A decision making trial and evaluation laboratory approach to analyse the challenges to environmentally sustainable manufacturing in Indian automobile industry

Due to growing affluence among the general population, there has been a steady rise in consumerism levels in developing countries like India. As a result, the automobile industry has grown rapidly in a bid to reach out to a larger customer base. However, the demand for automobiles has led to global warming, destruction of natural resources and many other serious environmental problems. It is therefore imperative for manufacturers in this industry to urgently develop an effective framework which would give due importance to environmental conservation while keeping in mind the needs of the current and future generations. The worrying part, however, is that there are numerous challenges that are yet to be addressed in implementing environmentally sustainable manufacturing practices. Although many governmental agencies and conscious consumers are urging the automobile industry to adopt environmentally sustainable manufacturing technologies, many industries still remain unguided and unresponsive regarding the matter. These industries continue to rely on the old methods of manufacturing. This research has been undertaken with the purpose of identifying the key challenges faced in implementing environmentally sustainable manufacturing practices in the Indian automobile industry. The findings are supported by a case study based on the Decision Making Trial Evaluation and Laboratory (DEMATEL) method. It is expected that the identified challenges, and their impact dependent comparative weightage, It is expected that the challenges identified, and their comparative weightage as per their impact, will make it simpler for industrialists and policy makers to focus on the most core issues and develop more effective frameworks in future. In this study 'the most influential challenge', 'the major cause challenge' and 'the major effect challenge' have been successfully found using the DEMATEL methodology.