Green supply chain, green leadership, consumer preferences, sustainability attitudes, and sustainable business advantage: a case of Vietnamese textile industry.

Surging environmental issues confiscate stakeholders' attention due to growing competition. Sustainable performance in this regard is viewed as a suitable tool because it not only gauges firm's financial performance but also covers social and environmental areas. However, sustainable performance cannot be achieved without creating sustainable business advantage. Green supply chain practices are known to be implemented in terms of sustainability as they are cross-looped as well as cross-organizational. The practices help in the reduction of environmental impact of business activities without compromising on quality, performance, cost, and energy usage efficiency. The reason encourages the authors to explore the role of selected green supply chain factors, customer preference, and leadership factors in shaping sustainable business advantage. The study has examined the association by adopting the quantitative research method. The researcher has gathered data from 530 employees in the purchasing department, logistics, import/export officers, and packing staff. The data was analyzed statistically by employing SPSS for preliminary analysis and AMOS for testing the structural model and the hypotheses of the study. Using confirmatory factors analysis and structural equational modeling, the researcher has analyzed the study's measurement model and the hypotheses of the study. The findings of the research have depicted that there is a significant positive impact of lean management and green product design with sustainable business advantage. Moreover, there exists a mediation of customer preferences and leadership factors between green product design and sustainable business advantage. The study has a few limitations as well and uses a quantitative method; therefore, the study has recommended that future researchers utilize qualitative or mixed methods. The study has several theoretical and practical implications.

Restructuring of a Textile Manufacturing Company and Workers' Health.

Organizational restructuring is associated with greater mortality and morbidity of the workers affected by it. We examined the quality of workers' health at a textile manufacturing company after restructuring, comparing three groups of workers: workers who remained (survivors), workers who lost their jobs and later found new jobs (the reemployed), and unemployed workers. A total of 1046 workers participated in a telephonic survey. The data were processed using SPSS and the R package version 1.2 of prLogistic. The differences between groups were calculated using the chi-square test and adjusted prevalence ratios. The comparison between the three groups shows significantly poorer mental health of the unemployed, who more often than survivors and the reemployed reported depression, as well as significant differences in elevated blood pressure, cholesterol level, and cardiac disorders. The reemployed, who were nonetheless in better health compared to the unemployed, reported poor mental health or depression more often in comparison to survivors. Higher morbidity of the unemployed and reemployed could be influenced by numerous factors associated with restructuring.

The Role of China in the UK Relative Imports from Three Selected Trading Regions: The Case of Textile Raw Material Industry.

The UK textile industry was very prosperous in the past but in the 1970s Britain started to import textile materials from abroad. Since 1990, half of its textile materials have been imported from the EEA (European Economic Area), ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and North America countries. Meanwhile, UK imports from China have increased dramatically. Through comparisons, this paper calculates the trade competitiveness index and relative competitive advantages of regions and investigates the impact of Chinese textiles on UK imports from three key free trade regions across the textile sectors in the period 1990-2016 on the basis of United Nation Comtrade Rev. 3. We find that China's textile prices, product techniques, political trade barriers and even tax system have made a varied impact on the UK's imports across related sectors in the context of green trade and the strengthening of barriers, which helps us recognize China's competitiveness in international trading and also provides advice on China's sustainable development of textile exports.

The demands and benefits of ergonomics in Sri Lankan apparel industry: A case study at MAS holdings.

BACKGROUND: Apparel exports bring in sizeable foreign income to Sri Lanka. To protect and promote this industry is a paramount need. This can be carried out by applying Human Factors/Ergonomics (HFE) which has proved to control negative effects at work places. OBJECTIVES: This paper reports a case study which describes the demands and benefits of HFE in MAS Holdings which owns a large share of the apparel industry in Sri Lanka. METHODS: The study consisted of walk through observation survey, a questionnaire survey and ergonomic work place analysis followed by a training programme to selected employees in three companies. RESULTS: Positive responses to questionnaires revealed good ergonomic practices in the work places surveyed. Ergonomically unfit chairs and potential hazards e.g. exposure to noise and hot environment were detected. It is seen that MAS have introduced strategies originated by Toyota Production System viz. 5S, Kaizen, six sigma etc., which are in fact ergonomic methods. A progressive project MAS boast of viz. 'MAS Operating System' (MOS) empowers training and development to employees. CONCLUSIONS: MAS Holdings has adequately realized the benefits of applying HFE as evident by the number of awards received. Relevant companies were advised to take appropriate corrective measures to control the potential hazards.

