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Sustainable Operations: Advancing Industry Practices for a Greener Future
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Sustainable Operations: Advancing Industry Practices for a Greener Future

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 December 2025 | Viewed by 4185

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Nuno Costa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Setúbal Polytechnic University—ESTSetubal, 2910-761 Setúbal, Portugal
Interests: mechanical engineering; quality and operations management; multiresponse optimization; DOE-RSM
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Pedro Alexandre Marques

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Engineering, Lusófona University, 1749-024 Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: six sigma; lean management; organizational excellence; operations management; quality engineering & management

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Operations managers are under increasing pressure to minimize the environmental impact of their activities and maximize the quality of products and services provided to the customers. The selection of suppliers is a critical aspect of operations performance as their processes and products (e.g., raw materials, components, semi-finished products) must be as environmentally friendly as possible. Thus, these considerations cannot be ignored. Furthermore, the operations management focus on sustainability must also consider employee well-being and safety, and also encourage behaviors that contribute to a culture of excellence. In this context, this SI of Sustainability considers practical case studies of operations management and hosts more theoretical articles addressing issues like the supplier selection, supply chain, production processes automation and optimization, product lifecycle, and operational excellence practices. Social, economic and environmental sustainability, among other concerns, are to considered for this Special Issue of Sustainability.

Dr. Nuno Ricardo Pais Costa
Dr. Pedro Alexandre Marques
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • resilience
  • excellence
  • automation
  • digitization
  • optimization
  • production
  • quality

