RESOURCE EFFICIENCY FOR BUSINESSES

Process Mapping ToolThis is a simple, step by step process mapping tool that you can use in-house to map and understand all the processes and operations that occur on your premises or to analyse a specific process or operation. This will allow you to make better informed and well targeted decisions about strategies for reducing your energy, materials or water use, reduce wastage, save money, boost productivity and reduce your overall environmentally footprint including reducing carbon emissions.

It will help you to understand your business’ resource flows (materials, chemicals, energy and water), identify the resource intensive processes, and what type and where waste is occurring (waste hot spots).

The tool is designed to be used by any type of business whether manufacturer, wholesaler/retailer, food processor, restaurant or other service provider, or office. Worked examples for a clothing manufacturer and a restaurant business have been included for some steps.

Businesses wishing to understand the whole organisation’s processes and resource flows start at Step 1.

Businesses that already have an understanding of resource intensity and wish to focus on one processes or the production of a specific product, activity or service, start at Step 2.

Businesses can complete as many steps as they feel are necessary to understand their resources use and waste. Steps 6 to 9 will help develop and prioritise strategies based on findings to improve resource efficiency and/or productivity.

All boxes, grids and matrices are active, i.e. you can type directly into them. They can also be saved and printed.

Step 1 – Mapping your operations

On an A3 sheet of paper or sheet of butchers paper, map out all the operations/activities that go on in your business.

Now use a highlight pen to highlight the area or areas that you feel are the key ones i.e. are likely to have the greatest resource

intensity, i.e. use high levels of energy, materials or water and/or generate the greatest wastage.

See examples Figs 1 & 2.

Fig 1 Example Restaurant

Fig 2 Example Clothing manufacturer

Step 2 – Focussing on one process or one product/service

Now that you have identified the processes/s with greatest intensity and/or that generate the greatest wastage, on an A3 sheet of paper or butchers paper draw a simple spider map showing the main operations/stages involved for each of these processes. You may need to do a little research here. Remember your employees, especially operators, are an important source of information.

Note some of the stages may occur ‘outside your gate’ i.e. along your supply chain. Minor processes outside your gate can be

excluded, however significant processes with high resource intensity should be included as there may be opportunities to work with your supply chain to reduce resource use that will benefit your business.

When you have completed the maps use a highlight pen to highlight the stages where you think waste hot spots may be or where you think changes could be made to reduce intensity or improve productivity.

See examples - Figs 3 & 4.

Fig 3 Example restaurant – preparing a meal

Fig 4 Example clothing manufacturer – making garment

Step 3 – Materials flow map (Optional)

If your process/s is highly materials intensive, and you have the in-house capability, you may like to develop a simple materials flow map that shows what and where material inputs and outputs including process wastage (offcuts, spoilage, rejects) occur along the process. Fig 5 illustrates a simple generic material flow.

Fig 5 Generic materials flow for a process

You may feel you have gathered sufficient information through the mapping exercises to understand your resource use and are now ready to develop and prioritise strategies for reducing waste and improving the efficiency and/or productivity of your operations. If so, proceed to Step 5.

Material input C

Material input B

Material input A

Product/s (or

services) OUT

Total waste OUT

Waste material at each stage of production of product or delivery of service

Step 4 – Analysis of resource use and wastage (Optional)

This step allows you to gain a more detailed picture of your resource use and wastage for the identified process/s.

In column 1 enter the stages/steps/operations involved in the specific process, e.g. for manufacturers: batching, cutting, nesting, moulding, heating, attaching, cooling, drying, packing etc. For services: ordering, stock managing, storage, printing, packing, labelling, delivery etc.

For each stage/step/operation enter the resources or wastage. If you know actual quantities of resources and waste ( i.e. kWh, Gj of energy; tonnes, cubic metres of material; litres of chemicals or water) OR dollars spent, enter these. If not a subjective analysis, i.e. Yes or No or √ will also be helpful when developing and prioritising strategies.

