The impacts of quality management on green material utilization: a small- and medium-sized Chinese enterprises’ perspective

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in China’s sustainable development. With the increasing green awareness among SMEs, they have become more environmentally conscious, and many of them are considering the utilization of green materials as an effective method to reduce environmental impact. At the same time, Chinese SMEs must also ensure product quality when deciding to utilize green materials. Based on quality management theory, we developed a model to empirically explore the impact of quality training and quality standards on the utilization of green materials by SMEs. Firstly, we conducted an exploratory case study with four Chinese SMEs to identify important and common attributes and levels associated with SMEs’ utilization of green materials. Secondly, building on these case studies, we designed a discrete choice experiment (DCE). We conducted a survey involving 313 Chinese SMEs to collect data, which we analyzed using a random parameter logit model. The results show that quality training promotes SMEs’ green material utilization, while quality standards hinder it. In addition, both quality training and quality standards enhance the positive effects of heavy metal toxicity reduction and recycling rates on utilization, while weakening the positive effect of sewage reduction on utilization.