Abstract

The aim of the article. Present requires finding new ways and approaches in solving urgent balanced social, environmental and economic problems. One of the most popular concepts, results of which are positive changes of socio-economic systems towards sustainable development is the concept of dematerialization. It lies in reduction of material flows at different levels of economic activity that is reflected in a decrease of energy and resources consumption as well as in wastes generated per unit of produced national (regional) product. At the enterprise level dematerialization is defined by gradual reduction of materials that are used for manufacturing of one unit of the end product, as well as changes in production processes that result in reduction of intermediate material inputs. The aim of the article is a theoretical and conceptual substantiation of provisions concerning the formation of ecological and economic mechanism of dematerialization at the enterprise. The results of the analysis. Ecological and economic mechanism of dematerialization at the enterprise (EEMDE) is interpreted by us as a complete system of forms, methods and incentives of material flows management that provides dematerialization and resolution of environmental problems, based on the economic interests of the entity in accordance with the postulates of sustainable development. The purpose of EEMDE should be defined as a reduction of material flows destructive impact on the environment while ensuring economic efficiency of dematerialization measures aimed at the reduction of such influence. Stated objective within EEMDE requires solving the following tasks: ensuring of the compliance of environmental standards at the enterprise; reduction of the natural, ecological and resource capacity of products; reduction of economic expenses of the economic entity as a result of the decrease in its use of natural resources, payments for them; ensuring of the revenue growth, acceleration of the turnover of working capital, fixed assets of the entity; improvement of professional skills of  personnel of the enterprise and formation of ecological image of the company for consumers; ensuring of a high level of income and benefits to all participants of dematerialization processes at the enterprise so on. The object of management can be identified as a system of interconnected material flows of the company. And EEMDE construction and operation should be based on the following basic principles: systematic, flexibility, complexity, self-reproducibility, environmentally responsible, social responsibility, economic efficiency. Integral parts of the mechanism are methods and management tools that ensure the execution of required tasks. There are administrative units, social, psychological and economic tools and methods. The main stages of implementation of the proposed EEMDE should be considered through building a logical sequence of works on dematerialization of goods (works, services). 1. Forming of the team of performers. 2. Selection of products and determination of services which it provides. 3. Construction of manufacturing process circuit. 4. Evaluation of the level of dematerialization of chosen product. 5. Dematerialization of products transformation: 5.1) identification of problem nodes (in terms of dematerialization) at the stages of product life cycle; 5.2) searching of possible ways of dematerialization using the methods of brainstorming, morphological, method of analogies, etc.; 5.3) selection of the most realistic ideas and technologies to implement dematerialization changes; 5.4) assessment of the level of dematerialization of project production by the alternative options for the purpose of electing the best; 5.5) economic evaluation of effectiveness of the implementation of selected option of dematerialization project according the identified criteria; 5.6) taking decision to start the project implementation or in the case of discrepancy of received results returning to stage 5.2; 5.7) planning and implementation of selected projects of dematerialization transformation of products. Evaluation of the results: economic (growth of the enterprise’s profit; acceleration of the turnover of working capital; reducing of economic costs; improvement of the economic efficiency of enterprise and so on); environmental (reduction of nature -, resource and ecological production capacity; reduction of environmental costs of the enterprise; reduction of the eco-destructive influence of enterprises, etc.); social (growth of environmental consciousness of employees; growth of wages of staff; increasing employee’s satisfaction from the work; improvement of the emotional climate in the team; improvement of working conditions; reducing the incidence of employees. Conclusions and directions of further researches. The suggested theoretical and conceptual positions allows to form ecological and economic dematerialization mechanism at the enterprise. Functioning of mechanism provides dematerialization changes and solving ecological tasks, basing on the economic interests of the enterprise, according to the postulates of sustainable development. The ultimate goal of EEMDE is the reduction of destructive impact of material flows of the economic entity on the environment while ensuring economic efficiency measures aimed at reduction such influence. We believe that this mechanism can be used in all areas of economic activity – from production to services provision. It allows both compare versions of eco-efficient solutions among themselves and develop new products and business strategies taking into account the benefits of dematerialization. As further researches, we consider actual the drafting of enterprise’s development strategy basing on dematerialization transformations, as well as searching of ecological and economic instruments of dematerialization management on meso- and macro- levels of economic activity.