When completed, use a highlight pen to identify the areas you think you can improve by either reducing inputs or wastage or increasing productivity.

Analysis of resource & wastage matrix

Stage or part of process

Input of materials

(Type and quantity)

(If relevant)

Potentially

Hazardous

Materials

(Type and quantity)

Energy Use Water use Waste

Solid waste

(Type and quantity)

Emissions

(Type and quantity)

Step 5 – Developing strategies to improve resource efficiency and/or productivity

You now need to think about possible ways of reducing your resource use and/or wastage or boosting productivity. Complete the strategies table for the key impacts that you identified in your resource analysis matrices as ones that you can influence directly or indirectly i.e. the ones you highlighted (Step 2).

You may need to do some research here, or seek some external advice to help identify strategies, especially as some of the key impacts may be in your supply chain and therefore difficult to influence. You may also think of further work required before strategies can be adopted, e.g. more research, costings, availability of resources and expertise etc.

When you have finished, number the strategies – these will be used in Step 6, see examples. Note similar strategies should be given the same number eg purchasing decisions based on energy, water and durability can be numbered the same.

Mitigating strategies matrix

Impact Strategy Further work needed

Materials efficiency

Packaging

Energy use

Water use

Transport (fuel)

Chemicals

Waste

Example 1: Restaurant – cooking appliances

Impact Mitigating strategies Further work needed

Materials efficiency › Purchase appliances manufactured from sustainably sourced materials and/or with recycled content 1.

Packaging › Ensure appliance packaging is recycled 2.

Energy use › Purchase products with highest energy rating (number of stars) 3.

› Data collection

Water use › Seek information on the efficiencies of equipment and manufacturers 4.

› Purchase products with highest water rating (number of stars) 5.

› Develop data

Transport (fuel) › Purchase locally 6.

Chemicals › Use cleaning and other chemicals with low env impacts 7.

Wastes › Select appliances for durability and long life 8.

Example 2: Restaurant – Cooking meat

Impact Mitigating strategies Further work needed

Packaging › Identify current packaging and alternatives 1.

› Refocus on alternatives i.e, use buckets not cardboard 1.

› Back to supplier

› Recycling

Energy use › Replace lighting with energy efficient 2.

› Investigate alternatives to refrigeration e.g. vac packaging/freeze/fresh 3.

› Purchasing energy efficient cooking appliances 4.

› Investigate alternatives equipment/cooking processes/more sharing of ovens 5.

› Star rating of compressors?

› Delivery/storage processes – small & large amounts

› Re-evaluate equipment – induction hotplates

Water use › Understand supplier/farmers use 6.

› Purchase alternatives – e.g. kangaroo 7.

› Water efficiency measures 8.

› Cleaning processes

› Evaluate - external provider

– internal arrangement

Transport (fuel) Purchasing arrangements – buying local 9. Assess – Animal purchasing requirements for specific paddock to the plate

Chemicals Purchase hormone free meats 10.

Use less chemicals in cleaning 11.

Cleaners: contract/standards/specified 12.

Supply chain research

Biodegradable

Organic chemicals

Food wastes Forecast for planned purchasing 13.

More efficient processes 14.

Stock control – management 15.

Audit % Yield wastage 16.

Breakdown of offcuts/bones

Portion control

Step 6 – Selecting and Prioritising strategies

Once you have completed any ‘further work’ identified in Step 5, such as the research on the strategies, the next stage is to identify the best strategies to action in terms of gaining the maximum return for least effort (cost, resources, time etc). You can do this by plotting your strategies on the value versus effort grid.

If you haven’t already done so, number the strategies for reducing impacts – Step 5.

Print the Value versus Effort Grid below, then plot the numbers (i.e. strategy) on the grid by firstly asking: what is the return (high, medium or low)? Then asking: what is the effort required in terms of costs, resources and time, is it going to be low, medium or high? Now plot the number for that strategy on the grid where the two intersect i.e. within one of the quadrants (see example).

