Sustainable Industrial Engineering - Green Industrial Engineering

Sustainability Special Issue 

"Sustainable Industrial Engineering along Product-Service Life Cycle/Supply Chain"

Special Issue Editors

Prof. João Carlos de Oliveira Matias
Guest Editor
GOVCOPP Research Unit; Department of Economics, Management, Industrial Engineering and Tourism (DEGEIT), University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal


Prof. Dr. Susana Garrido Azevedo
Guest Editor
CEFAGE Research Unit; Department of Management and Economics, University of Beira Interior, Marquês de Ávila e Bolama, 6201-001 Covilhã, Portugal

Dr. Carina Pimentel
Guest Editor
GOVCOPP and UNIDEMI Research Units; Department of Economics, Management, Industrial Engineering and Tourism (DEGEIT), University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal


Special Issue Information


The International Institute for Sustainable Development defines sustainable development as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. To tackle this challenge supply chains and the society in general must respond effectively to today's environmental, economic and social challenges.

Industrial engineering is concerned with value creation, building a bridge between technology and management. Development of new technologies can only take place if technologists and engineers have a good understanding of the needs of those who will be affected by the new technologies. Engineering innovations need to respond to social demand while taking ecological and economic principles into account. The design, operation, and assessment of such sustainable manufacturing systems within the limitations of renewable resource generation, and social compatibility, are the major challenges of the 21st century. This concern contributes to enhance the importance of controlling the product-service along its lifecycle using the methodology of sustainability life cycle assessment for assessing the economic, environmental, and social performance of a product-service from cradle to cradle. Cleaner production is also a concern of sustainable industrial engineering systems aiming at making a more efficient use of natural resources and reduce the generation of wastes and emissions at the source, through the implementation of some practices, such as technology modification, sustainable operations, reduce, recycling and reuse, and product modification. Cleaner production strategies, industrial symbiosis, and eco-efficiency strategies, are amongst some tools of sustainable industrial engineering which can help to the achievement of sustainable engineering solutions. These sustainable industrial engineering practices along the supply chain help to reverse the adverse effects of the industry, and the use of environmentally-friendly and socially beneficial practices may help to improve businesses profitability.

Sustainable industrial engineering addresses the issue of sustainability of industry from an economic, an environmental and a social and societal point of view. Its application fields are the whole value chain and lifecycle of products/services, from the development, to the end of life stages. 

This Special Issue focuses on how sustainable industrial engineering can contribute to supply chains become more sustainable. Researchers are encouraged to submit research or applied papers to explore the several aspects of sustainable industrial engineering along the supply chain.

Topics

Sustainability industrial engineering issues along the supply chain;
Sustainability linkages with strategic, tactical and operational supply chain management decision making;
Industrial engineering role in business sustainability and in economic growth;
Sustainable industrial engineering and supply chain performance;
Design and engineering of dynamic business models for industrial product-service systems;
Innovative business models for sustainable supply chain management;
Product-service life cycle assessment;
Sustainability function deployment;
Sustainable Design;
Product Service System;
Product-Service Footprint;
Sustainable Operations Management;
Sustainable technologies and equipment development along the supply chain;
Reverse logistics and closed loop supply chains;
Green supply chain management;
Clean production strategies and sustainable engineering solutions;
Industrial symbiosis and circular economy;
Energy eco-efficiency.


https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability/special_issues/industrial_engineering