Analyzing the green innovation practices based on sustainability performance indicators: a Chinese manufacturing industry case

In the wake of the Paris agreement, the adoption of green innovation practices has received substantial attention throughout the world. The consumers, manufacturers, governments, and communities have started realizing the severity and intensity of environmental hazards and climate change. The manufacturing sector is one of the leading industrial waste producers and contributors to environmental pollution, posing a threat to environmental sustainability. The adoption of green innovation practices in the manufacturing sector is indispensable to ensure environmental sustainability. However, it is pivotal to identify, assess, and evaluate the green innovation aspects and sub-aspects with the perspective of sustainability performance indicators in the manufacturing industry. This study services this purpose and proposes a hybrid multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) by combining the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP) and fuzzy technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (FTOPSIS) to analyze the effects of green innovation aspects with sustainability performance of the manufacturing industry. The authors identify six green innovation aspects (criteria), twenty-four sub-aspects (sub-criteria), and three sustainability performance indicators (alternatives) for the manufacturing industry in China. The FAHP method indicates that green managerial innovation, green product innovation, and green technological innovation are the most influential aspects of implementing green innovation practices. Further, the FTOPSIS technique reveals that environmental performance is the most suitable sustainability performance indicator in adopting green innovation practices in the garment manufacturing industry of China. This research provides support to the managers and policymakers in understanding the green innovation practices in promoting sustainable development in the manufacturing industry.