Published on March 25, 2014

The global manufacturing industry is undergoing a change; the third wave of industrial revolution has begun wherein internet-based communication technology is uniting with renewable resources. And in this crucial period, chemistry will have an important role to play.

The third industrial revolution, according to experts, is all about green and sustainable chemistry. Principles of green chemistry are soon to become crucial in the functioning of any industry or company.  These principles will help the future leaders of our industry to come up with innovative and collaborative solutions that will lead to a reduction in emissions and energy usage.

Green chemistry is an absolute must for the chemical industry irrespective of the country’s level of economic development. India, for instance, is likely to increase its GDP per capita by more than 10 times within the next decade, which will give the Indian chemical industry access to massive opportunities, provided the industry addresses these rapid changes gradually.

Certain segments of the industry will be quick to absorb the changes, while the other sectors will require more time. Industries like the Indian tyre and automotive industry have already started applying the principles of green and sustainable chemistry, while others continue to lag behind.

A number of Indian pharmaceutical companies have started to experiment with green chemistry based synthesis in the initial stage of development of the molecule. Industries like PI Industries Ltd are trying to develop energy-efficient processes that make use of safe and less-toxic raw material, with minimum or no waste. Rajnish Sarna, Executive Director of PI Industries Ltd, said, “With a guiding philosophy of 3R’s - reduce, recycle & reuse, PI Industries has always been on the forefront in building and implementing environment-friendly and sustainable processes. From synthesising greener process routes at the R&D laboratory to using low-carbon materials at the manufacturing plants, PI has always facilitated sustainable growth.”

The global manufacturing unit is gradually shifting from developed countries to emerging markets, where small and medium scale enterprises have a crucial role to play. Thus, developing a manufacturing process based on sustainable chemistry has become critical for SMEs in India.

SMEs will have patrons who are concerned about the environmental profile of their chemicals and the carbon footprint of their manufacturing process. Reputed companies like P&G and Unilever are always engaged in the process of reducing the impacts of their products and as they add very little to those impacts they will obviously turn to their supply chains to make the biggest reductions. 

It is rather unlikely that the SMEs will invest in lengthy research programmes to develop green processes. However, practical solutions can be devised for SMEs to make their manufacturing process more environment friendly and green.

There a number of myths circulating about green chemistry and this acts as a barrier in its implementation. Green chemistry is considered to be good in theory but not feasible, is difficult and complicated, it is not viable for SMEs, etc.

Newreka has succeeded in commercializing green chemistry based solutions, even for small and medium-sized pharma and fine chemical companies, without having to rely on heavy capital investment.

Chemical companies can benefit financially from green chemistry as it helps improve overall resource efficiency, which in turn would lead to lower material utilization, energy and capital expenditure costs and environmental benefits. PI has witnessed an improvement in output, reduced raw material usage, improvement in solvent recovery and minimal waste generation, achieved by means of collaboration among technology absorption, R&D, process development, operations teams and supply chains.