Tom Kurcharski
There’s no question energy prices are skyrocketing, with more and more power consumers eating up less and less available resources. For manufacturers trying to become more sustainable in their operations, this is leaving them desperate to take whatever affordable sources of energy are available. It’s increasingly becoming a discussion point as the US makes strategic investments into its reshoring efforts. However, the key is not to abandon sustainability goals, but rather strategically find locations where affordable and available energy meets those goals. Buffalo, for instance, in Western New York, is providing an affordable location for manufacturers looking to expand during this era of reshoring. The region’s particular advantage here is Niagara Falls, which provides affordable hydro power, courtesy of the New York Power Authority. This has given manufacturers of all sizes the ability to access low-priced energy whilst still meeting emissions goals. Finding regions like Buffalo needs to be an imperative focus for manufacturers determining where to make an investment or expand into next. Sustainability and affordability don’t always need to be at odds with each other, as long as you know where to look. President and CEO, Invest Buffalo Niagara About Tom Kurcharski Tom Kucharski has served as President and CEO of Invest Buffalo Niagara since 2000. Under his leadership, Invest Buffalo Niagara has grown from a start-up initiative to an innovative regional economic development organisation.
Jo Hannaford
Manufacturers looking to balance sustainability goals with rising energy costs can do so by focusing on both operational efficiency and smart investments. Reducing waste, improving process efficiencies, upgrading equipment, and optimising heating and cooling systems can all help to immediately lower energy consumption. Beyond these steps, manufacturers should also prioritise high-impact investments that serve both sustainability and cost goals. Microgeneration, such as solar panels, combined with battery storage can be transformative. By generating and storing their own energy, manufacturers can draw from their battery during peak-cost periods and rely on the grid at off-peak times. Being on a fixed tariff provides cost certainty over a defined period, helping to minimise the impact of market volatility. Yet, to optimise solar and battery setups, smart meters and time-of-use tariffs are essential. These allow manufacturers to strategically shift consumption and maximise savings. Product Director, POWWR About Jo Hannaford A commercially astute and people-centred product leader, Jo Hannaford has more than a decade of experience delivering growth across a variety of industries including software as a service (SaaS), energy, healthcare, and retail. Prior to POWWR, Hannaford worked for Correla, Shell Energy, npower, and John Lewis. About POWWR POWWR is an award-winning cloud-based software provider for the energy and utilities sector. Utilising its extensive industry experience and working in partnership with its customers, the company combines technology with human ingenuity to build elegant and sustainable solutions.
Dr. Dale Nesbitt
Manufacturers cannot control the market price of electricity, oil, or gas. They are largely price takers, and they are often exposed to external shocks such as tariffs and supply chain disruptions. What they can control is how much energy they need to produce each unit of output and how vulnerable they are to price volatility. That is why high energy prices are often the moment when efficiency investments make the most economic sense. Whether the choice is better equipment, process upgrades, on-site solar, or battery storage, the value of reducing purchased energy rises when power and fuel are expensive. Payback periods get shorter, resilience becomes more valuable, and the business case gets easier to defend. The key point is that sustainability is not separate from competitiveness. For manufacturers, it is often a way to protect margins. The firms that invest in lower energy intensity when prices are high are not just reducing emissions. In manufacturing, efficiency is not just a sustainability strategy – it is a hedge against volatility. CEO and Founder, ArrowHead Economics About Dr. Dale Nesbitt Dr Dale Nesbitt is a noted national and international energy, resource, microeconomics, modelling, and risk analysis expert. Nesbitt has been in the gas, oil, electricity, and energy decision analysis and modelling business since 1974 and is the CEO and Founder of ArrowHead Economics. About ArrowHead Economics ArrowHead Economics models global energy and materials supply chains to quantify prices, flows, and investment.
