Mass timber products included glued laminate timber and cross-laminated timber. These were valued-added goods made from softwood lumber that was resurfaced and glued together. Glued laminate timber, or glulam, was used in commercial construction in place of concrete or steel frames. Cross-laminated timber, or CLT, was multiple layers of planed lamellas glued together, and was used to form walls, floors, and ceilings. While regular timber products sold for about 200 euro per cubic meter, glued timber products could command prices between 500 and 1,000 euro per cubic meter depending on quality, strengths and engineering design. Hasslacher had intended to upgrade its plant located in Malaya Vishera, Russia, which was about 200 kilometres from St. Petersburg. The plan had been to double timber production to 200,000 m and to upgrade it to produce up to 50,000 m of glulam products per year for the Asian market. Christoph's options were to wait for the Russian and Ukrainian war to end and then to proceed with the upgrades, to buy a basic sawmill in Eastern Europe and upgrade it, to look for an acquisition in North America, or to sell the equipment. "We have to make a decision that will be best for the long-term even though we don't have all the information we need in front of us," remarked Christoph. "We have close relatives and long-standing employees working for us in Russia and Asian customers lined up for our glulam product. On the other hand, there is significant amount of uncertainty about the political situation. It's not an easy decision for us to make."
The case explores the role of sustainability initiatives in Avon's business strategy and how they align with its mission of empowering women. It also discusses the potential financial and operational implications of the yet-to-be implemented idea of a refill program, including changes to supply chain, production, and logistics. Additionally, the case highlights the importance of stakeholder engagement and the potential impact on Avon's Turkish associates and women entrepreneurs.
In May 2018 the Norwegian Government introduced new requirements for emissions-free entry into the Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord fjords, a UNESCO World Heritage site, making them the world's first zero-emission zones at sea. For Knut Flakk, CEO and owner of Norway's Flakk Group, it was a watershed moment. Norway and sustainability had a complicated relationship. On the one hand, the country was a pioneer in the use of renewable energy. Almost 90% of the power network ran entirely on clean hydroelectricity and Norwegian policymakers had begun to support electric vehicles as early as 1990. As a result, Norway boasted the highest per capita share of EVs in the world. On the other hand, Norway's huge oil and gas reserves had made the country extremely wealthy. And while many people were now focused on reducing their carbon footprint and being energy-efficient, Knut had a bigger picture in mind, saying "I'm more interested in being climate-positive, with renewable sources. Hydrogen is a zero-emission energy carrier that can be used for boats, trains and planes."
In May 2018 the Norwegian Government introduced new requirements for emissions-free entry into the Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord fjords, a UNESCO World Heritage site, making them the world's first zero-emission zones at sea. For Knut Flakk, CEO and owner of Norway's Flakk Group, it was a watershed moment. Norway and sustainability had a complicated relationship. On the one hand, the country was a pioneer in the use of renewable energy. Almost 90% of the power network ran entirely on clean hydroelectricity and Norwegian policymakers had begun to support electric vehicles as early as 1990. As a result, Norway boasted the highest per capita share of EVs in the world. On the other hand, Norway's huge oil and gas reserves had made the country extremely wealthy. And while many people were now focused on reducing their carbon footprint and being energy-efficient, Knut had a bigger picture in mind, saying "I'm more interested in being climate-positive, with renewable sources. Hydrogen is a zero-emission energy carrier that can be used for boats, trains and planes."
Laura Chavez was delighted beyond words when the Atelier Asymmetric Bow suite, designed by her luxury jewellery company Lark & Berry, won the 2019 Goldsmiths' Craft and Design Council Graff jewellery award. The Graff Award was the jewellery industry's equivalent of the Oscars award for Best Picture and conferred immense prestige on its maker. Unfortunately, the euphoria of the win lasted barely 24 hours for Laura. The award had made history: it was the first time that a piece made exclusively with lab-grown diamonds had scooped the top Craft and Design Council prize. But, when the awards committee realised the suite had been made with lab diamonds, they insisted that Lark & Berry disassociate themselves from the prize - even though they had designed and commissioned the piece
This is part of a case series. This case describes the strategic transformation of DESSO, a Dutch manufacturer of carpet tiles and flooring solutions. The first part of the case describes the difficult situation in which the company found itself in the early 2000s, following a series of changes in ownership. It focuses on the strategic vision developed by Stef Kranendijk, the company's new CEO, as he takes over the company in 2007. An important element of this vision is to make sustainability a key driver of DESSO's innovation strategy. The case highlights the process that led DESSO to consider a Cradle to Cradle(R) approach as well as the potential issues this new orientation raised for important stakeholders, including employees, board members, customers and suppliers. The second part of the case provides some updates as to DESSO's situation in 2010. It describes the short-term results of Kranendijk's strategic vision and how it transformed DESSO's business model. It also gives details on the implementation of the new strategy and the challenges still ahead.