3M公司

这是3m公司发生的一个典型故事：一位雇员提出一个想法，经过一连串意外之后，这个想法变成了产品。

It is a typical 3M story : an employee comes up with an idea that , through a series of accidents , then turns into a product .

例如，3m公司夸耀自己允许科学家投入15%的精力研究发展型项目，它还有一项著名举措将报事贴作为一项内部发明向市场推出。

3M , for example , boasts that it permits its scientists to devote 15 per cent of their efforts to pet projects and it famously launched post-it notes as an in-house invention .

在试图开发一种用于飞机燃料管的新型橡胶时，3m公司曾有人把一些乳胶洒在了鞋上，结果发现它具有防水功能。

While trying to develop a new kind of rubber for aircraft fuel lines , someone at 3M once spilt some of the latex on a shoe and discovered it was water resistant .

其它企业则致力于通过削减能源使用量来实现节约成本：例如，3m公司早在1973年就开始实施节能项目，迄今已经节约了至少10亿美元。

Other companies have focused on the cost savings to be produced from cutting their energy use : 3M , for instance , has had an energy saving programme in place since 1973 . The company has saved at least $ 1bn since as a result .