An approach to implement cleaner production in services: Integrating quality management process

Journal Pre-proof An approach to implement Cleaner Production in services: integrating quality management process

Hannah de Oliveira Santos, Jordania Louse Silva Alves, Fagner José Coutinho de Melo, Denise Dumke de Medeiros PII:

S0959-6526(19)33855-7

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.118985

Reference:

JCLP 118985

To appear in:

Journal of Cleaner Production

Received Date:

23 January 2019

Accepted Date:

20 October 2019

Please cite this article as: Hannah de Oliveira Santos, Jordania Louse Silva Alves, Fagner José Coutinho de Melo, Denise Dumke de Medeiros, An approach to implement Cleaner Production in services: integrating quality management process, Journal of Cleaner Production (2019), https://doi. org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.118985

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. © 2019 Published by Elsevier.

Journal Pre-proof

Cleaner Production: Application Analysis in Services Hannah de Oliveira Santos Production Engineering Department, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco [email protected] Av. Academico Helio Ramos, s/n, CDU, 50.740-530, Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil Author biography: PhD Student in Business Economics from the Univerisdad de Salamanca. Master’s Degree in Production Engineering from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE). Graduated in Administration from the Universidade Federal de Campina Grande. Jordania Louse Silva Alves (Correspondig Author) Production Engineering Department, Universidade de Rio Verde [email protected]

Av. Academico Helio Ramos, s/n, CDU, 50.740-530, Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil Author biography: PhD in Production Engineering from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE). Master’s Degree in Production Engineering from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE). Graduated in Tourism from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco. Fagner José Coutinho de Melo Production Engineering Department, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco [email protected] Av. Academico Helio Ramos, s/n, CDU, 50.740-530, Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil ORCID:0000-0002-0550-5177 Author biography: PhD Student in Production Engineering from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE). Master’s Degree in Production Engineering from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE). Graduated in Administration from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco. Denise Dumke de Medeiros Production Engineering Department, Federal University of Pernambuco [email protected] Av. Academico Helio Ramos, s/n, CDU, 50.740-530, Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil ORCID: 0000-0001-7927-9021 Author biography: PhD in Production Engineering from Grenoble Institute of Technology (Grenoble INP). Master’s in production engineering from the Federal University of Santa Catarina. Graduated in Administration from the Federal University of Santa Catarina. Associate Professor at the Federal University of Pernambuco.

Journal Pre-proof An approach to implement Cleaner Production in services: integrating quality management process Abstract Currently, society and the market have a holistic view of environmental issues and both are concerned not only with economic benefits but also with the consequences that these benefits have for the environment. The growth of the service sector means that this sector has made an effort to determine and measure the adverse impacts of service rendering on the environment and to minimize these. The cleaner production program uses tools that associate economic, social and environmental benefits to an organization's activities. This study sets out an approach to implement cleaner production, combining the principles of quality management applied to the processes as set out in Paladini and integrated with the PDCA methodology and cleaner production methodology. It was analyzed in four companies that provide services, related to mass services, professional services, a services factory and a services shop, each of which is representative of a type of service included in Schmenner’s classification of services. Two of the five steps of the proposed approach were used, namely pre-evaluation and evaluation. As a result, it was observed that the organizational culture determines the vision of the purpose of implementing Cleaner Production. In one company, the decreasing of water consumption was more than 4.000 m3/year. It can be affirmed that, as soon as service providers adopt cleaner production, they will become fully aware of the environmental aspects and impacts of their processes and services rendered, and therefore will be able to identify opportunities for reducing costs, thereby helping the organization to achieve responsible and sustainable growth. It is possible that through this practice there will be an increase in competitiveness, reducing production costs and improving the quality of life of the local and global community. Adopting cleaner production means innovating for organizations, as it is a process that requires behavioral change, including all actors involved in the process working towards an efficient and sustainable performance with respect to the resources available in nature. Keywords: Cleaner Production; Services; Sustainability, PDCA.

Highlights Service companies are not aware of the impacts they cause on the environment. The application of environmental practices in service is still little analyzed. This research proposes an approach to implement Cleaner Production in services. Cleaner production advocates a voluntary approach to reduce wastes and costs.

1. Introduction The 20th-century production model was based on the premise that the planet's natural resources were unlimited. Thus, for many years, man used them without any kind of environmental control because it was believed not only that they were inexhaustible but also that Nature could absorb all the waste produced by human actions without harmful consequences (Alves and Medeiros, 2015). The alleged right to exercise wellbeing, without realizing the real boundaries of the biosphere, has resulted in unsustainable production and consumption systems, which put numerous pressures on natural resources and biodiversity, and this results in climate change, the burden on toxic substances, exploitation of nonrenewable resources and pollution of water resources (MICKWITZ et al., 2011; Staniškis, Katiliūtė, 2019). Given this reality, environmental management became more important, especially after the Stockholm Conference in 1972, when the first pollution control bodies were structured, environmental legislation was drafted, and environmental quality monitoring activities began. Concern for the environment keeps on increasing. One consequence of this has been to develop and implement solid and liquid waste treatment units, with the aim of placing them at the end of the industrial process. Such units are known as “end-of-pipe” systems because they treat waste at its point of exit from a factory. It can be said that these units are part of the traditional approach to pollution control that seeks to protect the environment reducing waste (Abdul-Rashid, 2017). According to Guimarães et al. (2017), the complexity of industrial processes is the cause of environmental problems. Chehebe (1997) states that every product, no matter what material it is made

Journal Pre-proof for or purpose of use, has an impact on the environment, whether due to its production process, the raw materials used, due to its use or disposal. Today, the big challenge for managers is to identify the best strategy to maximize the environmental opportunities linked to the business (Song et al., 2018). In order to enable the implementation of appropriate strategies, several environmental methodologies are being used by industries, among which, cleaner production has been very successful (Wang et al., 2018). Cleaner production is a product of the “end-of-pipe” vision, but has a preventive approach to environmental management and aims to produce goods and services in a way that minimizes their impact on the environment within the current economic and technological constraints that companies face (UNEP, 2018). The cleaner production program introduces tools that link economic, social, and environmental benefits to an organization's activities. Implementing this program leads to financial gains because better use is made of raw materials, energy and water, and waste is minimized (Bhupendra and Sangle, 2016). In view of this, it is worth mentioning that the market is currently becoming more and more competitive and directed at consumers, who have begun to pay attention to the importance of conserving the environment and to take an interest in the procedures and actions that companies perform (Huang et al., 2014). Despite the political and economic crisis experienced by Brazil in recent years, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, the service sector accounted for 75.8% of Brazil's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2018. The sector showed a growth 1.3% when compared to the previous year, ahead of industrial growth (0.6%) and agriculture (0.1%) (IBGE, 2019). In 2018, 529,554 new formal jobs were created in Brazil, the best performance in new job creation since 2013 and the first positive result after three years of contraction in new job creation. The sectors that contributed most to the generation of these new posts were the services sector (398.603), commerce (102.007) and construction (17.957) according to the National Employees and Unemployed Register (Caged, 2019). For Aquino et al. (2019), the service sector, in addition to being responsible for the largest share of world GDP, is perhaps the most constant in the economy, as its share of GDP and the number of jobs in the sector grow at higher rates than in other economic sectors, as presented earlier. In contrast to manufacturing and agriculture, services are often considered to be “environmentally friendly” (Romeiro, 2012). This paradox can be explained by a lack of proper consideration of the size of service material emitted in the environment. Services have characteristics that cannot be measured as easily as products because of their intangibility. Many manufacturing industries have the end result of their process as a product, but in the service companies, the end result is not always a product. It is also known that there are several environmental impacts generated by industries in the manufacture of a product, such as waste generation. However, it is not only industries that cause impacts on the environment, as services, when provided, also impact (Desmarchelier et al., 2012; Fourcroy, 2012). Hospitals, for example, can be considered major generators of epidemics, not only because they bring together people with different pathologies, but also because they generate waste that is hazardous to the population's health (Moura et al., 2018). André et al. (2016) sought to raise waste generation in hospitals in southeastern Brazil. In six days of collection, the eleven hospitals studied generated 44,489.91 kg of health services waste, an average of 7,414.98 kg / day. On the other hand, laundries are responsible for a significant portion of water consumption that when discarded without treatment cause great environmental impact due to the use of polluting inputs in the washing process. One of the major obstacles to laundry treatment of water is the high costs of environmental control (Buss et al., 2015). Despite the high costs, it is possible to treat and reuse water in various types of sector. Sepehri and Sarrafzadeh (2018) proposed an approach to mitigate fouling and improve wastewater treatment performance with dominance of autotrophic microbial community populations in activated sludge. Thus, if left untreated, waste can cause major damage to the environment if it ends up in unprepared areas. Implementing a service waste management plan solely to meet legal requirements does not solve the problem of its generation. The smaller the amount of these residues, the lower the cost for their treatment/disposal and the associated problems (Silva et al., 2019). Given this fact, companies recognize that environmental questions are of significant importance and can become a factor of influence for consumers, laws, society and government, making organizations show growing interest in protecting the environment. However, alternatives that seek to reduce waste generation in the service sector are still scarce. It is in this context that cleaner production emerges as an alternative capable of reducing waste, toxic gases and effluents, optimizing the use of water and energy, as well as better health and safety conditions for employees and the general population (Neto et al., 2019). Thus, the following research question arises: How to produce services with minimal impact using the cleaner production methodology? Based on this issue, this work was developed to analyze the application of cleaner production in service companies, since there is a lack of instruments that direct these

