AUBURN HILLS, MI—FCA US LLC recently installed intelligent lighting systems at several of its plants in the Detroit area. The smart LEDs are expected to help drive down energy costs by at least 50 percent and improve employee productivity.

TOYOTA CITY, Japan--Toyota Motor Corp.'s 50-year-old Tsutsumi assembly plant here has been the home of many innovations over the years.

Daimler AG is developing a sustainable supply chain for its worldwide assembly plants. In particular, the automaker is strengthening enforcement activities that relate to human rights, including the responsible procurement of raw materials.

GAITHERSBURG, MD—The National Institute of Standards and Technology has created a new international standard that maps environmental aspects of manufacturing processes.

BENTON HARBOR, MI—Whirlpool Corp. plans to invest $14 million to build wind turbines at its assembly plants in Marion and Ottawa, OH.

BELVIDERE, IL—An online card game is motivating FCA assemblers here to reduce energy consumption.

DEARBORN, MI—Ford Motor Co. plans to install 25,000 energy-efficient LED light fixtures at its plants.

Manufacturers are pursuing a wide variety of “green” initiatives, such as energy-efficient lighting, landfill gas, recycling, solar panels and wind turbines. In fact, more than one-half of our 2014 State of the Profession respondents claim their plant has implemented green-related programs during the past 12 months. That’s a 3 percentage point increase over 2013 and 8 percentage points higher than 2012.

The General Motors’ Orion Assembly Plant sits in the shadow of a large landfill. But, the 4-million-square foot factory, which is home to the Chevrolet Sonic and the Buick Verano, uses that to its advantage. The plant derives a significant portion of its power from landfill gas.