One hundred and thirty years ago, when Thomas Alva Edison founded the Edison General Electric Company with his unique invention – the incandescent bulb – little did he know that the seed he sowed would grow into such a mammoth tree.
The General Electric company (GE) has grown, merged, diversified and integrated many other functions to have independent industrial, healthcare, infrastructure, commercial finance, media and entertainment and banking divisions.
The latest initiative that came into effect in 2005 is one of the most contemporary and relevant ones – Ecomagination. The term encapsulates the idea that smart technology combined with ecology makes good economic sense.
The colour of dollars is green and so is the colour of ecology. How does one make profits that do not trample over the eco dreams of our planet? Lorraine Bolsinger, vice-president, Ecomagination, who was in Dubai recently to look at collaboration in eco-friendly infrastructure development in this region, can tell you how! First she elaborates on the concept of this unique initiative that was founded in 2005.
"Ecomagination is a business strategy for the present world to be able to meet industrial and commercial production targets with more energy-efficient and less emissive products. It combines the theme of economics and ecology with good imagination. It is a commitment and a vision to harness GE's products and services to address the world's pressing environmental issues.
Ecomagination's slogan 'Green is green' effectively sums up the beauty of the concept where the colour green symbolises the environment as well as profits! The success of this initiative can be measured by the fact that in the very second year of its formation, it has surged to produce US$20 billion in revenue for the company," she says.
According to Lorraine, GE does not believe in preaching about eco-conservation but in leading by example. "We are committed to finding sustainable, yet profitable alternatives for all sorts of production that will allow cities, organisations and countries to make their profits while doing it in tandem with the health of the environment we live in today. Our technology has to make economic sense for the others to want to use it in a big way," says Lorraine.
In the 2006-2007 annual report of Ecomagination, GE reaffirms its commitment by:
- Doubling investment in R&D from US$ 700 million to US$1.5 billion for cleaner technologies. n Increasing revenues of Ecomagination products by increasing the pipeline of its products from 30 to 45 that resulted in increased revenues of $12 billion and commitments of $50 billion.
- Reducing Green House Gases (GHG). GE has reduced GHG in its operations by nearly 4 per cent from 2004 baseline.
- GE also remains committed to informing the people of this report, about the work done and the goals it has set through the Ecomagination website www.ecomagination.com.
Lorraine feels that the need to be protective of the environment we live in cannot come through regulatory regimes or only through countries observing the Kyoto Protocol.
It has to come from within every community and that will happen only when people will feel it makes good economic sense to go green!
She cautions: "We have to take a look at what the trade-off is. Today we need better economics, better operating performance, better sense, fuel efficiency and so on to run the show. The cost of energy is getting out of hand. At Ecomagination, we try for energy efficiency in every kind of project.
"We saw this trend forming years ago – this trend of scarcity of revenue, which is going to impact GDPs across the world. Today a billion people live in scarcity, but by 2025, at least three billion will face that threat.
"Regulation will have to be more stringent worldwide and we need more initiatives. We couldn't sit back and be a passive onlooker of the continuous damage to the environment. We grabbed that front seat to help shape policy and technology," she says.
It has been a journey of trust and faith that has given the company such a status. Every organisation that has believed in Ecomagination's philosophy has chosen to invest in its energy saving products and benefited.
Those investments have also spelled good profits on both sides. Lorraine recalls how it all started. "We launched Ecomagination in 2005 by starting with energy efficient light bulbs such as Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs). Both of these use 80 per cent and 75 per cent less energy than the conventional high-energy incandescent light bulbs.
Our 130-year-old technology of light bulbs was getting old. We invested $1.5 billion in clean technologies. In fact Wal-Mart became our first customer to buy CFLs worth $100 million! From every dollar that you get back, you get thousands in market shares. Our technology has to make economic sense for the others to want to use it in a big way."
Translating sustainability into a working model of products has been a challenge that Ecomagination took very seriously. Through sustained Research and Development, these ideas have taken off the drawing board into actual products that have made energy saving viable for companies in the long run.
In 2007, GE introduced its new LED solutions for refrigerated displays in supermarkets. Eight of the top US supermarket chains are testing these out. For instance, Wal-Mart alone will save up to $2.6 million in energy costs annually by using this new technology. When used on a large scale this will reduce energy costs by 65 per cent!
GE as an organisation believes in every one of its projects and products and first implements them in house, according to Bolsinger. Be it harnessing wind energy, developing the hybrid car that runs on fuel and electricity or reducing carbon emission by using cleaner technologies in energy generating gas turbines, the company has always led by example.
"Last year we saved $120 million in energy cost. We figured out how to lower the carbon footprint and use less water. That is what our slogan Green is Green means.
It is about saying yes to some things that can save companies, households, cities, and government's money by deploying the best technologies. That gives us a lot of credibility because we lead by example," she points out.
To those who argue that most energy saving initiatives are frightfully expensive, Lorraine says one has to look at the long-term perspective and the large picture.
"Economics and ecology is a combination. Green does not equal dumb. Our company worked towards reducing our carbon footprint by one per cent in 2006. But we have reduced it by three per cent. Going green will always save you money.
Organisations do not have to look at the immediate expense, but think that they are buying an asset that can last them for 30 years." The more informed customers make life cycle analyses.
The use of the product or technology is eventually going to bring down the cost and reduce emission and make smart sense in the long term. For instance, making financial investments in power plants.
GE energy recently introduced a new online impulse cleaning system in power generation plants called Power wave+. Powerwave+ ultimately enhances boiler operation at power plants that burn coal or natural gas to generate electricity.
It harnesses strong shockwaves created through pulsed detonation process, which non-destructively removes brittle and built-up deposits.
Installing Powerwave+ in every coal boiler could save millions of tonnes of coal per year, the equivalent of powering well over a million homes. In addition to reducing the carbon footprint, it can actually reduce the amount of water used in these power plants to the tune of thousands of litres! "It might take ten years today as there is no cost on CO2.
Think about the power plant even if you do not want to take into account the CO2 costs," she counsels.
"Some technologies are expensive, but manufacturing large scale makes the prices come down. Earlier, CFLs cost $8-9 and today they cost just $2! For the common man, it is a matter of education.
"Green is better operating economics. For instance, solar panels are expensive and installations will cost you, but over years the cost would be justified," she explains.
Lorraine feels the time is right for GE to collaborate in the infrastructure development taking place here to make smart selections in technologies that are not only cleaner but will yield optimum results in the years to come.
"In the kind of development taking place here, every single product of Ecomagination applies. For construction of homes, highest efficiency appliances, energy saving lights, low emission production of goods, energy efficient desalination plants, infrastructure to supply water to the community, re-use of water, recycling of industrial waste and energy.
I think there is a tremendous potential now to make a right choice here and we are working today with architects and town planners to make that possible."
Lorraine says that apart from implementation of the actual technology, the change has to be effected in the minds of the people and of the policy makers in specific. "More people need to realise that big business impacts things. Yes, recycling is important but it's only our way of being 'less bad'. We need to learn to actually be good.
"People here have to take on a very informed, very switched on, progressive and thinking role. "A good policy covered with incentives is absolutely the key. We've got to make these products available and cost effective and have a more transparent relationship with the decision makers.
"In Dubai and the UAE we love the incredible growth and want to be a part of it. We believe that we can be partners with companies and do business in a sustainable way as we can come up with smart technologies that fit this market. We look towards having our presence and staying power here for a very long time."
–Suchitra Bajpai Chaudhary is senior
features writer, Friday