Journal Pre-proofof waste generated. This deficiency is due companies to the practice of minimization and management to the fact that the quality of services has very subjective aspects that make it difficult to implement instruments of change and improvement. Therefore, this study aims to apply the methodology of cleaner production in services, according to the classification of services proposed by Schmenner (1995). To this end, the cleaner production approach was adopted by the National Center for Clean Technologies (CNTL), considered the most complete approach among those surveyed. To develop the research instruments, two steps of the five of the cleaner production methodology, pre-evaluation and evaluation were used. The two steps were chosen because they highlight the barriers to implementing the methodology, identify the waste generated by a company and at a company´s initiative can be used to analyze the volume and type of waste it produces. The authors chose to apply the cleaner production methodology in the services sector because it is the most representative sector of the Brazilian economy. In addition, the application of environmental practices in the service sector is still little analyzed, since it is assumed that the environmental impacts produced by the service sector are few due to its not producing palpable products (Blanco, et al., 2009; Zeng, et al., 2010). Therefore, this paper aims to contribute to the literature regarding why and how cleaner production programs can be developed in the services sector, besides which the paper integrates two important approaches, namely cleaner production and PDCA.

2. Literature Review In this section, the main concepts of this work will be presented: cleaner production and quality management applied to the processes.

2.1 Cleaner production Given current concerns about the environment and thee being a better understanding of the waste generation process, pollution control policies have evolved from procedures known as "end-of-pipe" ones and now tend to focus on the principle of prevention (CNTL, 2003). According to Strasser (1997) and Rehfeld et al. (2007), end-of-pipe technology seeks to solve environmental problems by controlling pollution at the end of the production process, in order to mitigate the impacts that it has generated. But among the aspects that still exist, due to lack of prevention, corrective actions are stiill made without investigating the causes of pollution and seeking to understand and tackle them. Yet even when solutions are found, these arise from making a reactive and selective response to a problem, which has, in general, been undertaken to meet emission or environmental quality standards established by government regulation (Tseng et al., 2016). While end-of-pipe techniques represent corrective actions in which waste is expected to be generated and then treated, cleaner production is a preventive action aimed at reducing the adverse environmental, health and safety impacts of products, throughout their life cycle, from the raw material state to the final product (Frondel, et al., 2007). The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP, 2018) presented the concept of the cleaner production program as a methodology for implementing a strategy without interruptions. This was due to changes in the market profile, an increased interest in environmental awareness, increased levels of pollution and their effects, the development of laws and regulations and the growth of demand for "green" products and processes that are "clean" or ecologically correct. Cleaner production advocates a voluntary approach to reducing the disposal of harmful wastes into the environment and, at the same time, to reducing costs. Moreover, this concept assumes that contamination is a result of the "ineffective" use of raw materials, products or by-products (Oliveira & Alves, 2007; Hoof & Lyon, 2013). Table 1 shows the main differences between end-of-pipe and cleaner production technologies.

Tab. 1 - Differences between end-of-pipe technology and cleaner production

Journal Pre-proof

END-OF-PIPE TECHNOLOGY

CLEANER PRODUCTION

Want a reaction

Want action

Waste, effluents and emissions are controlled using treatment equipment

Prevents the generation of waste, effluents and emissions at source. Seeks to avoid using potentially toxic raw materials

Environmental protection is a matter for competent experts Environmental protection operates after processes and products have been developed Environmental problems are solved from a technological point of view The efficient use of raw materials, water and energy is of little concern Leads to additional costs

Environmental protection is a task for all Environmental protection acts as an integral part of product design and process engineering Environmental problems are solved at all levels and in all fields Encourages the efficient use of raw materials, water and energy Helps reduce costs

Source: CNTL (2003) Cleaner production takes environmental considerations into account at all hierarchical levels of the company. It is characterized by acts that are implemented within the organization, with the objective of making the process more efficient at using its inputs and generating more products and less waste (Montavani, Tarola, Vergari, 2017). Implementing a cleaner production program enables a company to better understand its industrial processes, and to monitor these constantly so as to conserve and develop an eco-efficient system of production and to generate environmental indicators (Urbaniec et al., 2017). The cleaner production program can also be integrated with quality systems, environmental management and safety and occupational health systems, and its aim is to provide a complete understanding of the company's management system. Nicaragua's beverage company, PEPSICO, identified that product losses were almost 80% due to mechanical problems, where 20% would be solved by applying cleaner production practices. The measures taken have been able to save water by 50% and increase energy efficiency, reducing by 12% cooling, 40% in air conditioning and 30% in overall fuel costs. In addition, employees were trained, and bottle breaks could be reduced by 30%, saving $ 26,000/year, also contributing to the development of new internal routines and know-how (United Nations Environment Programme, UNEP, 2019). Another example of applying cleaner production is in the mining industry, where pollution prevention and cleaner production are of the utmost importance, as practically living things, animals and plants can be affected by activities. With regard to wastewater treatment, a number of technologies have emerged, more effectively mitigating the problems of heavy metal contamination, particularly copper, lead, cadmium and arsenic, namely: electrochemical methods, plasmotechnologies, membrane filtration, evaporation / crystallization, biodegradation processes, chemical precipitators. Adopting preventive water pollution strategies, such as those listed above, minimizes toxic effluents and helps put a company in a better position to avoid the costs of the ecological “shock” created by mining waste discharged into water bodies (Hilson, 2000). Noranda Inc., a Toronto based multinational forestry and mining company, has a $ 1.1 million wastewater treatment facility installed in 1998, with an estimated operating cost of $ 1.5 million per year. Few other companies can speak of equivalent environmental technology. Although large mining companies have pollution control systems in place, a limited environmental budget restricts spending on highly efficient and expensive pollution prevention technologies and cleaner production. For smaller companies, the implementation of such cutting-edge environmental technology is completely unfathomable (Hilson, 2000). Based on this, research by Frondel et al. (2007) concluded that additional investments in cleaner production can be stimulated by increasing the cost difference between the two types of technologies. That is, as they do not generate value, they can represent a very high and unproductive cost. The potential to continually replace end-of-pipe technologies with cleaner technologies may be limited, and not all regulations favouring end-of-line technologies can be cut. For example, additional filters currently reduce particulate emissions from diesel cars more effectively and more eco-efficient diesel engines. Thus, a number of end-of-line technologies will still be needed to limit specific emissions that cannot easily be reduced with cleaner production measures. In this sense, each longer-term cleaner production system is more economical than conventional endof-pipe technologies (Christie et al., 1995). This argument reinforces the claims of previous work that when the company concentrates in the short term, it tends to adopt end-of-pipe technologies, in which

Journal Pre-proof the company sets as its main objective to take actions to correct environmental impacts by measures that do not imply development of new skills to manage new environmental processes (Claver et al., 2002). Cleaner production can be undertaken in any business activity and is based on a planned technical, economic and environmental analysis of the production process, in order to identify opportunities for improving the process and reducing adverse environmental impacts that the process may generate (Silva Filho et al., 2007). According to the CNTL (2003), the first step is to raise the target public’s awareness of environmental issues prior to implementing a cleaner production program, and this is done by making a technical visit to a company during which successful cases will be presented in order to draw attention to the CP program´s economic and environmental advantages. After the pre-awareness-raising phase, a company can start to implement a cleaner production program using its own methodology or by contracting institutions that can support it in this task. Figure 1 outlines the steps for implementing cleaner production.