Keywords: dematerialization, eco-economic mechanism, eco-economic instruments, eco-destructive influence, ecological task

JEL Classification: Q51, D24.

Cite as: Sotnyk I. & Goncharenko, O. (2015). Formation of ecology and economic mechanism of dematerialization at the enterprise. Marketing and Management of Innovations, 2, 258-266. https://doi.org/10.21272/mmi.2015.2-22

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

References

1. Goncharenko, A.S., & Chortok, Yu.V. (2013). Teoreticheskie podkhody k ekoloho-ekonomicheskomu obosnovaniiu dematerializatsii ekonomiki [Theoretical approaches for eco-economic justification of the dematerialization of the economy]. Vneshneekonomicheskaia deiatelnost i obespechenie ekonomicheskoi bezopasnosti – Foreign economic activity and economic security, 1(2), 82-86 [in Russian].
2. Goncharenko, A.S. (2008). Klassifikatsiia enerhoinformatsionnykh transformatsyi ekonomycheskoi sistemy [Classification of energy and information transformation of the economic system]. Mekhanizm rehuliuvannia ekonomiky – Economics Regulation Mechanism, 2, 208-214 [in Russian].
3. Sotnyk, I.M. (2012). Mekhanizmy realizatsii sotsialno-ekonomichnoho potentsialu dematerializatsii vyrobnytstva i spozhyvannia: zvit pro NDR [Mechanisms of social and economic potential of dematerialization of production and consumption: report on research]. Sumy: SumSU [in Ukrainian].
4. Melnyk, L.H. (2006). Ekolohichna ekonomika [Ecological economics]. Sumy: VTD “Universytetska knyha” [in Ukrainian].
5. Melnyk, L.H. (2012). Ekonomika pidpryiemstva [Economics of enterprise]. Sumy: Universytetska knyha [in Ukrainian].
6. Goncharenko, O.S. (2015). Naukovo-metodychnyi pidkhid do otsinky rivnia ekolohichno spriamovanoi dematerializatsii sotsialno-ekonomichnykh system [Scientific and methodical approach to the assessment of environmentally focused dematerialization of socio-economic systems]. Mekhanizm rehuliuvannia ekonomiky – Economics Regulation Mechanism, 2, 11-21 [in Ukrainian].
7. Vaitszekker, E., Lovins, E., & Lovins, L. (2000). Factor of four. Cost – half, Return – double. New report for the Club of Rome. Moscow: Academia [in English].
8. Medouz, D., & Randers, I. (2007). Predely rosta. 30 let spustia [Limits to growth. 30 years later]. Moscow YKTs “Akademknyha” [in Russian].
9. Penn, I.T., & Arbor, A. (n.d.). Web-based survey of trends in dematerialization. css.snre.umich.edu. Retrieved from css.snre.umich.edu/css_doc/ CSS01-17.pdf [in English].
10. Schmidt-Bleek, F. (n.d.). Factor 10: The future of stuff. epub.wupperinst.org. Retrieved from http://epub.wupperinst.org/frontdoor/index/index/docId/4459 [in English].
11. Wernick, I.K., & Ausubel, I.K. (1995). National material metrics for industrial ecology. phe.rockefeller.edu. Retrieved from http://phe.rockefeller.edu/NatMatMetIndusEcol [in English].
12. Balatskii, O.F., Melnyk, L.H., & Yakovlev, A.F. (1984). Ekonomika i kachestvo okruzhaiushchei sredy [The economy and quality of the environment]. L.: Hidrometeoizdat [in Russian].
13. Kharichkov, S.K., & Nikolaev, Yu.O. (2003). Ekolohizatsiia nauchno-tekhnolohicheskoho razvitiia [Greening the scientific and technological development]. Odesa [in Russian].