A manufactu(RED) ethics: labor, HIV, and the body in Lesotho's "sweat-free" garment industry.

Employing mostly women and producing for major U.S. labels, Lesotho's primarily foreign-owned garment industry undertook efforts to become "sweat-free" in 2006; simultaneously, it also began producing for the Product(RED) campaign. This article explores the parameters and ethical challenges of an industry-wide, public-private partnership providing HIV prevention and treatment services in this industry. Here, HIV services are intimately bound up in emerging patterns of humanitarian consumption and the production of an ethical industry. Within this ethical production zone, all is not what it seems: Labor violations persist, workers confront occupational hazards, and an elaborate theatrics of ethical practice plays out on the factory floor during routine inspections. This article explores the place and purpose of HIV treatment in the context of such humanitarian fetishism, highlighting the uses to which worker bodies are put and the conceptions of bodily well-being that prevail in these new "moral" economies.

Determinants of occupational injury in Kombolcha textile factory, North-East Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Textile factory is among the most common manufacturing industries that has higher rate of work-related injuries. Knowing the associated factors of work-related injuries can be a critical step for improving the working condition of workers in the sector. OBJECTIVE: To assess the major determinants of occupational injury among workers in Kombolcha textile factory, North-East Ethiopia. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted from April 1 to 15, 2013 on 455 randomly selected workers after stratification by working departments. The data was collected using a structured questionnaire through face-to-face interview by data collectors of 6 occupational health experts and 6 nurses. RESULTS: Working >48 hrs/wk (aOR: 2.71, 95% CI: 1.18-6.24), handling objects >20 kg (aOR: 2.35, 95% CI: 1.24-4.45), visual concentration (aOR: 3.10, 95% CI: 1.42-6.75), timely maintenance of machine (aOR: 1.80, 95% CI: 1.11-2.93), and sleep disorder (aOR: 2.95, 95% CI: 1.47-5.92) were significant factors for the occurrence of occupational injuries. CONCLUSION: Many factors including working for a long time with accurate instruments and sleep disorders can cause occupational injury in textile industries.

'For the convenience and comfort of the persons employed by them': the Lowell Corporation Hospital, 1840-1930.

The first industrial hospital in America opened in 1840 in Lowell, Massachusetts. The Lowell Corporation Hospital was sponsored by the town's textile employers for ninety years. This article analyses the contextual complications surrounding the employers' sustained funding of the hospital. Motivations for sustained sponsorship included paternalism, clinical excellence, business custom, the labour situation in Lowell, civic duty and the political advantages of paternalism. By analysing the changing local context of the hospital, this article argues that a broader, more integrated approach to healthcare histories and institution histories is needed if we are to fully understand the myriad of healthcare providers and their local and national importance.

Interface Carpet and Fabric Company's sustainability efforts: what the company does, the crucial role of employees, and the limits of this approach.

Much has been written touting the environmental achievements of Interface Carpet and Fabric Company, but not much has been said about how this firm has accomplished it goals, using employee participation. This case study documents the importance and benefits of employee participation, employee perceptions of the experience, as well as limits to this approach in achieving the goal of sustainability.

The effectiveness of an education program on stages of smoking behavior for workers at a factory in Turkey.

The aim of the study was to determine the smoking behavior based on "stages of change" model of the workers and to assess the effectiveness of a education program at a workplace. The first step was descriptive and the second step was an experimental study. The intervention group received an smoking cessation education. Before intervention 36% of the intervention group were at precontemplation stage. Six months after the intervention decline the percentage of those at precontemplation stage was significantly lower. In the control group there was not a significant reduction in the percentages of smokers at precontemplation stage before and after the intervention. After the 6 months the "maintenance" stage rates were 6% and 2% in the intervention and control groups, respectively. The study showed that the education in factory for workers could not be successful in quiting, however it impacted the intention and preparation of to quit in the future.

The path to corporate responsibility.

