Waste reduction and limination strategy of Nike
The company reduces its waste by reducing the kinds of toxic chemicals that are used in its value chain. The company has dveloped two types of environmental friendly rubber. It has two versions with the first version targeting the most toxic chemical compared to a typical formulation of rubber. The company shares the patent for the version with the industry in which it operates through the use of GreenXchange. The second version is built on the advancement of version 1, which reduces total zinc content by 80% and the reachable zinc content by greater than 90%. Also, Nike has designed its footwear, which uses 80% of the preferred rubber.
The company has also replaced solvent-based chemistry in all its brands of footwear with water-based chemistry that has minimised petroleum –derived solvent in its shoes designed by 96% for every pair of Nike products. The company has further minimized hazardous generation of waste in all its products through material substitution, improvement of operations and modification of process. Also, hazardous waste produced per pair of Nike footwear is approximated to reduce by one-third from FY05. The company has also embraced industry collaborations as a toxic reduction strategy. The company has worked with various industry associations to discuss management of chemicals and share on the best ways of doing so. Nike’s effort to manage, minimise and finally eliminate waste in its contract supply chain also entails conducting work by its sustainable manufacturing and sourcing team. This team offers hand-on consulting to contract manufacturers to ensure waste elimination by substitution, enhanced production practices and modification of processes. Nike scores its materials in accordance with the chemical needed to make or process them.
