Transport was one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases and businesses were becoming increasingly concerned about the complexity and sustainability of its supply chains in light of this, stated freight forwarding company Barloworld Logistics business development executive Mark Cleeve-Edwards at the Clean Business Ekurhuleni conference, held last month.

He noted that innovation was key in creating more sustainability in supply chains and that it was increasingly becoming an item on agendas.

Cleeve-Edwards also pointed out that 60% of consumers would buy a product with a low-carbon footprint and sustainability.

“The world is changing, so how do we create sustainable businesses and supply chains that are not obsolete? “Flexibility, agility and responsiveness are key to all companies, 56% of which noted that reducing harmful impacts on the environment is one of the top five constraints to achieving their supply chain objectives,” he said.

Companies will have to address economic, environmental, social and ethical performances, which could then result in sustainability.

Further, he stated that legal compliance with the regulations of waste acts, provincial legislation and local by-laws was compulsory in the supply chain space, while waste audits, which were voluntary, were also beneficial.

According to Barloworld Logis-tics’ Supply Chain Foresight 2013 survey, 90% of respondents agreed that emerging and new business models in South Africa required supply chain innovation and 87% indicated that investing in supply chain management and systems enabled success in business.

Seventy-nine per cent said supply chain and logistics innovation had become a prominent tool for competitive advantage in South Africa, while 57% of respondents said using service providers was the best way to develop an innovative supply chain solution.

Further, 59% believed that collaboration in South African supply chains had driven innovation.

According to the 2013 GE Global Innovation Barometer, the drivers for collaboration with other companies included access to new technologies, markets, improving existing products or services and speeding up the time to market.

The barriers for collaboration included the poaching of talent or knowledge and a lack of intellectual property protection, a lack of trust in partner companies and the lack of test collaboration.