Evaluating Clean Growth in an Engineering Business Environment Report

This report analyzes clean growth strategies within an engineering business context, specifically focusing on a company manufacturing exhaust pipes. It explores two key approaches: the five capitals (economic, built, social, natural, and human) and the triple bottom line (economic, social, and environmental impacts). The report evaluates the business's environmental impact, purpose, responsibilities, and associated risks through the lens of each approach. It examines how the five capitals assess the company's access to resources, financial performance, employee relations, infrastructure, and potential environmental hazards. Furthermore, it details how the triple bottom line assesses environmental conservation, worker safety, and the company's overall social and economic impacts. The report compares these approaches, concluding that the five capitals offer a more comprehensive framework for managing clean growth by considering a broader range of factors contributing to sustainable development, while the triple bottom line provides a focused assessment of social, economic, and environmental aspects.

Engineering business environment 1
Engineering business environment
Name
Institution

Engineering business environment 2
Engineering business environment
Contents
Making use of literature..............................................................................................................................3
Evaluate the chosen business in terms of its environmental impact, its purpose, responsibilities and risks
.................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Compare the two approaches you have chosen in terms of how well they help to manage the clean
growth of your chosen business..................................................................................................................8
References.................................................................................................................................................10
Appendixes................................................................................................................................................12

Engineering business environment 3
Making use of literature
According to [15], clean growth is a way of achieving economic growth with good
resources, technology and allowing sustainable development. The aim of this model is to ensure
efficient production with reduced impacts on the environment. For businesses to ensure
sustainable development with clean growth, there are some of the techniques which should be
put in place to help them achieve this objective. One of these approaches is the triple bottom line.
This is an accounting framework used to measure a company’s economic, social and
environmental impacts [9]. To achieve clean growth, triple bottom line ensures that the company
contributes to the local health development and educating services. This also ensures that the
natural resources used in the company, waste management does not have negative impacts on the
environment. This is achieved by monitoring these elements well.
The five capitals is an approach which provides a basis for understanding sustainability
developments in terms of wealth creation or capital. This approach is composed of five assets.
These assets include economic, built, social, natural and human capitals. The importance of this
model is that each form of capital is able to generate benefits in economic growth while still
sustaining clean growth [11). For example, a natural form of capital ensures that the company
has access to clean water, fresh air, and other key natural resources which have no negative
impacts on the environment. Also, human asset ensures that people are in good health which
enables them to work well hence increasing productivity.
Natural capitalism is an approach that aims at favoring both human and nature while still
able to make profits, improving on the workforce and also gaining competitive advantage. This
model encourages increased resource production, zero- waste and nontoxic production. The
model argues that people and nature are today valued at zero so protecting them and restoring

Engineering business environment 4
nature would be more profitable [2]. On the other hand, cradle to cradle manufacturing is a
process of acquiring certification for products which ensures more sustainable nature. This
model ensures that the company protects and enrich the ecosystem while maintaining safe and
productive technical metabolism. With this, the company would be ensuring clean growth.
The circular economy is whereby resource input waste and, energy are minimized by
recycling. This model is based on three principles which are, designing out waste and pollution,
keeping products/materials in use and regenerating natural system [6]. With this recycling and
remanufacturing of waste resources, this model ensures that there are no toxic gases and waste
which is released to the environment hence ensuring clean growth. The balanced scorecard is a
strategic planning and management system which is used by managers to explain the goals and
objectives of the organization to the employees. This model also aligns day to day activities
which employees should undertake and helps in prioritizing projects [16]. This is important
because it ensures that all employees have participated in the success of the business. Since it
helps in prioritizing products, it would help managers in choosing resources which has no
negative impacts on the environment.
Evaluate the chosen business in terms of its
environmental impact, its purpose, responsibilities and
risks
In this case, the two approaches to be used in evaluating the company are five capital and
triple bottom line. The company chosen in this case deals with the manufacture of exhaust pipes.
For five capital, which focuses on the understanding of sustainable development in terms of
wealth creation, would enable the owners to understand the environmental impacts of this
business. Since this model consists of five assets, each plays an important role in ensuring the

Engineering business environment 5
clean growth of the company [7]. For natural capital, this asset would help in evaluating whether
the business has positive or negative impacts on the environment. This is because this asset
shows the company’s access to key resources such as water, forest, land, and others. For
example, if the company is using resources which can bring about negative impacts on the
environment like toxic products, this would necessarily affect the clean growth of the business
and vice versa.
On the other hand, the economic capital would help in evaluating and understanding the
purpose of this business [5]. This is because this model shows the income and financial resources
of the company. If the main purpose of the company is to make profits, this would be clearly
shown in the income statement report. Also, the way in which this company is treating its
employees can be used to determine the purpose of the business. If the company is not aimed at
making a profit, it would not put into consideration things like wages and health of the
employees. Moreover, the working environment would not be conducive for human health. If the
company has not changed on its means of operations and remains to do same things this means
that the purpose of this company is not to make a profit. Also, the working environment would
also assist in determining the purpose of this company. Even if the organization is not aimed at
making profits, it should consider the health safety of its workers. According to [4], there are
non-profit making organizations which consider the health of the employees even though their
main aim is not to make profits.
Human capital would enable in evaluating the responsibilities of the company.
Responsibilities of a company are the things which top managers or owners should do to ensure
that there is quality production as well as improved health safety for the employees [10]. To