Fig. 1: Steps for implementing cleaner production

Source: Adapted from CNTL (2003) 2.2 The Quality Management Applied to the Processes Cleaner production is a constant cycle, which must always be analyzed, monitored and improved whenever needs emerge. In addition, improvements arising from using a cleaner production program does not happen at the end of the production process, but during it (Hamdoun et al., 2018). One of the main concepts used to define the improvement of the production process is that of quality management applied to the processes which, according to Paladini et al., 2015; Silva et al., 2016, is the effort made to ensure that quality is not restricted to the product or service, but that quality is also generated during production. The principles based on this emphasize the need for managerial action to analyze the causes and, no longer, give exclusive attention to the effects of production. Being able to manage in this way involves three steps: eliminate losses, eliminate causes of losses and optimize the process, Table 2.

Tab. 2: Steps of the implementation of quality management applied to processes First step: Essentially corrective actions aimed at

Eliminate defects, scrap and rework; use programs to reduce labor errors; make efforts to minimize production costs and eliminate unnecessary efforts. Priority is given to minimizing

eliminating losses.

Second step: Eliminate the causes of losses in the production process. Preventive actions. Third step: Consolidate the results of the previous steps, change processes which involves eliminating any losses.

Journal Pre-proof

production deviations. During this step, preparing productive process for future actions begins, nothing is added to the process, but additional costs imposed are eliminated. The target to be reached is limited and well defined, and immediate results are sought. This step is very important for those that follow, and when well conducted, it generates behavioral changes with positive didactic and psychological effects. Prevents situations, circumstances or elements that may lead to deviations from production, thus removing elements from the process that may be harmful in some way. It seeks to correct the misuse of company resources. Studies to increase the company’s productivity and operational capacity; determine the best allocation of its resources; the best possible way of using them; develop processes for the production of goods and services that perfectly suit the projects from which they came- needs, preferences and conveniences of the consumer market; define the nature and usefulness of the information that will be obtained, which requires collection, analysis and dissemination mechanisms.

Source: Adapted from Paladini (2009) 3. Material and methods This study is characterized as being exploratory because it describes a situation and seeks to discover what the relationships between the elements of the research are. As for the approach, it can be characterized as qualitative. The research methodology is called a case Study (Chris et al., 2002). In order to ensure the reliability of the results of the research, practical examples of service companies were chosen for the case studies. The starting point was Schmenner’s classification of the typology of such companies, namely, mass service, professional service, service factory and service shop (Schmenner, 1995). The choice for the sample studied was due to the accessibility of the researchers. The four companies chosen were intended to represent the types of services proposed by Schmenner, namely: the language school, the law office, the hotel, and the laundry of a university hospital, such companies did not have the cleaner production approach implemented. Regarding the sample studies, this is not representative of the universe researched and was used for due applicability of the methodology proposed by this research. It is believed that the results obtained were consequences of the sample characteristics and cannot be generalized without due adequacy. Although the sample is not representative of the researched universe, the results of this research make a strong argument regarding the benefits of implementing the cleaner production approach for both company and society. In this research it used primary and secondary data. Primary data were collected at the language school and law office. These data were collected through an unstructured interview in which it sought to identify the practices of cleaner production actions applied by the companies, the interview was recorded on an audio device, in addition to direct observation of the places under study by the researchers. The unstructured interview guide is shown in Table 3. The unstructured interview took place with principals and teachers in the case of the language school and partners in the case of the law office. The interview took place in two moments, in the first part, the preliminary identification was made about the studied organization, while in the second part the diagnosis of the possible causes of waste generation was made. Interviews lasted an average of three hours per company studied. For the hotel and hospital laundry cases, secondary data extracted from the Sustainable Industrial Production Center (CEPIS) were used, taking into account the same parameters as the unstructured interview.

Tab. 3: Unstructured interview guide Interview parts Part I: Preliminary identification

Identification

of

basic

Questions company characteristics

such

as

Journal Pre-proof customer service,

number of employees, company size and certifications and organizational practices. Identification of the organizational process (labor intensity and customer interaction). Identification of the main barriers to the success of organizational management. Identification of the activities performed by the company. Identification of factors related to the process, raw material, energy source and losses and emissions related to the provision of the service. Diagnosis of the possible causes of waste generation by the process, raw material, energy source and losses and emissions related to the provision of the service. Diagnosis of the impact caused by the generation of process waste, raw material, energy source and service-related losses and emissions. Awareness initiatives adopted by the company to reduce the impacts caused by the generation of process waste, raw material, energy source and losses and emissions related to the provision of the service.

Part II: Diagnosis of possible causes of waste generation

After the unstructured interview, the data were transcribed in a text editor and then analyzed.For the analysis, an integrated approach was proposed, using the concepts and principles of the process approach to quality management which are set out in Paladini et al., (2015) and cleaner production, together with the PDCA - Plan, Do, Check, Action, methodology (Deming, 2000). It is noteworthy that such a diagnosis represents only the point of view of owners, directors and researchers. Therefore, if the company is interested in effectively applying cleaner production, the proposed analysis should be performed from the point of view of other members of the organization.

4. Analysis of Application of Cleaner Production in Services For Volpi and Paulino (2018), there are two different definitions of service. The first one says that a service is based on the act of offering the services of one person to another, whose performance is intangible and without property. The second refers to the fact that the service is constituted as an economic activity, which seeks to create value and provide benefits to customers, at specific times and places, as a result of the desired change in or on behalf of the recipient of the service. There are several types of services that can be grouped into certain service system categories that facilitate their classification. In this paper, the criteria for classifying service systems presented in Schmenner's (1995) study were adopted. This classification is presented in Table 4 which names the four quadrants of the matrix in accordance with their degree of interaction with the customer. Tab. 4: Classification of services Service factory: The processes of a service factory have a low labor intensity and have a low degree of customer interaction and customization.

Service shop: as the degree of interaction with the customer increases, a service factory turns into a service shop

Mass service: These processes have a high degree of labor intensity, but a rather low degree of interaction with or customization for the consumer.

Professional service: If the degree of interaction increases or customization is fundamental, a mass service turns into a professional service.

Source: Adapted from Schmenner (1995) For Schmenner (1995), service managers face challenges arising from the characteristics of services, which directly influence whether a company seeks o be competitive or not. An analysis was made of the results from applying the cleaner production methodology developed by the CNTL (2003) using the four types of services defined by Schmenner (1995) which used the PDCA cycle (Deming, 2000) and the three steps of quality management applied to the processes, according to Paladini (2009). The application was described in practical cases performed in institutions that represent each type of service. However, due to the breadth of the cleaner production methodology and the time constraints on the present study, we opted to apply only the pre-evaluation and evaluation steps, as shown in Figure 2 below. PLANNING AND ORGANIZATION

PRE-EVALUATION

EVALUATION

FEASABILITY STUDY

Fig. 2 - Steps addressed in the study of cleaner production methodology Source: Adapted from CNTL (2003)

IMPLEMENTATION

Journal Pre-proof This article proposes to develop an approach to implement cleaner production in services. To this end, it was developed an integrated approach, presented in Figure 3, considering the steps of applying cleaner production (CNTL, 2003), the PDCA Deming methodology (2000) and the principles of quality management in process (Paladini, 2009).

