Analysing the alignment between the Green Lean and Circular strategies: towards a Circular Lean approach

Abstract

PurposeGreen Lean tools are aligned with the Circular Economy strategy as they aim at reducing waste, however, they miss the creation of value through waste. Therefore, this paper investigates whether the current implementation of the Green Lean strategy promotes the introduction of the Circular philosophy to achieve sustainable management production processes. It analyses how the resources were managed by implementing the different strategies and tools presented in Green Lean case studies under the lens of Circular Economy and highlights future research paths on the Circular Lean integration.Design/methodology/approachAn analysis of the implementation of Green Lean case studies, selected through a Systematic Literature Review, from the manufacturing sector is conducted.FindingsThe majority of Green Lean implementations were aimed at minimizing waste, which is aligned with the narrowing strategy of Circular Economy and only a few cases studies aimed at closing the production cycles. Even though the main results indicate that being eco-efficient is a good starting point to move towards sustainability, from a Circular Economy point of view, this approach could remain limited. Therefore, the current contribution of Green Lean to the implementation of circular practices is limited. It can be concluded that introducing the circular philosophy in the Green Lean methodology can be achieved through redirecting Green Lean from waste reduction towards a value creation focus.Originality/valueThe originality of this paper is that it provides a critical review of the literature on the topic of Green Lean integration and Circular Economy.

Beyond lean manufacturing and sustainable performance: are the circular economy practices worth pursuing?

“…This finding is consistent with the results obtained by Nadeem et al (2019), Hedlund et al (2020), Kurdve and Bellgran (2021) and Schmitt et al (2021), which suggested that the implementation of LM practices does support circularity in manufacturing companies. Nevertheless, the findings contradict, to some degree, the findings of Kalemkerian et al (2022) which suggested that the contribution of Green Lean to the implementation of CE practices is limited.…”

“…Kurdve and Bellgran (2021) proposed the implementation of LM and CE at a descriptive level, finding the existence of a positive relationship between both constructs, but considering that the interconnection between both constructs should go beyond a simple description and provide empirical evidence that demonstrates the interconnection. However, despite the evidence suggesting a positive relationship between LM and CE, Kalemkerian et al (2022) found, through the analysis of case studies identified following the systematic literature review method, that the contribution of LM to the implementation of CE practices is limited. Thus, considering the discussion elaborated above, it is possible to propose a second research hypothesis.…”

Prioritizing the barriers of green smart manufacturing using AHP in implementing Industry 4.0: a case from Indian automotive industry

“…This is an exciting time for the industry. However, a few authors (Dalenogare et al, 2018;Frank et al, 2019, Florencia et al, 2022 have brought up the topic that there are barriers in Industry 4.0 that influence sustainable smart manufacturing. These authors note that these impediments are a problem.…”

“…The term "green manufacturing" refers to all environmentally responsible aspects of the production process, beginning with raw materials and ending with satisfied customers (Gunasekaran and Spalanzani, 2012;Rathi et al, 2022). GM has seen significant expansion over the past few decades and has emerged as one of the primary areas of focus in a wide variety of engineering and industrial applications (Ramanujan et al, 2017;Florencia et al, 2022).…”

“…GM has seen significant expansion over the past few decades and has emerged as one of the primary areas of focus in a wide variety of engineering and industrial applications (Ramanujan et al. , 2017; Florencia et al. , 2022).…”