Green Technology (GreenTech), Clean Technology (CleanTech), & Sustainability Market Research

Competitive Intelligence, Business Analysis, Forecasts, Market Size, Trends, Companies, Statistics

Available Data Services: Custom Research Projects, Database Subsription or PDF eBooks

Green Technology & Sustainability OVERVIEW

The phrase “green technology” generally refers to the application of advanced systems and services to a wide variety of industry sectors in order to improve sustainability and efficiency.  These improvements could include:  reduction of waste, spoilage and shrinkage; improvement of energy efficiency and energy conservation; creation of systems that are energy self-sustaining; the reduction of carbon emissions; a reduction in toxic waste and the emission of toxic gasses such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs); creation of products that are biodegradable; enhancement of water conservation and water quality; and promotion of the reuse and recycling of materials of all types.
Determining the size of the green technology market is difficult at best.  A large number of companies, in a very wide variety of industries, deliver green tech products or services as at least a part of their total offerings, but the actual revenues are difficult to ascertain.  Many small and startup companies are involved as well.  Considered in the broadest possible terms for green tech activities, products and services of all types,
The energy sector, in all of its many facets, is unquestionably a major part of the green tech field.  Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) counts hundreds of publicly held companies worldwide in the clean energy value chain, with at least moderate corporate exposure to renewable energy or smart technologies.  For 2023, the firm estimated global investment in clean energy at $1.77 trillion, up from $1.4 trillion in 2022 and only $326 billion in 2017.
The application of green technologies, systems and practices need not be especially high tech in nature.  Everyday product packaging is a good example.  Better design and engineering are creating packaging that is lighter in weight, more recyclable and less reliant on petrochemicals.  This improved engineering is also leading both to products and their related packaging that have a smaller footprint—thus more units can be shipped in one shipping container, cutting down on the total amount of energy used in transporting a large volume of merchandise.
The global consumer class (the “middle class” segment of the population—those with at least enough income to make a modest number of discretionary purchases) is booming.  The middle class grew from about 1.1 billion in 1980 to about 4 billion today and is expected to soar to 5.5 billion as soon as 2030 to 2035.  This rapid expansion will put tremendous pressure on resources of all types, including energy, water, food, construction materials and industrial materials.  Moreover, this soaring demand will put powerful upward pressure on prices, which, in turn, will make the cost of greener conservation and efficiency technologies increasingly easy to justify.

Technologies and services in the green/sustainable sector can be grouped as follows:
Energy
=    Renewable and alternative energy production
=    Energy conservation (including more efficient buildings, processes, vehicles and other modes of transportation)
=    Energy storage
Water
=    Water conservation (residential, industrial and agricultural)
=    Water recycling
=    Production of usable water from alternative sources, such as desalination
Environmental and Pollution Devices and Services
=    Waste management, disposal and recycling
=    Toxic waste elimination, remediation
=    Emission control
=    Inspection, engineering, testing and consulting
=    Product and systems design and re-engineering
Engineering, Architecture and Design
=    Product design
=    Industrial process improvement
=    Factory automation
=    Packaging
=    Heating and air conditioning efficiencies
=    Lighting efficiencies
Other Resources
=    Recycling and conservation of metals, woods, paper, chemicals and plastics
=    Conservation of land, waterways and wildlife habitat
Source: Plunkett Research, Ltd.
Primary industry sectors targeted for the application of green technologies include:
=    Agriculture
=    Food processing and distribution
=    Oil and gas
=    Manufacturing and other industrial processes
=    Transportation, logistics and shipping
=    Automobiles and trucks
=    Construction, building operation and building maintenance
=    Power generation and distribution
=    Water systems
=    Retailing
=    Supply chains
Source: Plunkett Research, Ltd.