Engineering business environment 6
know the responsibility of the company in terms of ensuring quality work, this would include
looking at the tasks assigned to each employee if they really match with their skills and
knowledge. Also, if the employees are paid their wages and there is a conducive work
environment this would mean that the company is taking up its responsibilities well [10]. The
five capital would also help to know the responsibilities of the managers in terms of productivity
and work efficiency. This is because it’s the responsibility of top managers to ensure that
employees apply the necessary skills and knowledge in order to give efficient work. This can be
achieved if the managers give clear guidelines to the employees on how to perform their tasks.
Also, listening to their problems and giving possible solutions would assist them in delivering
efficient work.
To evaluate the company’s risks using the five capital, this would include looking at the
buildings, transport, and communication. For example, if the company is situated in risky places
like near rivers, this would mean that the chances of this building collapsing are high especially
during rainy seasons. Also, if the location of the business has poor infrastructures like faulty
roads, this would mean that many customers would find it hard to go such places hence losing its
market share. Poor communication skills can make employees lose job morale hence poor
performance. It can also make a company lose its customers because they like going to places
where they handle in a good way. According to [12], poor communication can lead to a collapse
of a business.
The second approach to be used to evaluate this organization is the triple bottom line.
According to [10], this model focuses on measuring a company’s economic, social and
environmental impacts. Since this model focuses on environmental impacts, including

Engineering business environment 7
determining the kind of resources used, waste management and the land use, it would, therefore,
help in evaluating the effects of this company on the environment. For example, if the company
is using resources which are not harmful to the human health this would contribute zero negative
effects to the environment. Also, if the company has introduced proper ways of managing its
waste products, this again would have no negative effect on the environment. These ways of
managing waste products would include recycling.
The purpose of the business is determined by both environmental and social factors. The
triple bottom line would assist in evaluating the purpose of the company in terms of
environmental conservation and also ensuring work safety for their employees [10]. If the
company has not put on correct measures of managing their waste, this would mean that its
purpose is not only to make profits but also pollute the environment. Also, the kind of resources
used would help in evaluating the purpose of the business in terms of air conservation. The
responsibilities of this company can be evaluated by looking at the employees who are working
there in terms of their health and the time they spend at work. This is because it’s the
responsibility of the company to ensure that all the workers work under safe conditions.
Just as the five capital, the triple bottom line gives the same ideas in evaluating the risks
of the company. Since this model focuses on measuring social, economic and environmental
impacts it would be easier to evaluate the risks of the company based on these factors [13].
Social factors include how the company is treating its workers. If the company pays its workers
their wages on time this would mean that there are minimal chances of losing their employees.
Also if there is an improved working condition, this would increase the morale of the workers
hence improving their performance. This minimizes the risks of losing employees through deaths

Engineering business environment 8
or long-term illnesses associated with poor working conditions. Also, the way the managers
communicate to their employees can affect their performance. Unclear definition of duties can
lead to a bad relationship between employees due to blame games at work. This bad work
relationship can put the company at a risk of low profits due to poor performance.
For environmental factors, these include things like the natural resources used by the
company in its manufacturing process. These would either have negative or positive impacts on
the environment depending on the type of resources used. For a company to avoid the risks of
polluting environment, it should avoid using toxic products which leads to air pollution [14].
Also, coming up with ways of managing waste products would help in avoiding some of these
risks. This includes remanufacturing of the waste products. This triple bottom line would,
therefore, assist in evaluating the kind of effects this company has on the environment by
focusing on the resources used during manufacturing.
Compare the two approaches you have chosen in terms
of how well they help to manage the clean growth of your
chosen business
Comparing the two approaches on how they help in managing clean growth, the five
capitals seems to assist best in this process. For the triple bottom line, it ensures that the natural
resource used, ways of managing waste does not have negative impacts on the environment. It
also ensures that the company participates in local health development and education services.
This approach also ensures that there is healthy safety for the employees and good wages to
assist them in living [16]. On the other hand, the five capital has five assets in which each form
has a way of ensuring clean growth. These include human, social, built, economic and natural
capitals. For a human asset, the approach ensures that the workers work in a conducive

Engineering business environment 9
environment which is not harmful to their health. Also, this form of capital ensures that the
workers are paid their wages. Social provides a basis for workers to work together. It is known
that two or more heads than one. This asset provides a basis for communication and a good
relationship between workers which ensures efficient work. Efficient work in most cases has
positive impacts on the environment because the workers are using the necessary resources to
achieve goals. Moreover, the built form of capital ensures that the company’s infrastructures
such as roads, buildings, and communications are implemented well. With these infrastructures
put in place, this would mean there is an efficient work hence clean growth [15]. Natural capital
ensures that the resources used, ways of managing waste and land used to have no negative
impacts on the environment. Although these approaches seem to be sharing the same ideas, the
five capital is the one which could help well in managing clean growth. This is because the
model covers well on the measures that should be put in place to ensure clean growth while still
giving room for a company to increase its profits and attaining competitive advantage.

Engineering business environment 10
References
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Appendixes
Rate of emissions in UK by sector