Fig. 3 – Proposed integrated approach The process quality management approach proposed by Paladini (2009) linked to the PDCA cycle steps was used, since the author presents a simple and structured sequence for the implementation of a new system in organizations. Like this, the objective of integrating the steps of cleaner production in the PDCA cycle (Deming, 2000) and the three steps described by Paladini (2009) was to simulate the steps of cleaner production analyzed in service companies. Therefore, the steps Plan, Check and Action simulate which steps of the cleaner production fits each step of the PDCA cycle (Deming, 2000) and the three steps of the quality management applied to the processes (PALADINI, 2009). The PDCA cycle is a tool that is both used to maintain the standard established by the company and the constant search for improving process, and to enable the manager to monitor each step (Prashar, 2017). All steps of the PDCA cycle can be analyzed at each step of cleaner production. In this paper, the steps of the cycle were divided as follows: the planning and organization step of cleaner production is the PLAN step, in which the goals of interest are defined and action plans are drawn up to reach the proposed goals. It can be considered the step of elimination of losses in the process, defined by Paladini (2009), because preventive measures were not taken, only corrective ones. According to Acosta-Mejia (2012) and Paladini (2015) the DO step proposes the improvement of the organizational process or the improvement of the product or service. The actions aimed at the development of this step correspond to the monitoring and measurement of the organizational process and the product or service provided, and the evaluation of productive losses. In this paper, the DO step is associated with two steps that were applied to the cleaner production in the companies studied - preevaluation and evaluation. The step considered to be execution is the one that demands most time for the organization to carry out and this must be done with precision. During this step, the flow chart of the company's production process is analyzed, the environmental diagnosis is generated and the focus of the evaluation is defned. It also includes the evaluation step, when the material balance and indicators are defined, the causes of waste generation are identified and cleaner production options are made. These are the two steps that need the most attention in the cleaner production program because they are used to inform decisions that will be made about changes in processes, installations, etc. After identifying the causes of waste generation in the DO step, the step is associated to eliminating the causes of losses, in accordance with the three steps of the process approach to quality management as set out by Paladini (2009). If the causes of waste generation are known, they can be eliminated. The objective of the CHECK step is to validate the results obtained, which will be done during the fourth step of the cleaner production program. Technical, environmental and economic evaluations are used to

Journal confirm the viability of what was established in the Pre-proof previous step. Finally, there is the ACTION step, the aggregate deployment. As has been seen, it is imperative to monitor activities that have already been determined in this step to see if they are being performed correctly. As a consequence of this integration in the productive process, it is optimized, since it is not finite but continuous. If what has been laid down has been achieved, goals are set to maintain and improve the good results, and what has not been achieved is the input for starting a new cycle, with the aim of finding means that lead the process to give results that overcome the difference. 4.1 Cleaner Production in Mass Services Mass services have a high degree of labor intensity, but a very low degree of interaction or customization with the consumer and serve a large number of customers per unit of time. Examples of mass services are: retail operations, banking services, schools and wholesale operations (Schemenner, 1999). Mass service customers will receive an undifferentiated service. 4.1.1 Pre-Evaluation Step and Step DO The language school was founded in the city of São Paulo/Brazil in the year 1950. Today the network has more than 420 schools in the country, with about four thousand employees. It was one of the first service sector franchises in Brazil and the first to integrate the internet with the classroom, among other innovations. The analysis of cleaner production practices adopted by the company was carried out in a unit in Paraíba/Brazil. Based on the pre-evaluation step proposed by the methodology chosen, it was sought to diagnose in general, by conducting unstructured interviews with the school's executive director and with some teachers, if their organization has been practicing cleaner production actions and would be able to accommodate the application of this tool. This diagnosis aims to facilitate the understanding of the current universe of the language school. The information obtained indicates that the company is aware of what a cleaner production is, which would facilitate the application of the tool. However, it would be difficult to implement the cleaner production implementation steps because there is no sector or someone responsible for environmental issues and because the school does not have a long-term strategic plan This latter lack is significant, since, for the application of this tool to succeed, it should be part of the company's strategic plan. Regarding the operations plan, it is observed that the company studied knows that its productive activities generate waste and it seeks to control this. Meanwhile, it still needs to create evaluation mechanisms and employee development programs linked to cleaner production to improve its performance on these issues. With regard to the financial plan, it can be said that the company has an interest in reducing its costs and losses from wasting resources and from waste, with a view to improving its financial health. As for the marketing plan, the company undertakes practices that lead to a cleaner production and disseminates them to its external public because it believes that in mass services, through which there is a lot of contact with consumers, their collaboration is necessary for cleaner production to be successful. For most of the aspects raised in the company, there was a positive response, which indicates that it already practices some actions related to cleaner production. However, there may be opportunities for cleaner production which the company has not yet identified. Therefore, it is necessary to describe the inputs and outputs highlighted in Figure 4. The following section presents a more detailed analysis of this. - Students - Teachers - Information - School supplies - Water and Energy

PROCESS OF TRANSFORMATION

- Knowledge - Waste - Waste of water and energy

Fig. 4 - Inputs and Outputs identified at language school

4.1.2 Evaluation Step and Step DO In Figure 4, it is possible to identify the waste generated by the company studied. Once these residues have been identified, it is critical, according to cleaner production methodology, to diagnose the possible causes of their generation, and also the impacts generated by the step as a whole. The factors their impacts and suggestions attributed to the company are set out in Table 5, below. Tab. 5: Factors, initiatives and suggestions to the company Factors

Company initiatives

Suggestions to the Company

Waste arising from the use of school supplies - the main materials used in school for the performance of activities are paper and paperboard. Energy consumption - The energy used in the school is intended for the lighting of the whole environment and for air-conditioning appliances. Water consumption - Most of the water used in the company is for hand washing and discharging in toilets.

Journal Pre-proof

The discard is done selectively, in the trash cans already in place at several points of the organization. All books used by students and teachers are made from recycled or certified paper (wood for reforestation). In order to reduce the consumption of electrical energy, the air-conditioners in the organization cannot fall below 23°C, because if this happens, the energy consumption is higher. The company takes no action to save or reduce the waste of this resource.

To reduce this impact, the company must use paper and paperboard rationally so that both sides are used before discarding. Regarding lighting, no measures were taken to reduce its consumption. It is recommended that sensors be installed in classrooms and bathrooms, and classroom doors be sealed. It is recommended that waterwithdrawing devices when not in use, and mechanisms be installed that reuse water used to clean the school.

4.2 Cleaner Production in Professional Services Professional Services are those in which the customer is usually seeking expertise) that he does not have from the service provider. There is high contact with the customer and, as this is often a long cycle process, this results in a low number of customers processed per day. 4.2.1 Pre-Evaluation Step and Step DO The company chosen to represent Professional Services was a law office. The reason for this choice is that there are few papers that address the environmental issue in offices and, in general, they pay little attention to environmental issues since their work is people-based. The Office of Advocacy studied was opened in 1997 and is located in Paraíba/Brazil. The company's lawyers provide legal advice, offering assistance and guidance in the areas of Criminal Law, Corporate Law, Administrative and Constitutional Law, Consumer Law and Civil Law - with particular emphasis on Civil and Family Liability. On observing the routine of the office, the researchers noted that the lawyers do not adopt any environmental measure when undertaking their activities. When asked whether they had heard of cleaner production, they replied that they could imagine what it was, but they did not know what it was. The company is not subject to any environmental regulations and affirms that the environmental issue is not a priority in its activities, even though they are aware of its importance. Regarding the plan of execution of cleaner production, it is observed that the company under study does not know what forms of waste are generated by its activities and does not seek, even superficially, to control them. Regarding the financial scope, the office has no interest in reducing its costs and losses from wasting resources and producing waste. To do this, it must first become aware of the importance of adopting environmental practices and creating evaluation mechanisms and development programs for cleaner production employees to improve their performance in these issues. In the pre-evaluation, the activities are carried out within the organization. The environmental diagnosis, which is the description of the activities that generate waste, will identify the focus of study. 4.2.2 Evaluation Step and Step DO Once the waste has been identified, it is essential to diagnose the possible causes of its generation, as well as the impacts generated at all steps. It should be noted that the company studied does not adopt any environmental initiative. All the initiatives described are recommendations. The analysis is presented in Table 6.