     Green technology affects these sectors in a wide variety of ways.  For example, the broad field of energy continues to produce transportation fuel and electricity in a largely traditional manner (from natural gas, coal and petroleum).  At the same time, however, a very significant effort within the energy sector is focused on conservation and efficiency as well as the development of renewable energy sources.  In fact, throughout the green technology field, conservation is where the low-hanging fruit lies.  The easiest green solutions will be in better insulation in buildings; lighter materials in cars, trucks and airplanes; reduction of today’s massive leaks in municipal water systems; and better storage, in the emerging world, of agricultural products in order to reduce spoilage. 
Simply making efficiency, in materials and energy usage, a consideration in engineering and design of all types, is already having a dramatic effect on sustainability.  For example, Walmart, the world’s largest retailer by far, set a goal for its suppliers to reduce packaging on average by 5% over a recent five-year period.  At first glance, this may not sound like much, but the fact is that the amount of packaged products that flow through Walmart in a given year, with hundreds of billions of dollars in annual revenues, is so massive that 5% adds up to a tremendous amount.
As part of this process, the company has created a sustainable packaging scorecard for more than 600,000 items that are sold in its stores and Sam’s Clubs.  The scorecard evaluates the environmental attributes of packaging and enables its suppliers to measure whether or not their packaging reduces energy consumption, cuts waste and fosters sustainability.  The company even has an annual “Sustainable Packaging Expo” where its suppliers can meet with leading packaging manufacturers and designers to learn about the latest technologies and innovations.
Long term, Walmart has set a goal of being packaging-neutral by 2025 in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Japan.  That is, the company plans to be recycling packaging and waste to the extent that it uses no more packaging materials than it creates.  In 2019, the company expanded that goal to 100% recyclable, reusable or industrially compostable packaging for its private brands and to use at least 17% post-consumer recycled content globally in its private brand plastic packaging.  The firm is also taking action to eliminate problematic or unnecessary plastic packaging and move from single use towards reuse models where relevant by 2025.
Internet Research Tip:
Future answers to green challenges will be found in areas as diverse as highly efficient automobiles that virtually drive themselves, lighter aircraft bodies and changes in building materials.  Convergence of multiple technologies (including nanotechnology, biotechnology, and information technologies, such as artificial intelligence and predictive analytics), along with the continuing advance of miniaturization, will guide these efforts.
The electric utilities industry has told us for decades that it is a lot easier and cheaper to conserve electricity through the use of efficient industrial systems, buildings and appliances than it is to build more capacity to generate additional power.  However, conservation is not an immediate fix; instead, it is a long-term evolution.  For example, a few decades ago, one of the major expenders of energy in a typical American home was the gas pilot light, burning 24/7 on furnaces, cooking stoves and water heaters.  Today’s appliances don’t have pilot lights; they have on-demand electric igniters, so that no gas is burned while the appliance is idle.  Likewise, today’s refrigerators use about 75% less electricity than the refrigerators of 1975, while holding 20% more capacity, because they feature better insulation and more efficient cooling systems.  Otis, a world leader in elevator design and manufacturing, recently introduced its Gen2 elevator, which uses up to 75% less electricity than previous models.  These are good examples of well-engineered, extremely cost-effective reductions in energy usage, but such changes take time.  We didn’t see old-technology refrigerators tossed out of all homes in America at once.
A continuing result of widespread interest in reducing energy usage has been impressive growth in revenues at companies that provide goods and services that boost energy conservation.  Ever since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, factories have been burning such fuels as coal and natural gas to make steam, flame their furnaces and turn their engines, but historically they let the resulting excess heat escape through stacks.  Now, with the concept of co-generation (or CHP, “combined heat and power”), this is less and less likely to be the case.  In manufacturing plants, co-generation is being widely applied as a simple, relatively low-tech method to capture and reuse factory heat that is generated by industrial processes.  That salvaged heat may be used in any of several ways to power a turbine that creates electricity.  The electricity can then be used by the factory, sold to the grid, or both.
Oil and gas fields have become much more efficient.  For decades, oil fields flared off excess gas in brilliant, multi-story towers of flame, even in Alaska, relatively close to the lower 48 states’ gas-hungry consumers.  Today, except in the remotest fields, that is less likely to happen, as investments have been made in gathering systems and pipelines to bring the gas to market.  Meanwhile, advanced technologies and practices are enabling older fields to be productive for much longer periods of time, greatly increasing the total amount of oil and gas that each well will produce over a lifetime.
Nanotechnology, an advanced materials science, is one of the most exciting technical breakthroughs in the world today.  Throughout the energy arena, the list of potential applications for nanotechnology to enhance production, energy storage and conservation of all types continues to grow.  For example, a lot of time and money is being invested in research using nanotube technology to create highly efficient electricity storage devices—essentially giant batteries.  Success could bring a significant breakthrough for the solar and wind energy industries, where storage solutions are vital to making alternative power generation more viable.  Cost-effective ways to store electricity would mean that wind power could be captured when the wind is blowing and utilized later, and solar power could likewise be banked.