Nike's tagline,"Just do it," is an inspirational call to action for the millions who wear the company's athletic gear. But in terms of corporate responsibility, Nike didn't always follow its own advice. In the 1990s, protesters railed against sweatshop conditions at some of its overseas suppliers and made Nike the global poster child for corporate ethical fecklessness. The intense pressure that activists exerted on the athletic apparel giant forced it to take a long, hard look at corporate responsibility--sooner than it might have otherwise. In this article, Simon Zadek, CEO of the UK-based institute AccountAbility, describes the bumpy route Nike has traveled to get to a better ethical place, one that cultivates and champions responsible business practices. Organizations learn in unique ways, Zadek contends, but they inevitably pass through five stages of corporate responsibility, from defensive ("It's not our fault") to compliance ("We'll do only what we have to") to managerial ("It's the business") to strategic ("It gives us a competitive edge") and, finally, to civil ("We need to make sure everybody does it"). He details Nike's arduous trek through these stages-from the company's initial defensive stance, when accusations about working conditions arose, all the way to its engagement today in the international debate about business's role in society and in public policy. As he outlines this evolution, Zadek offers valuable insights to executives grappling with the challenge of managing responsible business practices. Beyond just getting their own houses in order, the author argues, companies need to stay abreast of the public's evolving ideas about corporate roles and responsibilities. Organizations that do both will engage in what he calls"civil learning".

Integration of biotechnological wastewater treatment units in textile finishing factories: from end of the pipe solutions to combined production and wastewater treatment units.

Increasing costs for water, wastewater and energy put pressure on textile finishing plants to increase the efficiency of wet processing. An improved water management can decrease the use of these resources and is a prerequisite for the integration of an efficient, anaerobic on-site pretreatment of effluents that will further cut wastewater costs. A two-phase anaerobic treatment is proposed, and successful laboratory experiments with model effluents from the cotton finishing industry are reported. The chemical oxygen demand of this wastewater was reduced by over 88% at retention times of 1 day or longer. The next step to boost the efficiency is to combine the production and wastewater treatment. The example of cotton fabric desizing (removing size from the fabric) illustrates how this final step of integration uses the acidic phase bioreactor as a part of the production and allows to close the water cycle of the system.

A qualidade da qualidade: uma perspectiva em saúde do trabalhador / Quality of quality: a workers' health perspective

As novas formas de organizaçäo do trabalho, no Brasil, baseadas no modelo japonês de gestäo, traduzem-se pela implantaçäo de Programas de Qualidade Total que modificam as relaçöes de trabalho. A pressäo da modernidade representada pela busca da qualidade atinge os trabalhadores, gerando no limite conseqüências para sua saúde física e mental. Nesse sentido, o estudo de caso em uma indústria têxtil, no município de Nova Friburgo (Rio de Janeiro), procurou perceber como esses programas säo pensados para aumentar a qualidade do produto, sem, contudo, modificar a qualidade de vida dos trabalhadores. Identificou a simultaneidade tanto de situaçöes diversas de precárias condiçöes de trabalho ou de seu processo, quanto de outras de sofisticadas exigências - abstraçäo, interiorizaçäo do controle, generalizaçäo do conceito fornecedor/cliente etc., que esbarra em uma força de trabalho com baixa escolaridade, resultando em um ambiente tenso, com intensificaçäo do ritmo laboral sem, no entanto, haver ganhos objetivos para os trabalhadores.

Gerenciamento tecnológico de ventilaçäo industrial estudo de caso: máquinas de fiaçäo de rayon-viscose / Technological management of industrial ventilation case study: rayon-viscose spin workshop

Este artigo descreve metodologia para se avaliar sistema de ventilaçäo industrial de uma fiaçäo de rayon-viscose. O coeficiente de velocidade média dos tubos de exaustäo foi calculado pelos perfis de velocidade, levantados conforme norma ASME, a partir de uma amostra de dutos. A vazäo de ar do conjunto de máquinas for entäo facilmente medida pela técnica do ponto central, e os resultados, apresentados de forma gráfica na tela de um microcomputador. Desta maneira, o gerente da área poderia atuar de imediato sobre aquelas máquinas cujas vazöes de ar estivessem abaixo dos valores recomendados.

A company's commitment to waste reduction, recycling, and reuse.

Charles Heiman would be proud to see his vision being carried on and that Standard Textile is not only doing well, but also doing good. As an industry leader, Standard Textile has incorporated the entire cradle-to-grave concept in product creation. As a result, Standard Textile can compete in tomorrow's markets because the end user will mandate an environmentally sound product or process when alternatives are available. As a society, we are faced with some tough decisions about our environment and the world we live in. A very positive step all health care facilities can take for our future and our children's future is to employ a reusable and recyclable system. Switching from disposable to reusable textiles dramatically reduces the amount of solid waste but does so without using excessive water because of state-of-the-art recycling facilities now available. It also can offer the user better performance of the products they need to use. The answer is simple enough--investment in reusable and recyclable systems is in everybody's interest.