Sustainable Business Scenario Analysis - Green Industry in the USA - Case Study Example

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS SCENARIO ANALYSIS Student’s Name Course Professor’s Name University City (State) Date Sustainable Business Scenario Analysis Introduction Sustainability deals with developments in ecological, social and economic dimensions not only to bring balance in the current world but also in future. Sustainability is increasingly considered over an entire lifecycle instead of just a part of the value chain. The report initiates the ideology of having sustainable ports by 2057 which use green energy. Apparently, the green energy will be user-friendly, have zero emissions, use 100% recycled materials, run noiseless operations, and most importantly use the sunshine and lightning (McEvoy et al. 2013, p.4). Evidently, there will be social, economic, and environmental benefits during this period. The report looks into key events backward from 2057 to 2017. Green Industry in the USA Notably, USA is at the forefront of using green energy rather the other sources of power. As a result, by 2057 the country will have achieved the ability to have sustainable ports that ultimately depend on the green energy. Currently, due to the continued environmental sensitivity, there are constant developments of machines that have reduced emissions from the container handling equipment. Notably, such events include the Tier 4 Final diesel engine technology, hybrid engines, electric stop engines, as well as electrically powered spreader lowering and braking. Additionally, the ports opt to use Liquefied natural gas (LNG) as an alternative source of energy (Isa 2017). Already, there is crane recycling and refurbishment in the harbor industries. Such processes enable fully automated terminals which stay without being lighted at night. The offer of sustainable port business allows using the sunshine and lighting as the source of energy in the automated terminals. The ports will have advanced technologies which will integrate the operating systems, equipment information, and systems of terminal logistics so as to optimize the operations taking place. Evidently, the operations will not only be safer but also faster so as to produce energy efficient processes. Notably, every container or a mile that will be avoided will lead to 100% energy saving which has a high sustainability impact. The movements of the vessels will be optimized to aid the overall port maintainability and performance and also the fleet energy consumption as well as equipment wear. Additionally, there will be analytics and big data that will enable the hosting of new opportunities which are unattainable in the present world. The cyber security will be more prioritized to enable sustainable business due to the massive increase of data and the information about the cyber operations. Furthermore, the company will opt to use the nanotechnology computing and other times memory technologies so as to reduce the computational energy consumption (Grech et al. 2013, p.7). Pestle The pestle analysis Figure 1 shows the various challenges that are likely to occur in the sustainable 2060 port industry (Frue 2017). Figure 1 The Pestel Analysis- Source Frue 2017 Political All around the world including the USA the primary concern is the terrorist attack especially the cyber terrorism. All new technologies including the sustainable port 2060 are vulnerable to cyber-attack due to the handling of extensive data when dealing with the systems. Notably, the site will be handling different aspects of information systems such as the logistics, equipment, and operations. Additionally, the environmental concerns are also part of the politics due to the rules and regulations that need to be put in place by 2057 to protect the environment. As a result, any form of technological advancement employed in the sustainable port must be in line with the regulations of the environment. Naturally, the government controls such forms of investments in a country since it states what should be done or not. Furthermore, the project is likely to face civil unrests that could be a challenge for the government (McEvoy et al. 2013, p.16). Finally, the investments in the green energy are the advancement in the technology industry and therefore needs to be fully accounted for within the government documents. Economic Apparently, the construction of the sustainable port 2060 is not only an environmental concern but also an economic undertaking. Gomez Paz et al. (2015, p. 264) noted that the development of the port also seeks economic growth. In this section, the USA economist must look into the inflation that may occur due to the business growth brought about low costs of operation. Additionally, these changes may in long-term cause more production changes. Notably, the sustainable port 2060 will reduce the costs of importation which in turn may lead to collapsing of the local market due to the imported goods. The port will use renewable energy which means that there are fewer costs of operation which makes the property and services cheaper. Furthermore, the port is subject to economies changes which are constant due to technological advancements. When