Tab. 6: Factors that generate waste and consequent suggestions to the company Factors Waste generated by the use of office materials - The office materials used in the development of activities were paper, stamps and pens. Electric energy consumption Water Consumption - Most of the water used in the

Suggestions to the Company The company could adopt the use of recycled paper or paper only for the essential causes, such as the printing of a defense. Switching off lights, electronics, air conditioning and other equipment that require power when not in use. Installation of devices to turn off equipment automatically. Installation of devices that turn off water when not in use. Reuse

company is used to wash hands and flush toilets.

Journal Pre-proof of water for washing the environment.

It is verified in this type of service, that the measures that must be adopted are changes of attitudes for which little or no financial investment is required. 4.3 Cleaner Production in Service Factory The service factory typology involves processes with low labor intensity and low degree of interaction with the customer and customization. In this type of service process, the largest fraction of costs is associated with the facilities and equipment used. Focus should be given to the layout, and the organization's physical environments and standard operating procedures can be safely deployed. The following companies are described as services factory: airlines, carriers, hotels, leisure and recreation centers (Schmenner, 1995). 4.3.1 Pre-Evaluation Step and Step DO The practical example for the services factory typology was a hotel located in Paraíba/Brazil, which offers its guests lodging, food and events services. The company has 171 employees and, according to information obtained through CEPIS (2012), the hotel market is divided into leisure (50%), events (35%) and business (15%). This step includes studying the activities developed in the organization, conducting the environmental and process diagnosis and selecting the focus of the evaluation, i.e. to determine what the most importante activities are that need to be deterred. The hotel’s network is certified by the environmental management system, according to the ISO 14001, which deals with environmental issues and the main objective of which is to standardize the processes of companies that use resources taken from nature and/or cause some environmental damage resulting from their activities. The fact that the organization under study has this certification demonstrates its interest in environmental issues and, consequently, evidences the interest in cleaner production. The main barriers highlighted by hotel management were lack of employee training and lack of motivation for them to develop responsible practices. Regarding the operations plan, it is observed that this company is aware of the types of waste its productive activities generates and seeks, even in a superficial way, to control them. However, it needs to create evaluation mechanisms and employee development programs linked to cleaner production to improve its performance in these issues. This step includes studying the activities carried out in the organization, conducting the environmental and process diagnosis and selecting the focus of the evaluation, i.e. determining what the most important focus should be on implementing cleaner production. To do so, the flow diagram of the process must be analyzed, which will enable the range and amount of waste generated during the process to be visualized. In the studies developed by CEPIS, techniques are used to identify the activities performed in the company under study. Two of the techniques are the Quick-Scan app, a tool that allows a quick diagnosis, which is able to identify processes, raw materials, energy sources and losses and emissions from the organization under study; and the EcoInspector technique, which identifies the potential of cleaner production. Both techniques are instruments that analyze and make a detailed diagnosis for environmental management. Figure 5, below, presents the factors identified by applying these techniques.

Journal Pre-proof

Fig.5 - Factors identified in the provision of services in the Hotel Initial sources of power generation are water, electricity, solar energy and LPG gas. Water is used in almost all hotel processes such as food preparation, cleaning, hotel laundry, bath rooms, swimming pool and so on. Electricity is mainly used for the connection of lamps, mini-bars and air conditioners. LPG gas is primarily used in food preparation and solar energy is used to heat the pool. Thus, after obtaining the information on the environmental diagnosis, with the main environmental aspects, the work focus is selected from among all the company´s activities and operations. This is considered to be the one that generates the greatest amount of waste, including toxic waste and therefore treatment costs are high. 4.3.2 Evaluation Step and DO Step After identifying what waste there is, it is essential, according to the cleaner production methodology chosen, both to diagnose the possible causes of its generation and the impacts generated by the step as a whole. This analysis is presented in Table 7. Tab. 7: Factors, initiatives and suggestions to the company Factors Waste from food preparation: after preparing food or hotel meals, there is much waste from the preparation and left-over food.

Electric energy consumption: In the hotel surveyed, the amount of energy used is high, and to control spending on electricity is not easy if there are no tools to help the organization.

Water consumption: As with electricity consumption, water consumption must

Company initiatives The impacts generated by these wastes are related to the financial issue, because if the leftover food is dumped in the trash, there is waste. To reduce the waste generated in the food preparation, the company adopted the selective collection system, in which they deposit the waste, which is sorted so that it can be reused. To reduce the cost of electricity, the company adopted the energy control system in the housing units, using a magnetic key that activates and deactivates the room's energy system. This prevents wasting electricity when the guest leaves and leaves lights on or equipment connected. Another initiative adopted by the company was to disconnect the refrigerators in the bedrooms while they are not in use and to replace the rubber sealing of the freezers and refrigerators, so that thermal energy does not escape, thus increasing the consumption of energy. To reduce wasting water, the company installed aerators in the taps of the

Suggestions to the company Regarding the leftover food after meals, the company did not take any action. In this case, the ideal would be to predict the amount that would be consumed by the guests before preparing the food.

It is important that the hotel constantly monitors that the actions it has taken are working and that the equipment and accessories used for this are not in need of adjustment, repair or replacement.

The re-use of towels by guests.This is because if towels and bed linen are not

Journal Pre-proof

be controlled.

housing units. Another measure taken was to install flow reducers in the showers of the apartments.

changed every day, there will be a reduction in the amount of laundry that goes to the hotel laundry. Thus, the costs incurred on drinking water and products that would be used for washing are reduced. This measure should be looked at as many guests do not like to reuse bed sheets and towels when staying in hotels.

As mentioned in the previous step, one of the barriers identified for implementing cleaner production is related to employee training and motivation. Therefore, the company also adopted some measures, including training employees in relation to waste reduction. Some measures, such as installing flow reducers in the showers, aerators, taps and energy-saving appliances in the apartments, required some financial investment by the organization. However, the gains from adopting these practices were striking, as indicated in Table 8. Tab. 8: Cleaner production options at the hotel OPTIONS

Environmental Benefits Decreasing of water or energy [Unit/year]

Saving [U$/ year]

Installation of flow reducers in apartment showers

2.100 m3 of water

$4606

$770

2

2.016 m3 of water

$4282

$1680

5

142.272 kWh

$9264

$11830

15

Installation of aerators in apartment taps Installation of energy-saving appliances in apartments

Financial Economics Investment Return [U$] [months]

