A systems approach to chemical management by manufacturing firms in an environmentally constrained world

Abstract

The regional and global environmental perturbations resulting from the effects of human economic activity on fundamental biological, chemical, and physical systems can no longer be ignored. Indeed, a complex and expanding set of statutory and regulatory responses, directed in large part at industrial and manufacturing activity, demonstrates society's increasing understanding of this process. These developments have driven the evolution of industry environmental compliance and management systems. In particular, integrated chemical management systems (“ICMS”), which consist of two subsystems — a “data subsystem” and a “management subsystem,” have become both more complex and more integrated into traditional business operating and management systems. Three stages in ICMS evolution are defined and described: stage I, the presystemic stage; stage II, the static system stage; and stage III, the interactive system stage.