The Use of Artificial Intelligence for Assessing the Pro-Environmental Practices of Companies

In the present study, the authors analyze, supported by the use of artificial intelligence, the environmental solutions implemented in selected manufacturing companies using the example of the Great Poland Voivodship. The companies analyzed were selected from different industry sectors and were of different sizes, divided into two groups: small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large enterprises (LEs). The authors observed the environmental activities of these two groups of companies, paying particular attention to the differences that were evident. The study is based on a questionnaire survey. All survey questions referred to the life cycle of a product, ranging from design, production, and use to recycling processes. We discuss the environmental solutions proposed by enterprises of different sizes and at different stages of the product’s life cycle. The goal of this study is three-fold: (1) To investigate the differences in the introduction of environmental issues in SMEs and LEs in the Greater Poland Voivodship, Poland; (2) to examine whether companies in this Voivodship are equally aware of the impact of their business activities and their products on the environment; and (3) to discover novel, more rapid, and simpler methods to analyze the environmental sustainability of companies, including efficient models based on artificial intelligence. An analysis based on ANNs (artificial neural networks) was performed. The novelty of the proposed approach lies in the use of a combination of research data and methods using artificial intelligent tools to develop and scalable conclusions. This approach is unique and has no equivalent in the literature. An analysis was conducted via two perspectives: (1) The level of environmental solutions implemented at successive stages of the product’s life cycle and (2) the size of the company. The results show significant differences between the environmental practices of small, medium, and large Polish enterprises, and reveal the emerging trends in enterprise operations, which will be subject to an AI-based analysis.