Table 8 shows the gains from adopting three options for applying cleaner production in the hotel studied. The first option was the installation of flow reducers in the hotel apartment showers, reducing water consumption by 2.100 m3/year, with an investment of $770 with an average return of two months and annual savings of $4.606. The second option was the installation of aerators in the taps of the hotel apartments. The facility reduced water consumption by 2.016 m3/year. The investment for this action for the hotel was $1.680 with a five-month return and an annual savings of $4.282. Lastly, the installation of energy savers in the hotel apartments brought a reduction of 142.272 kWh of energy per year, with an investment of $11.830 and a return of fifteen months. By taking this action the hotel has saved $9.264 a year. In addition, ventures that have more financial capital to invest in other segments or service improvements become more competitive. Another advantage obtained is the differentiation of the brand with benefits to the public image of the company, since the company deals directly with the public. 4.4 Cleaner Production in Service Shop As the interaction with consumers increases, service factory gives way to the service shop. This process is characterized as the one that most personalizes the service in a high capital investment environment (Schemenner, 1999). In this type of service, companies such as hospitals and repair services of all kinds are characterized and there is a wide variety of activities. However, the services provided follow a schedule of activities. In this case, there is great interaction with the customer. 4.4.1 Pre-Evaluation Step and Step DO The space chosen to represent the service shop was the laundry of a university hospital, located within the hospital in Paraiba/Brazil. The company has been operating since 1980, in the areas of medical consultation, surgery, general examinations and laboratories, with about 1,100 employees. This laundry operates in the washing areas of hospital linen and other items (bed-sheets, pillowcases, blankets, towels, patient and employee clothing, masks, caps, etc). As already mentioned, before any implementation of cleaner production, the managers should be aware of the importance of implementing the program in the organization. Thus, the fact that the organization under study has sought the help of an environmental consultant demonstrates that it is aware of the importance of the environmental question and the economic benefits that can be achieved. The hospital laundry, the object of study, does not have the ISO 14001 certification implemented, that is, an environmental management system implemented in the organization. However, before defining the factors identified in this type of activity, two main barriers to this type of service were listed the employees who would carry out the cleaner production activities have not received any training; and

Journal funds are not available, since all the current budgetPre-proof for this sector has been spent on the equipment that the sector needs. Based on the pre-evaluation step proposed by the methodology chosen, it was generally diagnosed if the organization has been practicing cleaner production actions and if this would be able to include the application of this tool. The processing of the hospital clothes covers all the steps through which the clothes pass, from their use until their return in ideal conditions of reuse. These steps are generally classified as: collection - purging and transporting used laundry in different sectors of the hospital; receiving and washing of laundry in the laundry; drying and ironing of clean clothing; separation and transport of clean clothes from the laundry to the hospital linen room. Clothing leasing and repair may also be included in this process. Therefore, an analysis must be made of the factors involved in the laundry process, which will let the generation of the range and amount of waste be visualized. Figure 6 shows the activities that generate the greatest amounts of wastes.

Fig.6 - Factors identified in the laundry of the university hospital 4.4.2 Evaluation Step and Step DO After obtaining the information of the laundry processes, it is fundamental, according to cleaner production methodology, both to diagnose the possible causes for waste being generated and the impacts caused by the step. The analysis is presented in Table 9. Tab. 9: Factors, initiatives and suggestions to the company Reduction consumption

Factors in Electric

energy

Reduction in water consumption

Company Initiatives The environmental impacts highlighted in this item concern the consumption of natural resources, CO2 emissions and BPF oil consumption by the machines used in the washing. The company acquired a washing machine and extractor, with a capacity of 100 kg and programmable cycle. This initiative, in addition to reducing the number of washes, decreases expenditure on electric energy, because a greater amount of clothes can be washed in one step. In addition, this measure would reduce the use of BPF oil by 6,480 liters and reduce by 20,160 kg the release of of CO2 into the atmosphere. The adoption of the machine described in the previous item will also reduce water consumption by 4,800 m3/year. Another measure that can be adopted by the company is to reuse water from the flushes. To do so, chemicals must be

Suggestions to the Company Other measures that require less investment can be used to reduce electricity consumption, such as: overhauling the entire electrical installation and replacing energyintensive incandescent bulbs with fluorescent bulbs.

Environmental awareness in order to reuse towels and bedding. In addition to reducing the environmental impact would also impact on the financial performance.

Journal Pre-proof

Reduction chemicals

of

consumption

of

used to adjust the concentration necessary so as not to harm human health. The hospital also acquired four new trolleys to collect dirty clothes, with a capacity of 350 liters. Using the new trolleys, employees can collect more pieces and use the full capacity of the machines. This measure led to a reduction in water consumption of 1,640 m3/year. The company implemented a dosage system of cleaning products used in the washing, to avoid waste or the unnecessary consumption of chemicals.

Correct discard of waste generated during the activity

The organization could also replace substances that are considered toxic by other non-toxic or less toxic ones in order to avoid accidents with employees and the environment when they are disposed of into the environment. In this respect, the company did not adopt any measures. It is suggested that the company could reuse the packaging of the products or pass them on to companies that work with recycling.

5. Result and Discussion First, it is worth mentioning that the assertion by Bartolomeo et al., (2003) and Kisch (2000) is valid for the results obtained when they claim that it is possible to adopt environmental programs directed to industries and service providers, provided they consider their particularities and identify the actors who act directly or indirectly in the process. The environmental issue has been playing a prominent role in world discussions, making man think about the importance of using natural resources in a sustainable way. In the company’s context, this view would be no different, as it tends to adapt to the trends of the society in which it operates. In this context, it is essential that companies perform their management based not only on administrative principles but also on environmental principles, not only by legal obligations, but mainly to fulfill their role of environmental responsibility, which consequently makes it is differentiated from other organizations. The integration of the steps of cleaner production with those of the PDCA cycle and the process approach to quality management, according to Paladini (2009), shows the importance of continuing the monitoring and making the necessary adjustments to the activities implemented in the company's production process. In addition, adherence to environmental programs, such as cleaner production, must be based on the company's overall vision and planned before its actual implementation. The evaluation step proposed to list, firstly, the possible barriers encountered for the implementation of environmental programs. One of these barriers refers to the organizational culture, because different cultures make each company have a different view of the main purpose of implementing cleaner production. In the types of services that demand a more intense labor force, such as service shop and mass services, the main barrier listed was the lack of training and training of employees to develop the practice of cleaner production, since they are responsible for performing the service. In the service factory and in the professional service, the main barrier is to get the collaboration of the consumer or customer, because as part of the process, they will also be responsible for ensuring that the cleaner production program is successful. The fact that service companies are not aware of the waste and the impacts they generate also makes it difficult to implement environmental programs. It turns out that service companies do not produce a product itself, and that makes business owners and managers think that only industrial activities generate waste. Therefore, service companies need to be aware of the importance of implementing cleaner production in all sectors of the economy, showing its benefits to the organizations that adopt them. In the research, the cost associated with implementing cleaner production and the amount of waste generated by the companies could not be determined, but it was possible to identify what possible wastes are generated and to identify the companies' initiatives and recommendations. The companies analyzed in service factory, service shop and mass services already adopt some environmental practices. Some of them are changes, which avoid wasting water and energy, as for example: 

Installation of aerators in taps;

     

Journal Pre-proof Installation of flow reducers in showers; Exchange of old equipment for more efficient; Reuse of rinse water; Installation of magnetic switch that activates and deactivates the power system; Freezer seals and refrigerators sealing changes; Temperature limit on air conditioner.

In other cases, financial investment in machinery or facilities is required. These investments brought visible economic benefits to both the hotel and the laundry. In the mass service company - language school - many steps have already been taken towards cleaner production. To do so, several measures were adopted with the collaboration of teachers and students. The Professional Service company showed that in the case of a law office, the partners did not worry about environmental issues, because they believe that the waste, they generate does not harm the environment. The fact that they do not have a view that preserving the environment by using environmental practices brings many social and economic benefits to the company means that they do not bother to adopt environmental initiatives. Relevant points about the cleaner production methodology were discussed and some simple initiatives that the company could adopt were recommended. Members were interested and available. The main difference found with the application of the pre-evaluation and evaluation steps in the four types of service was that the companies that have low degree of interaction and customization and a high degree of intensity require the collaboration of employees and the initiative to adopt environmental practices must start with the senior managers. In the types of companies with a high degree of interaction and customization and a low degree of intensity of the workforce, consumers must collaborate with the adopted environmental practices, so that they obtain the desired success, since they will be in contact with other companies. To do this, they must disclose environmental plans and how to execute them, that is, they must keep customers informed about which programs the organization is running. Within the companies analyzed, it is noticed that, although cleaner production practices were adopted, they did not follow well-defined steps. However, if such practices are not well planned, their effects will be temporary. Therefore, it is important that there be planning that is consistent with what was planned for the primary activities of the organization. It should be emphasized that the adoption of cleaner production is not a practice that should be applied once only, but rather, continuously, and managers should always be analyzing, controlling and observing the possible changes in the process of their activities regarding the generation of waste. Souza-Zomer et al. (2018) says that “the cleaner production principle of input substitution is valuable for reducing input and use of natural resources as well as increasing the share of renewable and recyclable resources, technological optimization can contribute to reducing emissions levels”. Finally, it is important to note that, although these are practical examples, which cannot represent the sectors represented in their entirety, this study contributes to a broad view of companies in the search for preservation of the environment, social well-being and production, especially in the areas studied.

