Industrial Energy Management and Sustainability

<p>Growing environmental concerns caused by increasing consumption of natural</p><p>resources and pollution need to be addressed. Manufacturing dictates the efficiency</p><p>with which resource inputs are transformed into economically valuable</p><p>outputs in the form of products and services. Consequently it is also responsible</p><p>for the resulting waste and pollution generated from this transformation process.</p><p>As a matter of fact about one-third of the global total energy consumption is</p><p>associated withmanufacturing activities; thus achieving higher energy efficiency</p><p>in this sector has been the focus of research as well as of policy and industrial</p><p>programmes in recent years. In particular being able to effectively manage</p><p>energy and energy-related activities has proved to be a fundamental capability</p><p>for companies willing to improve their sustainability as it constitutes the first</p><p>critical step to understanding their processes and to identifying and correctly</p><p>evaluating improvement opportunities.</p><p>This Special Issue focuses on energy management and sustainability of both</p><p>manufacturing processes and systems including methods practices tools applications</p><p>and experiences.</p>