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Green Energy Hardware Manufacturing

"It's not easy being green," said Kermit the Frog. When this famous quote was invented back in the 1980's, it was not easy being green. In fact, being "green" was not something anyone was concerned with. In recent years, preserving the environment, decreasing carbon footprints, and reducing toxins into our air and water supplies has been the trend, resulting in a new niche, "Green collar jobs." The trend has moved into manufacturing, from high tech hardware to the hardware you find automobiles, as many try to do their part.

Many companies have moved into using hydro power as an energy source, using river, tidal and ocean currents to power their factories, as well as wind power and solar power. All of these involve expertise in the field. The goal of green manufacturing is to reduce wastes (solid waste,) recycling, and OASHA has also gotten involved implementing the ISO 14001. All of these industries created jobs and new niches for engineers, sales forces, plant production lines, and analysts.

Some companies in manufacturing of hardware have specific positions created to decrease the waste that goes to the landfill. One example of the more outside-the-box jobs in green hardware manufacturing that was found is a "worm farm" implemented by a auto manufacturing plant. The plant created jobs for people to tend to the worms. Waste such as food waste, coffee grounds and filers, and paper manufactured waste is dumped on the farm for the worms to consume. Sounds like a job for Mike Rowe to visit on the popular "Dirty Jobs" on Discovery!

The result of the worm farm was compost that would then be used on green space on the property. Companies are thinking outside the box like this to find ways to decrease the amount of waste they take to the landfills, with the goal of this particular company being to reuse 100% of all hardware manufacturing waste at the plant.

Positions can be filled for the recycling of raw materials at these companies, as well as think tanks, teams of people to come up with ideas to implement to make the manufacturing more efficient and clean. In hardware manufacturing, many positions are created in the companies for analysis of products and the process, from CPA's, engineers, and fact finders to worm farmers. Just about every aspect of the business, from the very beginning to the end, and everything in between, can create jobs for the general public.

Engineers are involved in the process of cost effectiveness, function, and reuse-ability. Some companies create jobs by manufacturing green hardware in regions and bringing jobs to those regions, as well as improving those regions with their green policies. According to a 2009 "Green Manufacturing Action Plan," 80% of the "green collar" jobs are in manufacturing in the United States, both high tech and in industries such as automobile and other metal manufacturing. Because of this, we can be sure to see a surge of job openings in coming years in green energy hardware manufacturing, both in the high technological and metal working manufacturing.