Title: Green manufacturing (GM): past, present and future (a state of art review)

Authors: Minhaj A.A. Rehman; R.L. Shrivastava

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, St. Vincent Pallotti College of Engineering and Technology, Gavsi Manapur, Wardha Road, Nagpur, India. ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yeshwantrao Chavan College of Engineering, Wanadongri, Nagpur, India

Abstract: Green manufacturing (GM) is fast emerging as the sustainable manufacturing solution that has the potential to solve most problems that the world faces today. GM covers the entire product life cycle from conceptual design to disposal in a benign, harmless manner causing no or minimal adverse impact on environment by optimum use of resources and reduction of waste and pollution. 4Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle, remanufacture) is slowly being accepted and adopted as the model of growth and sustainability the world over. There is a very large volume of literature available on GM dealing with several aspects. This paper is an attempt to comprehensively and systematically review the same and put it in a format which can be easily comprehended and applied. This is an effort of analysing around 123 papers from around 73 leading journals spread over last 15 years. This entire database is critically reviewed and properly classified by the authors. The analysis further revel several emerging issues and challenges which need to be addressed. The key challenge identified is the absence of unified comprehensive GM framework. The authors have finally suggested one such universal GM framework.

Keywords: green manufacturing; green design; green purchasing; green technologies; green methodology; green strategies; sustainable development; sustainable manufacturing; sustainability; product life cycle; environmental impact; literature review.

DOI: 10.1504/WRSTSD.2013.050784

World Review of Science, Technology and Sustainable Development, 2013 Vol.10 No.1/2/3, pp.17 - 55

Received: 27 Aug 2011
Accepted: 27 Jul 2012

Published online: 28 Feb 2014 *

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