International survey shows ignorance over carbon issues

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The company, described as a global leader in business software solutions for manufacturing, distribution, retail and services organizations, conducted the survey in August and September 2011. The survey investigate the ability and willingness of companies to identify their greenhouse gas emissions; to find out how they technically capture emissions; and to clarify the extent to which companies have to meet not only legal requirements for sustainability, but also what demands they meet from partners and customers.

Non monitoring of carbon

With Australia introducing the new tax legislation on carbon emissions and new regulations soon being introduced in California, the momentum behind requiring corporate energy management is well under way. The survey, compiled responses from nearly 1000 companies worldwide. The majority (48%) of respondents were from organizations in the manufacturing industry. Most (42%) respondents were from organizations with 100 to 1000 employees and organizations with $50 million in annual revenue, or less (43%).

The survey revealed that 58% of companies surveyed had not heard of the term "carbon accounting," that less than a quarter could accurately describe what the term means and that a full 80% of companies surveyed do not monitor their company's carbon footprint.

"It's quite worrying to think that a third of all companies don't know whether they are under legal obligation to report emissions and we want to take this opportunity to urge the industry as a whole to take responsibility and help educate businesses about energy management," said Chris Purcell, product marketing manager for Epicor. "Businesses should prepare now for carbon accounting.

"Carbon reporting will happen irrespective of any personal opinions about global warming; those businesses that prepare now for the reporting that will be legally required of them in the near future will have a clear competitive advantage over laggards. Energy management is not a distraction to a company's core business. Businesses can gain cost and energy savings from sustainability investments and the growth of emission trading schemes will only increase the need for companies to understand how carbon accounting will affect their bottom line.

No executive involvement

The survey also revealed that although the CEO is the most likely person to be responsible for a company's green strategy, 50% of companies surveyed do not have any executive level involvement at all in their carbon accounting initiatives. 85% cannot report the level of carbon their company has consumed in each of the last six months and nearly 70% believe that they accurately account for less than 25% of their company's carbon consumption.

Successful case study

However, not all companies are in the dark. Epicor customer, Harbec Inc, a contract injection moulder and precision manufacturer located in upstate New York, recently decided the company needed to implement a more accurate and credible solution than its manual system to reach its goal of being carbon neutral by 2013.

"Ultimately we needed a monthly report of how we're doing in terms of sustainability metrics," said Bob Bechtold, president and founder of Harbec. "Those metrics are as serious to us as other common business metrics such as financial reporting."

The company is also in the process of pursuing certification to the newly released ISO 50001 energy management systems standard, which requires systematic documentation of carbon emissions using solutions such as Epicor Carbon Connect. Bechtold added that many companies claim to be environmentally friendly with little or no substantiation, but this new certification and solution will give the company the competitive advantage of actually proving that it is a leader in sustainability.

"Having credible documentation that comes from a robust ERP solution will allow us to quantify what we're doing," Bechtold said, "Any company can compensate for its carbon emissions by purchasing offsets, but this solution will enable us to efficiently and accurately track our carbon footprint, helping us to manage it toward zero through efficiencies and smarter power generation."

"Pursuing a green agenda and increasing operational cost savings are not mutually exclusive tasks," said Purcell. "We urge all companies to move the green agenda higher up on their corporate social responsibility (CSR) priorities. By being prepared in advance, companies can avoid potential penalties for not adhering to legislation, and also realize the strategic advantages that include operational cost savings and additional revenue streams."

Key results:

• 58% had not heard of the term "carbon accounting"
  
• Less than a quarter could accurately describe what carbon accounting means
  
• 80% do not monitor their carbon footprint regularly
  
• A third don't know if their company is under legal obligation to report emissions
  
• While the CEO is the most likely person to be responsible for a company's carbon strategy, 50% don't have any C-level involvement at all
  
• 85% can't tell the level of carbon their company has consumed in each of the last six months
  
• More than half think carbon accounting has impacted their business positively
  
• Nearly 70% believe they accurately account for less than 25% of their carbon consumption

Purcell concluded, "The company is committed to the global emerging green market and it supports forward looking businesses who embrace technology to get ahead of the curve of regulatory compliance, while providing efficiencies that will ultimately reduce costs and drive business performance."

To obtain a copy of the full results, email Lisa Preuss at moc.rocipe@ssuerpl.