In 1994, Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface Inc., was asked what he was doing to protect the environment. He didn’t have an answer. He was then handed a book written by Paul Hawken, called “The Ecology of Commerce.” This seemingly simple event brought about an epiphany for Anderson, setting him on a mission to create an environmentally sustainable organization by 2020—an effort he’s calling Mission Zero.

From that pivotal moment in 1994, Interface has grown to become a global leader in the manufacture of environmentally-responsible floor coverings and textiles. And, Anderson has maintained his Mission Zero promise to eliminate any negative impact his companies may have on the environment by 2020.

“Some people thought he had gone around the bend,” says Timothy Riordan, vice president of supply chain at Interface. “But he recognized at that time we were taking a lot of non-renewable resources out of the earth and our processes were detrimental to the environment. Since then we’ve reduced the absolute GHG [greenhouse gas] emissions in our manufacturing processes by 60 percent.”

The company has also taken out $366 million in costs associated with physical and financial waste. Now the motivation is firmly focused on its transportation and logistics operations—and Riordan is leading the charge. His effort to reduce GHG emissions related to product transport by 50 percent over the next 13 years has earned Riordan and Interface the 2007 Best Practices Honorable Mention.

When Interface embarked on its green initiative in 2004, oil was $25 a barrel. “When oil is below $50 a barrel the sustainable transportation issue doesn’t compute for Wall Street,” says Riordan. “Today it does.”

Simply put, sustainable transportation for Interface means measurable transportation. And to develop the proper measuring tool, the company engaged Meridian IQ, its logistics services partner, to develop a robust model that would build on the EPA Shipper FLEET Performance Model. To build measurable data in the FLEET model, participants agree to report their progress toward reducing GHG emissions to the EPA on an annual basis. In return, the EPA commits to promoting the company’s participation and to providing technical assistance in quantifying the emissions from their shipping operations.

Using the structure of the FLEET model, Interface now quantifies its total GHG footprint from the transportation of product through its end-to-end supply chain. Modeling capabilities factor jet fuel used for cargo and passenger aircraft, heavy-duty diesel engines, diesel locomotives, diesel containership engines, facility equipment (e.g., forklifts), and idling vehicles in a facility lot. Emissions are calculated by using mode-specific assumptions and parameters.

“We’ve modeled our whole transportation network in North America so far, but we’re going to roll it out globally,” Riordan says. “We included transportation of all product on our end-to-end supply chain—everything from our suppliers’ in-bound raw material shipments, our inter-plant shipments, and outbound customer shipments. Transportation is pretty easy. If you’re taking carbon out you’re taking cost out. It’s probably one of the easier areas to develop a business case.”

Riordan says by using more rail and intermodal shipments over road and air, he intends to cut carbon emissions by half. “It takes about four times less energy to move something on rail versus road, and eight times less going air versus road. It also costs less,” says Riordan. If Interface could move 25 percent of its product by rail it could easily achieve the 50 percent reduction that would enable it to meet its Mission Zero goals.

Selecting modes based on price alone is no longer acceptable. Interface’s customer service associates are focused on the impact that their decisions have on all stakeholder groups; and in turn, Interface is spreading the green gospel to suppliers.

“They understand the direction we’re going and more importantly they know that while we may be the first customer asking for this sort of shift in mindset, there will eventually be five others behind us,” Riordan says.