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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18 pages, 1140 KiB  
Article
Adopting the Materiality Principle in Sustainable Operations Management
by Michel Leseure and David Bennett
Sustainability 2024, 16(15), 6572; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156572 - 31 Jul 2024
Viewed by 1473
Abstract
This paper argues that operations management needs a commonly understood materiality principle to truly contribute to sustainability. A framework initially developed in international finance is generalized and used to model firms as borrowing resources from a common creditor, the environment, and to establish [...] Read more.
This paper argues that operations management needs a commonly understood materiality principle to truly contribute to sustainability. A framework initially developed in international finance is generalized and used to model firms as borrowing resources from a common creditor, the environment, and to establish when a sustainable initiative is material in terms of impact. Our framework also solves the long-standing challenge of measuring impact at the level of an operations unit of analysis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Operations: Advancing Industry Practices for a Greener Future)
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21 pages, 4735 KiB  
Article
Spatial Coordination Analysis and Development Methods of the Catering Sector in Yongkang City
by Hao Yang, Hao Zeng and Xiaoyun Cai
Sustainability 2024, 16(21), 9567; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16219567 - 2 Nov 2024
Viewed by 1338
Abstract
The catering sector is recognized as a crucial driver for stimulating domestic consumption and fostering sustained economic growth. A scientifically informed spatial planning of the catering sector in county-level cities can help mitigate the overconcentration or excessive dispersal of resources, thereby enhancing the [...] Read more.
The catering sector is recognized as a crucial driver for stimulating domestic consumption and fostering sustained economic growth. A scientifically informed spatial planning of the catering sector in county-level cities can help mitigate the overconcentration or excessive dispersal of resources, thereby enhancing the efficiency of land and commercial resource utilization, reducing waste, and promoting sustainable development within a county’s economy. This study focuses on Yongkang City, located in central Zhejiang Province, as a case study. Using Python 3.1 software to extract point-of-interest (POI) data, spatial analysis techniques such as standard deviation ellipses and kernel density estimation are employed to elucidate the spatial distribution characteristics of the catering sector, comprehensive transportation, and public services in Yongkang City. Furthermore, a coupling coordination degree model is utilized to quantify the coupling coordination degrees between the catering sector and comprehensive transportation (D1), as well as between the catering sector and public services (D2), ultimately assessing the overall coupling coordination degree among the three sectors (D3). Based on the analysis results, the coupling coordination degrees are categorized into five levels, followed by a detailed evaluation of the catering sector’s development across different subdistricts. The findings indicate a certain degree of spatial imbalance in the distribution of the catering sector in Yongkang City, with the western region exhibiting a more favorable development trajectory. Notably, Dongcheng Subdistrict achieved the highest coupling coordination degree (0.993), while the northern region, hindered by underdeveloped economic conditions and limited transportation infrastructure, exhibited the lowest coordination degree (0.098). Considering the unique developmental characteristics and current conditions of each subdistrict, this study advocates for the formulation of a long-term sustainable development plan for the catering sector in Yongkang City. The findings of this research may offer valuable insights for other regions and countries, thereby promoting the sustainable advancement of the catering sector. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Operations: Advancing Industry Practices for a Greener Future)
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17 pages, 237 KiB  
Article
Research on the Impact and Mechanism of Modernized Industry-City Integration on the Size of the Local Market
by Zhe Liu, Yue Meng and Yu Sun
Sustainability 2025, 17(6), 2628; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17062628 - 17 Mar 2025
Viewed by 280
Abstract
The enhancement of local market size is an important element of sustainable economic development. The core purpose of the article is to prove that the increase of local market size has the attribute of industrial and spatial coupling, and that the deep integration [...] Read more.
The enhancement of local market size is an important element of sustainable economic development. The core purpose of the article is to prove that the increase of local market size has the attribute of industrial and spatial coupling, and that the deep integration of modernized industry-city has a profound impact on the increase of local market size. Based on panel data from 30 provinces in China from 2007 to 2021, this article employs a two-way fixed effects model to empirically test the impact of the deep integration of modernized industrial systems and new urbanization on the local market size. Furthermore, it uses industrial agglomeration, industrial structure upgrading, and urban-rural income gap as mediating variables to explore the mechanism. The results indicate that the deep integration of modernized industrial systems and new urbanization has a significant promoting effect on the local market size, with regional heterogeneity. The mediating effect test shows that the impact of the deep integration of modernized industrial systems and new urbanization on the local market size mainly operates through industrial agglomeration, industrial structure upgrading, and urban-rural integration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Operations: Advancing Industry Practices for a Greener Future)
31 pages, 1879 KiB  
Article
A Hybrid AHP–Fuzzy MOORA Decision Support Tool for Advancing Social Sustainability in the Construction Sector
by Sara Saboor, Vian Ahmed, Chiraz Anane and Zied Bahroun
Sustainability 2025, 17(11), 4879; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17114879 - 26 May 2025
Viewed by 102
Abstract
The construction industry plays a key role in economic development but continues to face challenges in promoting employee well-being, particularly mental health and social sustainability. While existing decision-making tools emphasize environmental and economic factors, the social dimension remains largely overlooked, creating a significant [...] Read more.
The construction industry plays a key role in economic development but continues to face challenges in promoting employee well-being, particularly mental health and social sustainability. While existing decision-making tools emphasize environmental and economic factors, the social dimension remains largely overlooked, creating a significant gap in both research and practice. To address this, the study develops a decision support tool (DST) to help construction organizations prioritize strategic investments that enhance employee social sustainability. The tool is based on a hybrid multi-criteria decision-making framework, combining the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) with Fuzzy MOORA to integrate both quantitative and qualitative assessments. A literature review, along with findings from a previous empirical study, identified 27 validated criteria, grouped into seven core sustainability alternatives. Additionally, five decision criteria (cost, risk, compatibility, return on investment, and difficulty) were refined through expert interviews. The DST was implemented as a modular Excel-based tool allowing users to input data, conduct pairwise comparisons, evaluate alternatives using linguistic scales, and generate a final ranking through defuzzification. A case study in a private construction company showed Training and Development and Work Environment as top priorities. An online expert focus group confirmed the DST’s clarity, usability, and strategic relevance. By addressing the often-neglected social pillar of sustainability, this tool offers a practical and transparent framework to support decision-making, ultimately enhancing employee well-being and organizational performance in the construction sector. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Operations: Advancing Industry Practices for a Greener Future)
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