6. Conclusions The search for products and services that do not harm the environment is increasing, and this prompts companies of all sizes and sectors to be attentive to innovations and to incorporate environmental issues into their productive and administrative processes, in order to fit the requirements of the market. For this reason, to achieve sustainable production, they must implement actions that result in improving the environment. Service providers are also driven by the increasingly competitive marketplace in which customers have become more demanding. In this perspective, cleaner production aims to strengthen companies not only in the economic, but also in the environmental and technological areas, by minimizing the amount of waste generated, and, at the same time, by contributing to improving the quality of life. Due to the successful implementation of the clean production program in industrial companies, this paper sought to verify how service companies could develop their activities and minimize ther impact on the environment by using this program. After the analysis, it was observed that the greatest difficulty is not only to implement cleaner production, but also arises from the fact that service companies are not aware of the impacts they cause on the environment and believe that environmental impacts are unique to manufacturing industry. Thus, the main issue would be to understand how to produce services with the least impact, using cleaner production. The answer is to structure a conceptual model that will help business owners understand the process of adopting the program, the changes that would occur, and the benefits of implementing cleaner production in service delivery. To do so, the theoretical basis was constructed, in which the main concepts were approached.

Journal Pre-proof Another reseraches that studied the same approach like Azevedo et al. (2011); Sol-Sanchez et al. (2016), Zhang et al. (2017), Says that managers considered green practices linked with cleaner production influence positivily enterprises performane, in addition to reduce wate and improve recycling. These researches show the relevance of cleaner production in industry and services. It was identified that as this research included a case study, this gave rise to certain limitations. For example, the data collected and the results achieved cannot be generalized. The observations on implementing cleaner production practices in the companies chosen were carried out within short deadlines and it was difficult to find a theoretical reference on the subject of cleaner production in service providers. As recommendations for future work, it is suggested that a study be conducted of service companies that have adopted cleaner production practices versus those that have not done so and a comparative analysis should be made with a view to showing what benefits companies that adopt these practices can achieve. A study conducted by Zeng et al. (2010) analyzed the impact of cleaner production on the economic performance of manufacturing companies. Therefore, another recommendation would be to carry out a study on how the adoption of cleaner production in service companies affects their economic performance. Thirdly, studies are needed that investigate all steps of cleaner production, since the present study considered only two of the five steps. Although, it is believed that preventing pollution is more relevant than trying to correct it after its generation. However, if its generation has already been caused, actions should be directed towards eliminating the cause of the problem rather than controlling the effects, which will be realized, in most cases, with high financial disbursements. Developing countries such as Brazil need an environmental program such as cleaner production to help companies make choices during the process of pursuing sustainable development and consequently to develop economically. It is in this environment that this type of program is developed as a way to prevent pollution, protect the environment and grow economically. Thus, the implementation of cleaner production programs in service companies can provide financial gains through better use of raw materials, energy, water and minimization of waste generation (VERGRAGT et al., 2016). It is possible that through this practice there will be an increase in competitiveness, reducing production costs and improving the quality of life of the local and global community. Adopting cleaner production means innovating for organizations, as it is a process that requires behavioral change, including all actors involved in the process. Therefore, the commitment of all managers and employees is necessary in order to achieve an efficient performance regarding sustainability development. It is important to highlight that each company must understand its role in society and contribute, even with small actions, to the sustainable development of organizational processes.

Acknowledgments This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior – Brasil (CAPES) –Finance Code 001, the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) and the Fundação de Amparo a Ciência e Tecnologia de Pernambuco (FACEPE).

References Abdul-Rashid, S. H., Sakundarini, N., Ghazilla, R. A. R., Thurasamy, R. 2017.The impact of sustainable manufacturing practices on sustainability performance. Empirical evidence from Malaysia. International J. Oper. & Prod. Manag. 37(2), 182-204. Acosta-Mejia, C. A. 2012. Two-sided charts for monitoring nonconforming parts per million. J. Qual. Eng. 25, 34–45. Alves, J. L. S., Medeiros, D. D. 2015. Eco-efficiency in micro-enterprises and small firms: A case study in the automotive services sector. J. Clean. Prod. 108, 595-602. André, S. C. D. S., Veiga, T. B., & Takayanagui, A. M. M. 2016. Generation of Medical Waste in hospitals in the city of Ribeirão Preto (SP), Brazil. Eng. San. Amb. 21, 123-130. Azevedo, S. G., Carvalho, H., Machado, V. C. 2011. The influence of green practices on supply chain performance: A case study approach. J. Clean. Prod. 47, 850-871.

Pre-proof Aquino, J. T.; Melo, F. J. C.; Jeronimo, Journal T. B.; Medeiros, D. D. 2019. Evaluation of Quality in Public Transport Services: The Use of Quality Dimensions as an Input for Fuzzy TOPSIS. Int. J. Fuzzy Syst. 21, 176-193. Bartolomeo, M., Dal Maso, D., De Jong, P., Eder, P., Groenewegen, P., Hopkinson, P., James, P., Nijhuis, L., Rninge, M. O., Scholl, G., Slob, A., Zaring, O., 2003. Eco-efficient producer services - what are they, how do they benefit customers and the environment and how likely are they to develop and be extensively utilised? J. Clean. Prod. 11(8), 829-837. Bhupendra, V. K., Sangle, S. 2016. Strategy to derive benefits of radical cleaner production, products and technologies: a study of Indian firms. J. Clean. Prod. 126(6), 236-247. Blanco, E., Rey-Maquieira, J. Lozano, J., 2009. Economic incentives for tourism firms to undertake voluntary environmental management. Tour. Manag. 30, 112-122. Buss, M. V., Ribeiro, E. F., Schneider, I. A. H., Santos Menezes, J. C. S. 2015. Tratamento dos efluentes de uma lavanderia industrial: avaliação da capacidade de diferentes processos de tratamento. Rev. Eng. Civ. 2(1), 2-10. CAGED - Cadastro Nacional de Empregados e Desempregados.2019. Brasil fecha 2018 com saldo positivo de 529,5 mil novos empregos. Acessado em: http://trabalho.gov.br/noticias/6845-brasil-fecha-2018-com-

saldo-positivo-de-529-5-mil-novos-empregos. (Acccessed 23 july 2019). CEPIS - Sustainable Industrial Production http://www.cepis.org.br. (Accessed 2 July 2012).

Center.

2012.

CEPIS

Management

Report.