the country achieves the ability to have the sustainable port, it will seek better technologies that are more economical than it. Social At any time in any investment, the investor must first ensure public safety. According to Maragkogianni, Papaefthimiou, and Zopounidis (2016, p. 3), the first thing to consider is how that technological advancement will impact the quality of life of the people in that location. The sustainable port 2060 will make life comfortable for the people living in the neighborhood since it will have zero emissions, less noise among other social benefits. Apparently, there will be population growth at that time which requires the government to be sure of the capacity that can handle the needs of that system. Also, it is necessary to meet the unemployment issues that are likely to come up due to the use of that technology. Since the renewable energy is automatic, that means less human power is required to solve the situation. Technological Evidently, the sustainable port 2060 is a huge step in the technical aspect for the people of the USA. The port is a significant hub in the business world, and therefore having one that enables the merchants to reduce costs of operation is of great importance to the whole world. Additionally, the technology keeps on changing, and such needs should be slowly followed to as to curb any challenges that are likely to occur and at the same time make the production better. Meanwhile, the technological issues might change which will make the costs of operations very expensive than anticipated. Notably, there could be problems with the government spending on research so that they can utilize the right technology. Additionally, the government needs to consider the lifecycle of the green energy so that they can be aware of how it will affect the worldwide production (Maragkogianni, Papaefthimiou, and Zopounidis 2016, p.6). Such information is relevant so that it can be aware of the techniques and also offers guidelines for the operation. Legal A port is susceptible to very many legal issues within the country such as the safety, importation, and exportation laws. Most importantly, the port operates under the health and security laws which examine not only the safety of the employees but of all the products that pass through it. Notably, the products imported must be screened to ensure that they are fit for human consumption and more so they are legal. It is not surprising to see the terrorists and drug peddlers using the ports for their illegal business. It is therefore subject to constitutional laws which make the process more expensive (Grech et al. 2013, p.9). Environmental The majority of the projects in the current world focus on environmental sustainability which is to preserve the biodiversity and at the same time give the human beings a meaningful life. Lin et al. (2014, p. 10) noted that not everything that is adapted to technology enables environmental sustainability, for instance, the greenhouses which were meant to increase food production. Apparently, the sustainable port 2060 will use the renewable energy from the solar panels that utilize sun and lightning. Additionally, it will be able to recycle the energy which makes it environmentally sustainable. Furthermore, there will be reduced noises and wastes that are released to the water and the air. Making the sustainable systems to the port means that they have to utilize all possible aspects of recycling the waste products so that it can be completely efficient. Notably, there is always the scarcity of raw materials, and that will not have changed in 2057, so there will be the same theme of using the materials that are ethically significant to the environment. Timeline 2050 Definitely, by 2050, the world will be more crowded with more people living in the urban areas. Specifically, the whole global population is expected to be 9.2 billion which is 2.2 billion higher than the current population today. The urbanization is projected to be at 70% with a decrease in 0.6 billion rural people. As a result, the urban areas require building 400 megacities in new and existing cities to meet the 4 billion population needs (Fox 2017). Clearly, according to Isa (2017), in Figure 2, the USA use of renewable energy especially the solar and the offshore wind will be at higher levels in 2050. The Obama administration has encouraged the use of the offshore wind and is expected to rise to 86,000 megawatts of capacity if the President Trump administration continuously supports it. Figure 2 The Mix of the Energy Consumption by 2050 in the USA – Source Isa 2017 2040 At this period, the country will have fully adopted the green energy as the next technology in handling port activities. Notably, the USA population is growing at a drastic rate that requires more importation and exportation of products. It is, therefore, necessary that the government carries out the project as quick as possible. Figure 3 shows how the port should look like by 2040 (Kalmar Global 2017) Figure 3 The Sustainable Port 2060- Source Kalmar Global 2017 2030 Evidently, the green energy is part of many peoples’ lives in the USA and other parts of the world. McEvoy et al. (2013, p.12) noted that the physical infrastructures such as the ports are developed in ways that make them more sustainable to the human life and the other natural diversities. Accordingly, the green energy is benefiting the environment due to the zero carbon dioxide emissions. Additionally, there are no wastes released to the land and water bodies that could cause adverse the living conditions of flora and fauna. In many parts of the USA, the green energy is used as an alternative to electrical power. 