plant facilities, marine engines) which are having relatively long product life cycle.
According to these findings and implications, the following environmental management strategies can be suggested:
First, the companies with project shop process type can exploit new market and market expansion by means of green product development and good eco-friendly image with their various design capabilities and product mix. Simultaneously they should also manage waste minimization and recycling as short term practices.
Secondly, the companies with continuous process type can focus on waste minimization of input materials through production change while pursuing substitutive materials in long term perspective such as nationwide basic research.
