| dc.description.abstract | Nowadays, we are facing the consequences of years of economic development and natural resources exploitation, without considering the deleterious effects on the environment. For this reason, there is an urgent need to consider sustainability in all aspects of our life, from production to consumption as well as how we live and make decisions. Production companies are required to shift to sustainable manufacturing, integrating environmental and social objectives with the economic ones already considered. To do so, are necessary tools that allow companies to assess their current sustainability level, set objectives, implement actions, and monitor the improvements. However, a lack of easy to apply tools, especially for small enterprises, that do not require difficult data collection or specialized figures for their applications is evident in the current scientific literature. A survey was developed to better identify the companies’ perspective in the choice and application of sustainability assessment tools, by identifying the pros and cons of the used tools and additional necessities not yet considered. The thesis contributes by providing an overview of various sustainability assessment tools available in the literature that companies can apply. The work will be continued addressing the gaps identified in the literature and the companies’ responses to the survey developing a model for sustainability assessment. After the development is planned its validation through case studies application. | |