WE PROFILE HUNDREDS OF TOP COMPANIES:

See All

PLUNKETT PROVIDES IN-DEPTH STATISTICS TABLES COVERING THE FOLLOWING INDUSTRY TOPICS:

Top Companies Profiled

The following is a partial listing for this industry. As a subscriber, you will have access to the leading companies and top growth companies. This includes publicly-held, private, subsidiary and joint venture companies, on a global basis as well as in the U.S.


Hundreds of Top Companies Profiled, Including:

PLUNKETT PROVIDES UNIQUE ANALYSIS OF THE FOLLOWING TRENDS THAT ARE DRIVING THIS INDUSTRY:

Key Findings:

A complete market research report, including forecasts and market estimates, technologies analysis and developments at innovative firms within the Green Technology Industry. Gain vital insights that can help shape strategy for business development, product development and investments.

Key Features:

  • Business trends analysis
  • In-depth industry overview
  • Technology trends analysis
  • Forecasts
  • Spending, investment, and consumption discussions
  • In-depth industry statistics and metrics
  • Industry employment numbers

Additional Key Features Include:

Industry Glossary

Industry Contacts list, including Professional Societies and Industry Associations

Profiles of industry-leading companies

  • U.S. and Global Firms
  • Publicly held, Private and Subsidiaries
  • Executive Contacts
  • Revenues
  • For Public Companies: Detailed Financial Summaries
  • Statistical Tables

Key Questions Answered Include:

  • How is the industry evolving?
  • How is the industry being shaped by new technologies?
  • How is demand growing in emerging markets and mature economies?
  • What is the size of the market now and in the future?
  • What are the financial results of the leading companies?
  • What are the names and titles of top executives?
  • What are the top companies and what are their revenues?

This feature-rich report covers competitive intelligence, market research and business analysis—everything you need to know about the Green Technology Industry.

Plunkett Research Provides Unique Analysis of the Following Major Trends and Technologies Affecting the Green Technology Industry

  1. Introduction to the Green Technology and Sustainability Industry
  2. Demand for Green Technologies, Sustainability and Conservation Practices Evolves, Fueling Investment and New Product Development
  3. Water Conservation Technologies to Enjoy Tremendous Growth/China Targets Desalination
  4. Garbage Recycling Flourishes/Plasma Arc Gasification Technology Looks Promising
  5. Food Recycling Efforts Underway
  6. Biomass, Waste-to-Energy, Waste Methane and Biofuels from Algae
  7. Smart Cities Utilize Sensors and Artificial Intelligence (AI)/Create Privacy and Security Issues
  8. Packaging Technology Improves/Walmart, Amazon and Coca-Cola Boost Packaging Sustainability
  9. Lower Energy Intensity Is a Prime Focus in China/U.S. Achieves Dramatic Energy Intensity Reductions
  10. Interest in Geoengineering Grows
  11. Environmentalists Campaign for a Greener Chemical Industry
  12. Homes and Commercial Buildings Seek Green Certification
  13. The Internet of Things (IoT) and M2M to Boom, Enhanced by Artificial Intelligence (AI)/Open New Avenues for Hacking
  14. Major Technology Research in Batteries/Massive Investments in Battery Factories and Power Storage
  15. Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Power Research Continues/Fuel Cell Cars Enter Market
  16. Fuel Efficiency Continues to Improve
  17. Electric Cars (EVs) and Plug-in Hybrids (PHEVs) See Massive New Investments by Auto Makers
  18. Smart Electric Grid Technologies Are Adopted/Massive Utilities Investment Needed
  19. Storage Battery Technologies and Installations Boom Worldwide
  20. Superconductivity Provides Advanced Electricity Distribution Technology
  21. Electric Utilities Adopt Coal Emissions Scrubbers While the Industry Tests Carbon Capture and Clean Coal Technologies
  22. Bio-plastics Become a Reality/Plastic Packaging Made from Corn and Soy
  23. New Display Technologies with PLEDs
  24. Apparel Manufacturing Goes Green
  25. Precision Agriculture Technologies (AgTech), Farm Robotics, GPS and Irrigation Market Grows Worldwide/Hi Tech Greenhouses
  26. Natural/Organic Consumer Products Attract Greater Market Share
  27. Breakthroughs in Plastic Recycling
  28. Green Consumers Push Demand for Recycled and Re-Sale Clothing

