*Attendees will be eligible for technical assistance funding to implement change within their own companies to become more competitive in the green building market.

BitterRoot Economic Development District, Inc. (BREDD) is partnering with Kath Williams + Associates to research, develop and present a one-time, one-day workshop on Sustainable Manufacturing to manufacturers in the region, Phase 1 of a two-phase Sustainable Manufacturing Project for the region. Phase 2 will provide assistance to participating manufacturers to help implement changes to become more competitive in green markets.

Our workshop goal is to help manufacturers gain skills and knowledge about the green building products manufacturing industry that will stimulate thinking about new, appropriate, sustainable tactics and strategies they can employ in their individual market. We hope upon completion of our workshop participants will be empowered to better understand how their products and business can best fit into Montana and regional green manufacturing markets

Manufacturing companies, especially in the wood products industry, are among the hardest hit by changes in the economy and trade impacts. Finding new markets helps manufacturers compete globally and use their greatest strength to compete with imported products. This Sustainable Manufacturing Project will help diversify the regional economy by teaching companies how they can take advantage of this growth and market green products. It will also coach companies on how to produce more green products and appeal to the “Green” trend in our community. 

 This sustainable manufacturing workshop was prepared by Kath Williams for BitterRoot Economic Development District, Inc. under an Award from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, Award Number 05-46-05030.  The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Economic Development Administration.

Sustainable Manufacturing Workshop

During the workshop, Kath Williams and other presenters will cover the following topics: 

 Morning Session

-Setting Practical Design, Construction, Operations & Maintenance Goals

-Addressing National, State, Regional Priorities

-Convergence of Product/Process/Profit

-Risk Management: Opportunities & Incentives

-Moving from Awareness to Standard Operating Procedures: Greening the Supply Chain

 Presenter: Chris Allen, Biomimicry Guild

LUNCH:  Measuring Success - Accounting for What Matters -  Presenter:  Gary Gannon

Does your organization account for what is material to your ongoing success? Most executives think economic inputs are adequate for decision-making, but the truth is that many opportunities and risks are overlooked due to dependence on these measurements. What it comes down to is the fact that we don't account for what we don't measure. This talk is focused on exploring the social, environmental, and economic variables we need to measure - variables that provide insight into what is material to business success and the true costs and impacts of our decisions. We will also discuss methods for measuring and accounting for these variables.

 Afternoon Session

- Site Selection for Operational / Maintenance Planning

- Water Conservation

- Energy Conservation

- Materials Conservation

- Indoor Environmental Quality and Occupational Health

- Markets, Marketing and Sales

Next Steps

Following this workshop, participating manufacturers will have an opportunity to receive assistance from a variety of specialized consultants, contracted through BREDD, to help implement necessary changes to become more competitive in green markets.