Lachlan Buirds
What was once framed as a sustainability investment is now a commercial necessity. With energy costs pressuring margins, manufacturers are treating efficiency less as a ‘spend to save’ initiative and more as a core requirement for protecting margins, strengthening resilience, and maintaining competitiveness. The most resilient manufacturers are those treating energy efficiency and sustainability as the same operational challenge. Building that efficiency into processes helps reduce exposure to energy price volatility and creates a more stable cost base. In label and packaging production, this is particularly visible in curing and drying technology. The move from conventional arc UV to LED UV systems, for example, can deliver power savings across the press, reducing energy bills and carbon output at the same time. That kind of tangible, measurable return is what’s driving investment decisions on the shop floor today. The opportunity goes beyond capital investment. In label and packaging environments, reducing setup waste, improving job changeover efficiency, and rethinking how products are demonstrated to customers can all lower energy and material consumption whilst improving throughput and cost control. With margins under pressure and energy costs unlikely to fall, manufacturers who build efficiency into their processes now are better placed to protect competitiveness. CEO, Edale About Edale Edale is a British manufacturer of flexographic printing and converting solutions for the carton and label markets.
Paul Bates
Manufacturers are increasingly recognising that operational efficiency and sustainability are not competing priorities but closely connected challenges. Businesses with strong visibility across their operations are finding opportunities to reduce waste, improve efficiency, and better understand their carbon footprint. Increasingly, the companies making the most progress are embedding sustainability into everyday operational decision-making, rather than treating it as a separate reporting exercise. The same operational data used to manage production, materials, machine usage, and overheads is now helping manufacturers build a clearer picture of energy consumption, emissions, and long-term operational resilience. As sustainability reporting requirements continue to evolve, manufacturers are looking for practical ways to integrate carbon accountability into existing operational and enterprise resource planning (ERP) processes rather than creating separate systems. In many cases, the manufacturers improving efficiency and reducing waste are also becoming more resilient, competitive, and cost-effective in the long term. Product Marketing Manager, Epicor About Paul Bates Paul Bates is a senior Product Marketing Manager with global responsibility for sustainability, shipping, e-commerce, and related products in Epicor. Before that, Bates worked in a variety of product and marketing management roles in the telecoms, finance, cybersecurity, and cloud industries.
Joe Garteski
Manufacturers can work towards sustainability without losing control of energy costs. Start with the basics: improve efficiency, be smart about where energy comes from, and pay attention to what the data shows. The quickest win is usually energy efficiency. That might mean upgrading old equipment, fine-tuning processes, or using real-time monitoring to better manage energy use, including shifting operations to off-hours when it makes sense. These changes can lower costs whilst helping reduce emissions. Manufacturers are also looking at renewable energy beyond its sustainability value as a way to make costs more predictable. On-site solar, off-site renewable sourcing, or long-term PPAs can protect against price swings. Whilst it may require more upfront investment, these options create stability over time and support long-term sustainability efforts. They also help to focus on areas that will make the biggest difference first – energy-heavy processes, waste, or supply chain points that have the biggest environmental and financial impact. That way, resources are going towards improvements that matter. In the end, sustainability and cost control don’t have to work against each other. When approached thoughtfully, they can support one another – helping manufacturers become more efficient, resilient, and better positioned for the future. Director of Manufacturing, Fastenal About Fastenal Fastenal helps organisations worldwide reduce cost, risk, and supply chain constraints. With extensive local presence and embedded technology, the company delivers tailored solutions, combining great people, close to your business, with world-class logistics, technology, and resources.
Oriana Raabe
Rising energy costs are a huge concern for both companies and consumers. Energy efficiency is a core sustainability principle that can be used to not only reduce energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions but also create customer value when incorporated into products. Manufacturers do not have to view sustainability and rising energy costs as competing priorities; the two are increasingly interconnected and can be addressed in tandem. Ultimately, improvements in energy efficiency not only benefit the planet, but also a company’s bottom line - through reduced costs and by adding value to products. Taking a proactive approach by embedding sustainability into product design and manufacturing processes from the beginning helps organisations mitigate volatility in energy markets and build long-term resilience. Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Innovation, Pentair About Oriana Raabe Oriana Raabe is Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Innovation at Pentair, where she leads sustainable manufacturing practices, energy and materials-efficient innovation, and the advancement of technology‑driven water solutions. Raabe’s work focuses on building sustainable, energy‑efficient foundations that improve performance.
