Word: 3m
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...take a hard look at the amount of waste they generate. Increasingly stringent environmental regulations have made it ever more expensive to clean up smokestacks and reduce releases of toxic chemicals. Thus, limiting factory waste can save money while it helps preserve the surrounding environment. Since 1975, the 3M company has cut its waste discharges in half by redesigning equipment, streamlining manufacturing processes and selling or reusing materials that used to be discarded. By not having to deal with that waste, 3M has so far saved $300 million...
...giving the worker a greater sense of importance was not enough. A change in corporate philosophy was needed, the sort of disruptive and often expensive change that works only if the commitment starts at the top. In companies where impressive quality gains have been made -- Ford, Hewlett-Packard, 3M, Corning Glass, Apple, Motorola and Rubbermaid -- the chief executive lays down the rules and makes sure they are followed. Says Rubbermaid Chairman Stanley Gault: "Everyone has to know that shoddy work will not be tolerated. Our customers are not there to field-test our products." At Apple, says Chairman John Sculley...
...3M sends hourly workers on morale-building field trips to see how customers use the company's goods. One such team visited a local TV studio that uses 3M magnetic videotape...
Private companies have enthusiastically followed the federal lead in testing. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 43% of the nation's largest firms, including IBM, AT&T and 3M, have implemented drug-screening programs for job applicants, employees or both. Last week's high-court rulings have no direct legal bearing on most private companies, but the decisions are expected to encourage industry to increase testing...
...Industry must also re-examine its production processes. Such an approach already has a successful track record. The Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co. has cut waste generation in half by using fewer toxic chemicals, separating out wastes that can be reused and substituting alternative raw materials for hazardous substances. 3M's savings last year: an astonishing $420 million. In the Netherlands, Duphar, a large chemical concern, adopted a new manufacturing process that decreased by 95% the amount of waste created in making a pesticide...