Chehebe, J. R. B. (1998). Product Lifecycle Analysis: ISO 14000 Management Tool. Rio de Janeiro: Qualitymark. Christie, I.; Rolfe, H. and Legard, R. (1995), Cleaner production in industry, PSI Publishing, London. Chris Voss, Nikos Tsikriktsis, Mark Frohlich, (2002) "Case research in operations management", Int. J. Oper. & Prod. Manag. 22(2), 195-219. Claver, H., Molina, J., Tarí, J. 2002. Firm and Industry Effects on Firm Profitability: a Spanish Empirical Analysis. Eur. Manag. J. 20, 321-328. CNTL - National Center for Clean Technologies/SENAI-RS. 2003. The Five Phases of Cleaner Production. Porto Alegre. www.pha.poli.usp.br/LeArq.aspx?id%5Farq=7985. (Accessed 3 May 2017). CNTL - National Center for Clean Technologies / SENAI-RS, 2000. Manual 12 - Economic feasibility study. Porto Alegre, 2000. http://institutossenai.org.br/manuais-e-guias/serie-manuais-de-producao-maislimpa-estudo-de-viabilidade-economica. (Accessed 3 May 2017). Deming, W.E., 2000. The New Economics for Industry, Government, and Education. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. Desmarchelier, B. Djellal, F. Gallouj, F. Environmental policies and eco-innovations by service firms: An agent-based model. 2012. Tech. Forec. Soc. Chan. Fourcroy, C., Gallouj, F., Decellas, F. Energy consumption in service industries: challenging the myth of non-materiality. 2012. Ecol. Econ. 81, 155–164. Frondel, M., Horbach, J., Rennings, K., 2007. End-of-pipe or cleaner production? An empirical comparison of environmental innovation decisions across OECD countries. Bus. Strat. Environ. 16, 571-584. Guimaraes, J. C. F., Severo, E. A., Vasconcelos, C. R. M. Sustainable Competitive Advantage: A Survey of Companies in Southern Brazil. 2017. Braz. Bus. Rev. 14, 352-367. Hamdoun, M., Jabbour, C. J. C., Othman, H. B. 2018. Knowledge transfer and organizational innovation: Impacts of quality and environmental management. J. Clean. Prod. 193, 759-770 Huang, Y.C., Wong, Y.J., Yang, M.L., 2014. Proactive environmental management and performance by

Pre-proof a controlling family. Manag. Res. Rev. 37Journal (3), 210-240. Hilson, G., Pollution prevention and cleaner production in the mining industry: an analysis of current issues. 2000. J. Clean. Prod. 8, 119-126. IBGE - Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística. 2019. PIB cresce 1,1% pelo segundo ano seguido e fecha 2018 em R$ 6,8 trilhões. https://agenciadenoticias.ibge.gov.br/agencia-noticias/2012-agenciade-noticias/noticias/23885-pib-cresce-1-1-pelo-segundo-ano-seguido-e-fecha-2018-em-r-6-8-trilhoes.

Accesssed 23 july 2019. Kisch, P., 2000. Preventative Environmental Strategies in the Service Sector. Doctoral Dissertation. International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics, Lund University, Lund – Sweden. Kjaerheim, G., 2005. Cleaner Production and sustainability. J. Clean. Prod. 13, 329-339. Mantovani, A., Tarola, O., Vergari, C., 2017. End-of-pipe or cleaner production? How to go green in presence of income inequality and pro-environmental behavior. J. Clean. Prod. 160, 71-82. Mickwitz, P., Hildén, M., Seppälä, J., Melanen, M., 2011. Sustainability through system transformation: lessons from Finnish efforts. J. Clean. Prod. 19, 1779–1787. Moura, L. de Lima, Mahler, C.F. and Caulliraux, H.M., 2018. Development and application of a protocol to assess healthcare waste management. Detritus, (4), 157. Neto, G.C.D; Correia, J.M.F; Silva, P.C.; Sanches, A.G.D; Lucato, W.C. 2019. Cleaner Production in the textile industry and its relationship to sustainable development goals. J. Clean. Prod. 228, 1514-1525. Oliveira, J. F. G., Alves, S. M., 2007. Environmental adequacy of machining processes using Cleaner Production as strategy of environmental management. Prod. J. 17(1), 129-138. Paladini, E. P, 2009. Gestão Estratégica da Qualidade: princípios, métodos e processos. Atlas, São Paulo. Paladini, E. P., Avilés, B. G., Broche, G. R., Gómez, A. C. 2015. Development and Application of a Model to Minimize Variability in a Vegetable Pulp Productive Process. J. Food Proc. Eng. 38, 517-526. PNUMA – United Nations Environment Program, 1993. Cleaner Production for Worldwide. http://sinus.org.br/2014/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/PNUMA-Guia-Online.pdf. (Accessed 3 May, 2018). Prashar, A., 2017. Adopting PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle for energy optimization in energy-intensive SMEs. J. Clean. Prod. 145, 277-293. Rehfeld, K.-M., Rennings, K., & Ziegler, A. (2007). Integrated product policy and environmental product innovations: An empirical analysis. Eco. Econ. 61(1), 91–100. Romeiro, A. R. Sustainable development: an ecological economics perspective. 2012. Estudos avançados. 26, 65-92. Schmenner, W. R., 1995. Service Operations Management, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. Sepehri, A., & Sarrafzadeh, M. H. 2018. Effect of nitrifiers community on fouling mitigation and nitrification efficiency in a membrane bioreactor. Chem. Eng. Proc.-Proc. Intens. 128, 10-18. Siva, V., Gremyr, I., Bergquist, B., Garvare, R., Zobel, T., Isaksson, R., 2016. The support of quality management to sustainable development: a literature review. J. Clean. Prod. 138, 148-157. Silva Filho, J. C. G., Calábria, F. A., Silva, G. C. S., Medeiros, D. D., 2007. Implementation of Cleaner Production as a tool of continuous improvement. Prod. J. 17(1), 109-128. Silva, A. L. O., Bialous, S. A., Albertassi, P. G. D., Arquete, D. A. R., Fernandes, A. M. M. S, Moreira, J. C. The taste of smoke: tobacco industry strategies to prevent the prohibition of additives in tobacco products in Brazil. Tob. Cont. 136, 1-10.

Journal Pre-proof Sol-Sánchez, M., Moreno-Navarro, F., García-Travé, G., Rubio-Gámez, M. C. 2016. Analysing Industrial Manufacturing in-plant and in-service performance of asphalt mixtures cleaner techunologies. 121, 5663. Song, M., Wang, R., Zeng, X., 2018. Water resources utilization efficiency and influence factors under environmental restrictions. J. Clean. Prod. 184, 611-621. Souza-Zomer, T. T., Magalhães, L., Zancul, E., Campos, L. M. S., Cahchick-Miguel, P.A. 2018. Cleaner production as an antecedent for circular economy paradigm shift as the micro-level: Evidence from a home appliance manufacturer. J. Clean. Prod. 185, 740-748. Staniškis, Jurgis Kazimieras; Katiliūtė, Eglė. (2019). Unsustainability reduction in enterprises by incremental innovations implementation and management. Journal of Cleaner Production, 236(9), 1-11. Strasser, K., 1997. Cleaner technology, pollution prevention, and environmental regulation. Ford. Env. Law J. 9, 1–106. Tseng, M-L., Tan, K. H., Geng Y., Govindan, K. 2016. Sustainable Consumption and Production in Emerging Markets. Int. J. Prod. Econ. 181B, 257-261. UNEP (United Nations Environmental Programme), 2018. www.uneptie.org. (Accessed 3 May, 2018). Urbaniec, K., Mikuleie, H., Rosen, M. A., Duié, N. 2017. A Holistic Approach to Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems. J. Clean. Prod. 155(6), 1-11. Vergragt, J. P., Dendler, L., Jong, M., Matus, K. Transitions to Sustainable Consumption and Production in Cities. Journal of Cleaner Production 134: 1-12, 2016. Volpi Y. D., Paulino S.R. 2018. The sustainability of services: Considerations on the materiality of accommodation services from the concept of life cycle thinking. J. Clean. Prod. 192, 327-334. Wang, X., Yuen, K. F., Wong, Y. D., Teo, C. C. 2018. It is green but is it fair? Investigating consumers fairness percepction of green service offerings. J. Clean. Prod. 181, 235-248. Zeng, S.X., Meng, X.H., Yin, H.T., Tam, C.M., Sun, L., 2010. Impact of cleaner production on business performance. J. Clean. Prod. 18, 975-983. Zhang, Y., Zhang, G., Qu, T., Liu, Y., Zhong, R. Y. 2017. Analytical target cascading for optimal configuration of cloud manufacturing services. J. Clean. Prod. 151, 330-343.