Business Strategies for the Firm Tetra Pak - Essay Example

Memo Tetra Pak Introduction This is the result of organizational research conducted on Tetra Pak to identify the factors that seriously impinge on the firm’s business interests. It will also suggest appropriate alternatives that can resolve the identified issues. Background Tetra Pak, Part of the Tetra Laval group, is an international company which was founded in 1951 in Lund, Sweden. The company mainly deals with the supply of processing and packaging solutions for milk, soups, juices, and other liquids (IMD International). As per the reports, Tetra Park has subsidiaries in more than 150 countries and it earned net sales of €8.83 billion in 2008. Tetra Pak joined Global Forest and Trade Network (GFTN) which is an initiative of WWF with intent to manage the usage of wood fiber (Environmental leader). Later in 2005, Tetra Pak began another venture with WWF when it joined Climate Savers project that encourages the companies to reduce their green house emissions. These two programs indicate Tetra Pak’s concerns on environmental safety as one of its main objectives. Through the Climate Savers program, the organization aims at achieving increased energy efficiency at production sites and finding renewable materials and energy. Company analysis 1. Tetra Pak’s internal strategies towards energy consumption Tetra Pak believed that integrating energy efficiency with the purchase of green energy would assist the company to keep absolute energy consumption stable while reducing dreadful green house emissions (Climate innovation case study). In order to meet the extra premium price of green energy, Tetra Pak plans to utilize savings from high energy efficiency. The relationship with Climate Savers and thereby WWF has assisted Tetra Pak to set a clear and definite internal target. By the end of 2006, the firm could bring proposed organizational changes into practice. 2. Efficiency in environmental master pillar Tetra Pak jointly operates with World Class Manufacturing (WCM) which focuses on regular improvements in cost, quality, lead time, flexibility, and customer service (Foodproductiondaily.com). In order to carry out these operations efficiently, the WCM cooperatively work with the Tetra Pak’s pillars (teams) which contain several areas such as cost, quality, focused improvement, maintenance, and safety. This area focused activities have aided the organization to increase its operational efficacy. As the part of restructuring in strategic alignment, the factories at the Tetra Pak altered the energy efficiency operations. It is identified that this conversion process fundamentally differs from traditional approaches as it gives specific emphasis on implementing solutions for environment related manufacturing problems. In short, the “pillar approach” enabled the Tetra Pak to efficiently deal with different types of manufacturing related issues that would seriously impinge on the environment safety (Upstream firm ‘downstream). In 2007, the Tetra Pak made considerable changes in its master pillar approach and it refocused on energy efficiency in addition to its conventional objective of environmental safety. This strategy greatly assisted the firm to explore various opportunities and share best fitted energy efficiency practices in a structured way. 3. Tetra Pak’s partnering with its suppliers As Stancich reports, in 2006, Tetra Pak partnered with its suppliers and jointly operated in different spheres with intent to reduce carbon dioxide emissions (Strategy). Although, the partnering has assisted the Tetra Pak to increase its functional efficiency, the firm faced challenges in buying energy of the required quality and volume. This partnering process also aided the Tetra Pak to efficiently carry out energy auditing that supports the organization to identify the most salient areas for energy efficiency improvement. However, this system was not much helpful in exploring potential opportunities that would improve energy efficiency. It is found that Brazil mainly generates energy from renewable sources; therefore, Tetra Pak Brazil faces a great challenge in conducting a systematic full energy audit. According to Berglund and Lyngstrom (2007), the Tetra Pak’s climate strategy is mainly aimed at the minimization of material inputs and maximization of renewable raw material resources and this strategy would in turn aid the organization to reduce carbon footprint. Anyhow, the non governmental organizations would challenge the Tetra Pak’s move toward its Climate Savers strategy and it may become a barrier to the firm in achieving its comfort zone. Alternatives The firm can develop its own green energy resources as it would assist Tetra Pak to ensure quality. Likewise, the elements of energy auditing must be restructured in a way to identify potential opportunities that would promote energy efficiency. The firm can also establish innovators team to develop timely fitting energy resources. Above all, Tetra Pak can develop its own environmental programs so as to minimize the dependence on WWF and thereby achieve a comfort zone; and Tetra Pak must explore its own renewable energy sources that would suit the supply chain interests of the firm. Conclusion The current energy consumptions strategies of Tetra Pak can be potential if they are implemented with essential modifications. The company can minimize its green gas emissions to a large extend through its Climate Savers project. It is advisable for Tetra Pak to conduct a well organized industrial research which would aid the firm to identify most economical renewable energy sources. Based on the information collected, the firm can estimate plant establishing costs and other related expenses. Works Cited Berglund, Par & Lyngstrom, Sebastian. “A business perspective on reducing the climate impact from Tetra Pak’s transportation of goods. Reduced Climate Impact from Tetra Paks Transportation. (n. d). Web. 02 May. 2011. “Breaking down alignment barriers: Tetra Pak pulls together allies to reach climate goals”. Climate innovation case study. Tetra Pak. (2009). Web. 02 May. 2011. Stancich, Rikki. “Packaging the future- do Tetra Pak and WWF have the answer?”. Climate Change Corp: Climate News for Business. July 2008. Web. 02 May. 2011. “Tetra Pak, HP join global forest and trade network”. Environmental Leader. October 2009. Web. 02 May. 2011. “Tetra Pak factory receives award for excellence”. Foodproductiondaily.com. November 2002. Web. 02 May. 2011. “Upstream firm ‘downstream’- Tetra Pak, Leica brand comparative case study- based”. Free Papers Download Center. June 2006. Web. 02 May. 2011. Read More