As the world advances to its urban future and the global population rises, so does the degree of waste thereby causing major environmental challenges - in some cases catastrophes, said an industry expert.

A quick glance at the growth in waste numbers (from water to industrial refuse to plastics) shows an alarming sight, particularly if you extrapolate it with the population growth, added Hilmy Cader, chief executive of MTI Consulting, an international management consultancy.

Studies indicate that in South Asia, East Asia and the Pacific combined, the daily municipal solid waste generation rate is approximately one million tonne and further insights demonstrated that growth in waste quantities is fastest in Asia.

The world cannot go on with this level of consumption and the most effective way to manage this would be focus on want management and not waste management. Businesses must innovate products and services and develop business models that can be as profitable with lower levels of consumption.

Time after time, customers always seal the deal with businesses they believe serve them the best. Hence the fall of the other players in the industry, Cader noted.

“Everything about your business matters - for your entire business is your product and it ought to stand out against your competition. This is when you need to revisit your value chain and dispose or modify all those non value-adding organisational activities that build up your waste,” said Cader.

“This doesn't include the processes alone; perhaps you may need to review your policies, courtesy and knowledge of employees, cleanliness, sustainability etc, you never know which one of these would assist you seal the deal.”

There are not only social, ethical and environmental benefits to reducing waste along the value chain but also significant economic benefits.

If you want to thrive in the industry you are in, take effective steps towards truly transforming your business to serve the human society and the habitats. This can only be achieved by investing in R&D to develop smarter products and services that will enable low-energy living, thus conserving the environment we live in, Cader concluded. – TradeArabia News Service

This feature appeared in the October 26, 2014 edition of the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.