Raw materials, semi-finished goods and preliminary products, as well as energy and water, are all used to manufacture the company's various products. In doing so, emissions, effluents and waste are generated that cannot subsequently be reused in the manufacturing process. The use of natural resources comes with certain challenges, including a scarcity of the necessary natural resources or a negative impact on the environment resulting from the extracting, processing and disposing of materials. In addition, rising energy, material, or waste disposal prices can adversely affect the company's competitiveness. ZEISS therefore optimizes its business processes in line with environmental and economic aspects and organizes them so that fewer and fewer resources are required. Environmental aspects are also taken into account in product development in order to make many end-of-pipe activities unnecessary.