Measuring green innovation capability of ceramic firms in henan province: an integrated AHP–TOPSIS case study

Introduction Green innovation is regarded as a key driver of sustainable transformation in the ceramic industry. The level of such capability in enterprises located in Henan Province remains insufficiently quantified. An evaluation framework is therefore established to measure and compare firm performance. Methods An integrated analytic hierarchy process and TOPSIS approach is applied. A context specific index system is constructed with four first level dimensions and fourteen second level indicators. Indicator weights are derived from expert judgments provided by 75 participants from industry, government, and academia. Empirical data from eight ceramic enterprises are analyzed. Results Environmental management and compliance receive the highest weight (0.29), followed by green research and development and knowledge capability (0.27), green process innovation (0.24), and green product and market performance (0.20). TOPSIS results show relative closeness scores between 0.78 and 0.29. A clear gradient is observed, where larger firms achieve higher green innovation capability. Stronger performance is identified in environmental management and knowledge related dimensions, while weaker outcomes are found in green product and market performance. Discussion The results indicate that internal improvements in processes and compliance are not fully translated into market advantages. Robustness checks confirm stability, as rank correlations exceed 0.90 under alternative weighting and normalization schemes. The framework is considered reliable for comparative assessment and policy reference.