What will the economic slowdown mean to the green supply chain?

Green was the theme at the North American material handling show in Cleveland last spring. And if your inbox looks anything like mine, you know that for much of this year, green was the theme of almost every press release from every company on the planet.

With diesel topping out around $5 a gallon and analysts speculating that oil might hit $200 a barrel before year’s end, that focus made a lot of sense. We heard rumors about companies fundamentally redesigning their supply chains and sourcing strategies to cut down on transportation costs; retraining their truck drivers to save on fuel; rethinking their packaging fulfillment strategies. I’m not sure if they were all true, or urban legends. But just last week I came across a story about The Gap turning over a few acres of land at its West Coast distribution campus for the installation of a system to generate solar power.

My question is this: Will industry still be excited about green now that oil has dipped below $70 a barrel and the economy is in a tailspin? Or will the enthusiasm for green, like the enthusiasm for item-level RFID wane?

Just the other day, the Wall Street Journal reported that “the global credit crunch and the easing of energy costs have brought [the prospects of renewable energy companies] back to earth with a thud.” According to the Journal, some renewable energy firms are shelving projects and expansion plans because their stock prices have cratered and lenders are unwilling to give them credit.

That got me thinking: Will the same economic forces put the brakes on plans to make factories and distribution centers more energy efficient? Software and equipment vendors are already telling me that green is coming up less often in conversations with customers than it did just a few months ago.

Let me know how important going green is to your company by posting a response below, or writing me at Robert.Trebilcock@verizon.net.