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Using the Stackelberg game theory, this paper evaluates the effectiveness of four subsidy schemes on the product eco-design and recycling rate in a manufacturing–recycling system that comprises a government, a manufacturer and a recycler. The principal results are: 1) For the cost-based subsidies, a fixed-cost subsidy to recyclers always yields higher recycling rate and social welfare. For the performance-based subsidies, the effects are closely related to market demand and the fixed cost coefficients of eco-design and recycling. Governments should select subsidy schemes according to the specific goals and market conditions. 2) Four subsidy schemes are the effective forces to promote product eco-design and recycling. Higher subsidy intensity brings better supply chain profits and better environment performance, but it does not always bring better social welfare. 3) Eco-design can increase waste recycling rates effectively, and recycling rates are more sensitive to eco-design when the government subsidizes the fixed costs of recyclers. [Display omitted] • Two cost-based subsidies and two performance-based subsidies are considered. • Government subsidy is useful to promote product eco-design and recycling. • For cost-based subsidy, government can prioritize recycler fixed cost subsidy. • For performance-based subsidy, government can adjust scheme with varied conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing environmental awareness of citizens, sustainable fashion has become a hot topic in industry, academia, and society. The importance of product eco-design (ED) in ensuring the sustainability of organizations and supply chains cannot be overstated. This paper aims to establish an eco-design performance evaluation system and identify the most effective management mechanism. To achieve this goal, a linked two-stage network Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model is developed. This model has a well-defined internal structure and potential causal relationships between variables; and the two stages are Internal and Supplier Management (ISM) and Openness and Collaboration (OC). We analyze stage and overall efficiencies using proactive, reactive, and simultaneous approaches. Additionally, we explore the convergence characteristics of the industry's ED efficiency from 2015 to 2018. The results show that the overall ED efficiency of fashion enterprises is significant when considering the interrelatedness of subsystems. However, there is disharmony between the two stages. As the proactive approach, ISM is the optimal strategy to maximize ED efficiency. On the other hand, OC is critical to eco-design performance. This paper contributes to the existing literature by developing an innovative DEA analytical framework for evaluating eco-design performance. It also identifies the most eco-efficient way to achieve better environmental performances, which allows decision-makers to better allocate their design efforts and improve both short- and long-term corporate sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental managers attempt to increasingly incorporate precautionary principles into decision making. The literature lacks Machine Learning -based approaches for forewarning lifecycle environmental impacts. This paper proposes a method to support electric vehicle design. The main innovation of the work lays in merging Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Machine Learning foundations to provide support and awareness to designers. The present approach overcomes the present literature because it provides a method for the design phase, is based on a well-established methodology (LCA) and provides quantitative results from little inputs. The approach exploits machine Learning Methods to develop models with the design features of a generic electric vehicle (such as vehicle mass and distance traveled) in six phases (Problem definition; Data collection; Data Preparation; Modeling; Model evaluation; Model interpretation). Differently from existing environmental analyses, all stages of the product life cycle have been considered in building the database; moreover, the model provides quantitative results. Regression models and supervised algorithms were used. The obtained model can be used by product engineers, as well as those not experts on LCA. Moreover, the model guarantees the database and hypothesis's uniqueness, ensuring the results coherence and comparability. The level of accuracy obtained in the case study (error or 17%) is comparable with studies handling full environmental analysis (that should be more accurate), and outstanding, as the present case is for the design phase. Future works will focus on additional significative indicators, similar electric vehicle design and integration with prospective LCA approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Outdoor pollutants are well documented and monitored due to existing air quality regulations in many parts of the world. However, as information regarding indoor air quality is still limited, there are not enough information for indoor air pollutants. Indoor air quality pollutants are harmful to human health and are especially dangerous to vulnerable populations, such as elderly people and children. The effects of indoor environment and indoor air pollutants on children and the elderly are being studied worldwide. Ultimately, this paper highlights the prospect of remodeling wood interior, an indoor air pollutants reduction strategy that will help improve indoor air quality and public health. Wood is an environmentally friendly building material with low thermal conductivity and humidity control, and wood interior remodeling can protect people's health from indoor air pollutants. In this paper, twelve indoor air quality factors were measured: comfort factor (temperature and relative humidity), particulate matter, biological pollutants (total airborne bacteria), Airborne asbestos fibers, and chemical pollutants (carbon monoxide and dioxide, formaldehyde, volatile organic compounds, radon, ozone and nitrogen oxides). The average value of the indoor air quality factors for 12 welfare facilities is as follows. The average particulate matter was less than 12μg/㎥, the average of carbon dioxidewas 754.2 ppm, the formaldehyde was 46.6μg/㎥, the volatile organic compounds was 335.0μg/㎥, the total airborne bacteria was 37.8 CFU/㎥and the radon was 59.5Bq/㎥. As a result, almost all of the measurement locations were found to satisfy the international indoor air quality guidelines. It is thus judged that interior remodeling using wood can improve the indoor air quality of welfare facilities, and that it is necessary to constantly measure indoor air quality for accurate indoor air quality analysis. • Twelve welfare facilities were remodeled using wood materials. • Twelve indoor air quality factors include biological pollutants were measured. • The PM value can be lowered when the room interior is remodeled with wood. • The higher the quantity of wood used, the lower the concentration of HCHO. • This paper established a basis for the improvement of IAQ with wood remodeling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The service sector has the potential to play an instrumental role in the shift towards circular economy due to its strategic position between manufacturers and end-users. However, there is a paucity of supporting methodologies and real-life applications