2025 There is the increase in the development of solar panels that are suitable for official business such as the great corporations. Thompson (2016, p. 105) noted that there is a lot of flexibility on how the ports are constructed since they seek to operate in the needs of today and also to stretch for the next 50 years and above. Evidently, this is a much stretched time horizon which is full of uncertainties which should be addressed regarding the state, world, economy, trade, and technological aspects. As a result, in durations such as 2025, there will be a lot of brainstorming that will aid in decision making and other necessary decisions. 2020 Figure 4 The Environmental Sustainability Indexes- Source Liao et al. 2014, P. 4637 Figure 4 shows the environmental sustainability that is expected until 2100 about the environmental quality. Evidently, there is a continued decline since 2000 to 2100 in all the four aspects (Liao et al. 2014, P. 4637). The information is necessary so that it can guide the researchers in identifying the areas that they can work on to reduce the pollution. 2018 The USA has been in the first line in the use of the renewable energy. According to Kang (2017), before the mid-1700s of coal mining, the USA has used the wood, animal, and water power. Nevertheless, since that period the country got the fossils fuels which replaced the primary sources of power. Interestingly, after the 100 years, the country wants to get back to using the primary energy sources for their production. King (2017) in Figure 5 showed that petroleum power (37%) is the largest source of power in the USA. The renewable energy (8%) is the lowest and which the country is expected to expand so that it can meet the use of the green energy which leads to the sustainable environment. Figure 5 The Energy Power Consumption In The USA Currently- Source King 2017 To summarize References Fox, W. (2017). 2050 Demographics Projections | Prediction | Future | Technology | Timeline | Trend | 2050 Space Travel | 2050 Global Warming Timeline | 2050 Climate Change | Mars Future Missions 2050 | Future Rainfall Predictions Climate Change. [online] Futuretimeline.net. Available at: http://www.futuretimeline.net/21stcentury/2050-2059.htm#handheld-mri-scanners [Accessed 28 Jun. 2017]. Frue, K. (2017). Examples of PESTLE Analysis. [online] PESTLE Analysis. Available at: http://pestleanalysis.com/examples-of-pestle-analysis/ [Accessed 28 Jun. 2017]. Gomez Paz, M.A., Camarero Orive, A. and González Cancelas, N., 2015. Use of the Delphi method to determine the constraints that affect the future size of large container ships. Maritime Policy & Management, 42(3), pp.263-277. Grech, A., Bos, M., Brodie, J., Coles, R., Dale, A., Gilbert, R., Hamann, M., Marsh, H., Neil, K., Pressey, R.L. and Rasheed, M.A., 2013. Guiding principles for the improved governance of port and shipping impacts in the Great Barrier Reef. Marine pollution bulletin, 75(1), pp.8-20. Isa, I. 2017. North Carolina auctions right to develop offshore wind energy, hailed as job creator. [online] BE2C2 | Irshad Salim Associates. Available at: http://www.be2c2.com/2017/03/19/httpwp-mep72mn4-jp/ [Accessed 28 Jun. 2017]. Kalmarglobal.com. 2017. Video: Port 2060 - Kalmar’s vision for sustainable future of cargo handling. [online] Available at: https://www.kalmarglobal.com/news--insights/video-port-2060-kalmars-vision-for-sustainable-future-of-cargo-handling/ [Accessed 28 Jun. 2017]. King, H. 2017. Renewable Energy Production and Consumption in the USA. [online] Geology.com. Available at: http://geology.com/articles/renewable-energy-trends/ [Accessed 28 Jun. 2017]. Liao, Z., Jin, M., Ren, P. and Luo, Y., 2014. Research on Scenic Spot’s Sustainable Development Based on a SD Model: A Case Study of the Jiuzhai Valley. Sustainability, 6(7), pp.4632-4644. Lin, K., Meier, C., Nelson, J. and Papar, Z., 2014. Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) Logistics Project: The Greening of Rubber-Tired Gantry Cranes in Ports. Maragkogianni, A., Papaefthimiou, S. and Zopounidis, C., 2016. Shipping Industry and Induced Air Pollution. In Mitigating Shipping Emissions in European Ports (pp. 1-9). Springer International Publishing. McEvoy, D., Mullett, J., Millin, S., Scott, H. and Trundle, A., 2013. Understanding future risks to ports in Australia. Enhancing the resilience of seaports to a changin climate report series. National Climate Adaptation Research Facility, Gold Coast, Australia, Gold Coast, Australia http://www. nccarf. edu. au/sites/default/files/attached_files_publications/Final-report-Climate-resilient-ports-series–Risk-WP1-Web, 21. Thompson, T.R., 2016. Climate Change Impacts Upon the Commercial Air Transport Industry: An Overview. CCLR, p.105. Read More