Plunkett Research Provides In-Depth Green Technology Industry Statistical Tables & Charts

  1. GreenTech Industry Statistics and Market Size Overview
  2. Global Alternative Energy Industry Statistics and Market Size Overview
  3. Energy Production by Renewable Energy, U.S.: Selected Years, 1955-2022
  4. Total Renewable Electricity Net Generation by Source & State, U.S.: 2022
  5. Estimated Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) for New Electricity Generation by Energy Source
  6. U.S. Renewable Energy Consumption by Energy Source, 2016 vs. 2022
  7. Fuel Ethanol Production & Consumption, U.S.: 1990- August 2023
  8. Biodiesel Production & Consumption, U.S.: 2002- August 2023
  9. Federal R&D Funding by Character of Work and Facilities and Equipment, U.S.: Fiscal Years 2022-2024
  10. Federal R&D Budget & Distribution by Agency, U.S.: Fiscal Years 2022-2024
  11. U.S. Department of Energy Funding for Science & Energy Programs: 2022-2024
  12. Federal R&D & R&D Plant Funding for Energy, U.S.: Fiscal Years 2022-2024
  13. Federal R&D & R&D Plant Funding for Basic Research, U.S.: Fiscal Years 2022-2024
  14. Federal R&D & R&D Plant Funding for Transportation, U.S.: Fiscal Years 2021-2023
  15. Federal R&D & R&D Plant Funding for Agriculture, U.S.: Fiscal Years 2021-2023
  16. Federal Funding for Research, by Agency & Field of Science & Engineering, U.S.: Fiscal Year 2022
  17. Top 10 Countries by Installed Wind Generating Capacity: 2022
  18. Top 15 U.S. States by Installed Wind Generating Capacity: 1st Quarter 2023

Organizations that have used our research and products

hilton worldwide
Logo for HKTDC
Logo for Japan External Trade Organization
Logo for Johnson & Johnson
Logo for Mayer Brown
Logo for Microsoft
Logo for Purdue University
Logo for Stanford University
Logo for Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Logo for FedEx

CUSTOM MARKET RESEARCH

We have deep experience in conducting market research projects and surveys (both B2B and B2C) for the world’s leading organizations. Competitive intel, market sizing, product opportunities validation, technologies analysis, economic and market forecasts. Both domestic and global markets—any industry, any geography.
More details

INDUSTRIES WE COVER

We cover all leading industry sectors, from retailing, healthcare and banking, to logistics, robotics/automation, digital technologies, wireless, travel and aerospace. Our proprietary data and reports keep you on the cutting edge of your industry of specific interest. Great for strategic, marketing, investment and consulting professionals, as well as business librarians.
More details

INDUSTRY ANALYTICS REPORTS

Industry-specific operating benchmarks, industry financial statement averages, revenue forecasts, market size, statistics, company ranks and comparisons. Choose from 550+ Industries. Updated regularly. Instant download. Our unique reports save you countless hours of research time and effort. Used by the world’s top consulting, strategy and investment pros.
More details

CORPORATE BENCHMARKS REPORTS

Company-specific operating benchmarks (current and historical), benchmarked against industry-peers’ averages. Revenue forecasts, market size, statistics, company ranks and comparisons. Choose from 4000+ companies. Updated regularly. Instant download. Our unique reports save you countless hours of research time and effort. Used by the world’s top consulting, strategy and investment pros.
More details
 

Subscribe to Database:

All industries
Add To Cart

Multi-User Online, Enterprise-Wide (Library or Corporate)

Request a Quote and Free Trial

eBook or Book:

This industry onlyPublication date: Mar 2024
ISBN-13: 978-1-64788-521-2
ISBN-13: 978-1-64788-029-3
Custom Research Projects

What data challenge can we help you solve today?