Andrew Hammond
Manufacturers don’t have to choose between sustainability and cost control. They can put sustainability investments to work through electrification, which allows many successful organisations to pursue both goals simultaneously. When a company electrifies a process, such as heating or transportation, they enable the use of low-carbon energy. At the same time, they gain more control over long-term energy costs and open the door to true energy independence. Installing solar on-site or investing in a larger wind or solar project offsite through a power purchase agreement (PPA) locks in energy costs for 20 years or more. With renewable energy, costs are derived from building and maintaining the infrastructure. Unlike diesel and natural gas, the fuel is free and untethered from global events. An added benefit of electrification is how easy it is to quantify positive sustainability progress. The emissions math is simple, even if a portion of the electricity consumed is generated by burning fossil fuels. The good news is that as more low-carbon energy sources are added to the grid, the numbers for the business will continue to improve. Product Marketing Manager, Renewable Energy, Panduit About Andrew Hammond Andrew Hammond is Product Marketing Manager, Renewable Energy at Panduit, where he leads the go-to-market strategy for the company’s growing electrification and renewable energy initiatives. Hammond’s work focuses on helping manufacturers, utilities, and infrastructure operators modernise power systems whilst balancing reliability, safety, operational efficiency, and sustainability. About Panduit Panduit, a global leader in electrical and network infrastructure solutions, thrives on ingenuity and enterprise. The company focuses on solving…
Owen Power
Manufacturers can balance sustainability goals with rising energy costs by treating energy not simply as an overhead, but as a strategic lever for resilience and competitiveness. In today’s market, volatility is no longer a short-term disruption; it is a constant feature of the energy landscape. That means businesses need solutions that reduce exposure to price shocks whilst supporting decarbonisation. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is through on-site renewable generation, particularly solar for self-consumption. By producing electricity where it is used, manufacturers can lower reliance on the grid, reduce costs, and gain greater predictability over a significant share of their energy demand. When paired with battery storage, this can further optimise consumption by shifting energy use away from peak-price periods. Crucially, these solutions do not always require upfront capital. Through models such as PPAs, manufacturers can access clean energy infrastructure at a fixed, predictable price over the long term, helping protect margins whilst advancing sustainability targets. Ultimately, the balance comes from seeing sustainability and cost management not as competing priorities, but as increasingly aligned. The manufacturers that act now will be better placed to manage uncertainty, strengthen operational resilience, and build long-term competitive advantage. CEO, Greenvolt Next UK About Owen Power Owen Power is the CEO of Greenvolt Next UK, with over two decades of leadership experience in the renewable energy sector. He also serves as the CEO of Greenvolt Next Ireland, managing a rapidly expanding portfolio of commercial, industrial, and decentralised clean energy solutions. About Green Volt Next UK Greenvolt Next UK delivers renewable energy solutions for businesses, helping them…
Saskia van Gendt
In the food and beverage industry, volatility is amplified by energy price fluctuations, climate impacts on agriculture, and supply chain disruption. This makes supplier relationships critical, as a significant share of the sector’s environmental footprint sits in Scope 3, spanning farming practices, packaging, logistics, and waste. Many companies struggle to obtain consistent, comparable data across ingredients, packaging, and logistics partners. Without this, it is difficult to accurately understand the carbon and waste footprint of products or make informed trade-offs when sourcing decisions need to change. At Blue Yonder, we help companies and their suppliers convert real-time supply chain activity into usable sustainability metrics, enabling carbon, waste, and efficiency to be managed alongside cost and service performance in day-to-day decision-making. This is important in inventory planning and demand forecasting, where food waste and overproduction remain challenging. We also see more advanced suppliers using sustainability as a competitive differentiator, especially in logistics and cold chain operations, where efficiency improvements directly reduce both emissions and operating costs. The strongest supplier relationships are built on transparency, shared data, and integrated decision-making. When sustainability is embedded into planning and execution systems, companies can reduce waste, strengthen resilience, and maintain profitability even in volatile conditions. Chief Sustainability Officer, Blue Yonder About Saskia van Gendt Saskia van Gendt serves as Chief Sustainability Officer at Blue Yonder. In this role, van Gendt is responsible for developing and executing Blue Yonder’s sustainability strategy and driving sustainability initiatives in product roadmaps and across the company. About Blue Yonder Blue Yonder is the AI company for the supply chain. As the world leader in end-to-end digital supply chain…
