[ECO]8 Ways Manufacturers Are Leaning Toward Greener Practices in 2025

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8 Ways Manufacturers Are Leaning Toward Greener Practices in 2025

Many facilities are eyeing solar panels or smart technologies to help reduce waste. These are some of the most common sustainability trends manufacturers have embraced in the last few years. In 2025, businesses are becoming more innovative. 

What are some of the most oddly specific eco-friendly practices industrial companies are trying this year?

1. 3D Printing With Recycled Filaments

Additive manufacturing has become a growing trend in which makers are reducing the need for virgin materials by using reclaimed or repurposed options. Many 3D printers do this with filaments or use 100% recycled plastics. Organizations lower their carbon footprints and waste generation by sourcing from existing stores instead of relying on new stocks.

A recent study evaluated the effectiveness of some of these materials. Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is a type of rigid acrylic. Manufacturers often have PMMA trimmings lying around, which is useful as supplementary feedstock. 

Researchers turned these scraps into pellets, which improved

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after several thermomechanical processes. It shows how repurposing materials for 3D printing does not necessarily mean they’ll weaken when experts extend their life cycle.

2. Water-Soluble Packaging for Products

Biodegradable, water-soluble packaging is rising, with an

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in 2023. It pairs well with other shipping trends, including minimalist boxes with little filler and right-sizing to try and make the container closer to the product’s dimensions. Adding water solubility to this environmental adaptation could make manufacturers even more sustainable.

While cardboard is recyclable, biodegradable boxes are a better alternative because they require no industrial processing. Recycling infrastructure already struggles to manage demand, so enacting solutions to alleviate pressure is helpful for society’s overall sustainability progress. Biodegradable boxes also take trash from landfills, such as packing peanuts or shrinkwrap. The fewer lightweight plastics in open-air landfills, the healthier wildlife will be, too.

3. Vapor Degreasing

Mechanical parts get coated in tons of highly polluting substances, like lubricants, adhesives and other greases. Vapor degreasing is an efficient and more sustainable way to clean industrial parts. Facilities use machines

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, which surrounds the dirty appliance. Eventually, the processes dissolve contaminants, and the machine captures the by-product.

This is eco-friendly because it doesn’t contaminate any other parts of the business. Vapor degreasing is cleaning without water, meaning power-washing and conventional methods don’t cause pollution. It also eliminates wastewater treatment from the equation, saving additional resources. Much like how recyclers are enduring demand burdens, so are treatment plants in an attempt to eliminate water scarcity.

4. Green Chemistry Principles

In every clean room and research department, workers

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products. Manufacturers need these dedicated individuals, yet the field is rife with trial and error, which creates a lot of waste and involves many hazardous substances. Some are biohazards, while others are invisible and float into the air. The side effects are severe for the planet and human health, with waste reserves laden with toxic substances.

Green chemistry principles include reducing excessive experimentation and prioritizing cleaner materials. If more manufacturers adopt these practices, they‘ll set a precedent for lowering molecular pollutants, creating safer chemical-based products and designing with the environment in mind.

Additionally, chemists can incorporate technological solutions to engage in smarter experimentation. They can run simulations to see how well an idea would work, saving them from wasting time and resources. If these machines include integrations like machine learning, the software may be intelligent enough to recommend experiment optimizations, reducing the likelihood of error.

5. Employee Incentives for Eco-Friendly Commutes

Stakeholders can educate their staff members to be more eco-conscious, but they may not be driven to apply these ideas. Advertising incentives are the best way to create motivation, leading to habits. They may include company-paid meals, small bonuses, acknowledgments and donations to nonprofits made in their honor.

This is why some facilities reward employees for carpooling and using commuting methods less reliant on fossil fuels, like e-bikes or public transportation. Having several workers from the same neighborhood travel together in one gas-powered car is still better than taking multiple vehicles to the site. The rewards can be part of a longer list of green strategies

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the changing climate.

6. Plant-Based Machinery Lubricants

Manufacturing lubricants commonly include oils and synthetics made from petroleum. These are high risk because of the environmental hazards associated with spills and negligent waste practices. However, makers can create plant-based lubricants from plant seeds, fatty acids, vegetable oils and additives, which makes the impact of human error far less aggressive to the environment’s health. While they should still empower teams to minimize incidents and spills, bio-based lubricants’ side effects are less severe.

7. Reclaimed Water for Cooling

Water conservation and recycling are the first steps in a more profound resource reduction plan. The manufacturer must ask how many ways used water can experience a new life, potentially in a new part of operations. Most default to sourcing fresh, potable water for everything, but they’re developing a greater awareness of scarcity and the lengths treatment plants go to continue providing clean water to companies and citizens.

This is why imaginative solutions like using reclaimed water for cooling will majorly impact energy and local ecosystems. These solutions are applicable to countless manufacturers. For example, they could help those assembling cooling systems manage data center temperatures. They might also enhance internal temperature regulation in hard-to-control places like warehouses.

8. Greener Electrochemical Machining

Electrochemical machining processes use electric currents to disconnect metals from each other. Compared to alternative separation techniques, they put less stress on the item, which equals less wear and tear. Conventional cutting methods create significant waste, but electrochemical machining

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, too.

While it uses less electricity, it could still rely on fossil fuels. Manufacturers are integrating renewable energy to power these electrical processes to mitigate their impact. Additionally, raw materials acquisition can include more eco-friendly options, making waste more likely to be repurposed.

Discovering Niche Eco-Friendly Opportunities

It’s easy for a facility to default to adopting environmental goals like reducing single-use plastics or doing a trash audit. While these remain vital to starting a manufacturer’s eco-friendly journey, they must inspire more specific action based on the industry’s niche. Doing so can make the changes much more impactful.

The coming year is bringing unprecedented optimism for industrial workers because recent advancements are more creative than ever. It is crucial to discuss the impact of renewable energy and water conservation, but there are thousands more chances to decarbonize if stakeholders look a little deeper.

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