Fig 6. Value v Effort Grid

Evaluate and Action

Easy Wins

Divide and Conquer

Park

Low Medium High

EFFORT (Cost, resources, time)

VA

LUE

(red

uced

res

ourc

es o

r w

aste

, mon

ey s

aved

, pro

duct

ivity

incr

ease

)

Low

M

ediu

m

Hig

h

Value versus E�ort Grid

Fig 7. Value v Effort grid – processing meat

Evaluate and Action

Easy Wins

Divide and Conquer

Park

Low Medium High

EFFORT

VA

LUE

Low

M

ediu

m

Hig

h

Value versus E�ort Grid – red meat

12

3

4

5

10

68

11 12

13

14 15

16

17

7

Value v Effort Grid definitions

Easy Wins These will require minimal effort and can be actioned immediately; others will require assessment as the effort required could outweigh the environmental value gained

Evaluate and Action These will need to be evaluated and assigned resources and responsibility in order to be actioned as the return is high with medium effort.

Divide and Conquer These initiatives require dividing into manageable portions, which can be placed into either ‘Evaluate and Action’ or ‘Park’

Park Don’t proceed with these. However they may be actioned later, when more resources are available.

Step 7 – Developing SMART1 action plans

The value versus effort grid will help you to prioritise your strategies based on the amount of effort required (cost, resources, time) and value gained (reduced resources or waste, money saved, productivity increase). You now need to select those strategies that will be actioned immediately by completing the Actioning matrix below and develop your SMART action plan. Note, there may be crossovers in strategies, meaning you combine these as one strategy.

1. The strategies plotted in the Easy Wins quadrant may be done depending on the amount of effort required. Those with more effort and very low return may not be done. Some of these strategies could involve conducting audits and as such, although having no direct return, they are essential for other strategies and establishing a baseline, so these should be done. Add the ones you intend to action into the Actioning matrix.

2. All the strategies plotted in the Evaluate and Action quadrant will probably be actioned after they have been evaluated. Note, you may also decide to action those that are close to the line in the Divide and Conquer quadrant. Add all of these to the Actioning matrix.

3. The strategies in Divide and Conquer, as the name suggests may be split into more manageable components and done immediately or left to do later. Add the ones you will action into the Actioning matrix.

4. Those in Park quadrant will not be actioned first time round because the return is low for the effort involved However they may be done at a later stage, as resources become available.

1 SMART - Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely.

Actioning matrix

When you have completed the Actioning matrix for all the ‘priority’ strategies, you can use highlight pens to further categorise such as:

› those that you will do first

› those that involve audits or monitoring

› those that may have already been partially actioned.

Actioning matrix

Strategy (include number) Impact/s they will address Action plan: what, when, who (your action plans should include steps forcontinuous improvement)

Step 8 – Implementation

Now you are ready to implement the strategies that you have determined are the most appropriate and cost effective for for reducing resources or waste, saving money, or boosting productivity.

Because good business practice requires that all changes to business and operational processes should be measured for effectiveness and success, the first stage of your implementation should involve some auditing and/or monitoring to set some baselines.

If expertise is not available in-house, you may need to engage an external organisation/s to conduct audits or install monitoring equipment.

Step 9 – Evaluation and continuous improvement

Effective change involves evaluation and continuous improvement. To achieve this you need to measure improvements against your baselines, and make any necessary changes to your strategies.

Remember you have parked some strategies, some of these could be re-assessed and perhaps implemented as part of your continuous improvement plan.

Smarter Resources Smarter Business Process Mapping Tool

Sustainability Victoria Level 28, Urban Workshop, 50 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 Phone (03) 8626 8700 sustainability.vic.gov.au

Published by Sustainability Victoria. Resource efficiency for businesses program – Process Mapping Tool © Sustainability Victoria, July 2015 RSE035