Applications of a corporate synergy system to promote cleaner production in small and medium enterprises

A Corporate Synergy System (CSS) is a management mechanism through which a group of manufacturing companies work together to achieve certain production or management goals. Established among firms in supply chains, a CSS usually consists of a central firm and its satellite manufacturing suppliers. The system is being adopted in Taiwan as the key mechanism for promoting cleaner production (CP) in small and medium enterprises. In this paper, the background and concept of CSS-CP are presented first, followed by a brief description of Taiwanʹs CSS-CP program thus far. Finally, observations and suggestions are provided to conclude the paper.