to demonstrate how service-oriented companies can implement circular economy principles in daily business practice. This paper addresses this gap by analysing the potential of service-oriented companies in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector to build and implement circular economy business models. To this end, the Backcasting and Eco-design for the Circular Economy (BECE) framework is applied in an ICT firm. BECE, previously developed and demonstrated for product-oriented applications, has been developed further here for applications in the service sector. By shifting the focus from a product-oriented approach to a user-centred eco-design, the paper shows how ICT firms can identify, evaluate and prioritise sustainable business model innovations for circular economy. The two most promising business model innovations are explored strategically with the aim of designing circular economy models consistent with the company's priorities of customer satisfaction and profitability. The findings suggest that ICT companies may be able to support the deployment of a circular economy in the service-oriented technology sector. Importantly, micro and small organisations can play a fundamental role if provided with macro-level support to overcome company-level barriers. Finally, the BECE framework is shown to be a valuable resource to explore, analyse and guide the implementation of circular economy opportunities in service-oriented organisations. Further research to verify the application of the findings to other service-oriented organisations is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food production and transformation have an increasing impact on the environment. Tools to help the agri-food industry improving its environmental performance whilst increasing the value of the products are highly needed. The present study proposes a new approach to calculate eco-efficiency that goes beyond the production costs, but accounts for the functional value of the foodstuff. Instead of using the monetary unit as the product value, we propose value-based metrics closer to consumer interests, such as content of functional nutrients, taste and abatement of harmful substances. The approach was applied to evaluate the eco-efficiency of de-acidified cranberry juice by two alternative technologies in Quebec: ion-exchange resin process and de-acidification by electrodialysis with a bipolar membrane. Both are compared to non-de-acidified cranberry juice. The parameters chosen to quantify cranberry juice are polyphenol content, product taste, and percentage of harmful acid removed. Results show ion-exchange resin de-acidified juice is less eco-efficient than non-de-acidified cranberry juice for polyphenol content and product taste indicator but shows better results for the removed harmful acid parameter. The electrodialysis with a bipolar membrane technology allows the extraction of organic acids in a usable form. We evaluated their re-utilization in four different contexts showing that this context choice might have a key impact on the eco-efficiency conclusion. The most eco-efficient scenario is the utilization of the removed acid in dried cranberry production with the addition of sugar beet. By using an approach closer to consumers' interests, eco-efficiency results can be more relevant for decision making in the context of cleaner production, particularly when the monetary value is not reliable. • This paper compares two deacidification processes for cranberry juice production. • Environmental performances are evaluated with life cycle assessment analysis. • Functional value is assessed in terms of taste, organic acid, polyphenol content. • The electrodialysis process is more eco-efficient compared to the resin process. • Using functional value allows overcoming the shortcomings of the cost analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular economy ambitions demand considering lifecycle of products within product development. From the perspective of the circular economy, environmental considerations should, for example, increasingly entail product's use phase not only to increase product's energy-efficiency, but also to prolong the time in use. This paper investigates how these considerations are addressed within information and communications technology (ICT) sector. Drawing from previous research in constructing the hypotheses, it is examined how companies report about their quantitative environmental targets for products, and what topical areas are in focus for their environmentally conscious practices related to products' reuse. Then, relationships with these published quantitative targets and environmental performance are assessed. Content analysis method is used to derive data from 43 sustainability reports. Our results suggest that being mature enough to publish quantitative environmental targets for products is positively associated with lifecycle thinking, considering the durability of products, and remanufacture. This exploratory study reveals among others, that although published, quantitative environmental targets for products are not yet dominantly present; they are positively associated with environmental performance measures. This includes capability to report quantitatively on flows of reclaimed products, and positions in external ranking. But, we also highlight the need for more discussion around reuse alternatives that are not commonly published among companies in this sample. The paper concludes by discussing the applicability of this research method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The objective of this paper is to explore what challenges exist when setting requirements for an Integrated Product Service Offering (IPSO). An IPSO, sometimes called Product Service System, is a concept with increased interest from manufacturing companies. It consists of a combination of products and services that, based on a life cycle perspective, have been integrated to fit targeted customer needs. In order to achieve a successful IPSO, it is important to collect aspects from many actors, something which sometimes is challenging for companies moving towards providing IPSOs. The four challenges found when setting requirements in IPSO development are; identification and inclusion of relevant aspects from relevant actors throughout the IPSO’s life cycle, understanding of the underlying aspects for all requirements for all elements of the offering, prioritization of requirements, and the difficulty to track how requirements affect each other between different elements in the IPSO. The methodology used to find these challenges was a combination of a structured literature review and an interview study at three manufacturing companies moving towards providing IPSOs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building life cycle assessment (LCA) aims at guiding decision towards more sustainable alternatives of a building project. But, in order to successfully reduce the high environmental impacts of the building sector, the results of building LCA have to be robust. Sensitivity analysis (SA) helps at investigating the sources of uncertainty and variability in a model and assessing the results' robustness. Choosing an adapted SA method remains difficult: using the more precise SA methods would require a too large calculation time, particularly for an application in early design phase. In this paper, the most influential factors of building LCA tools, linked with energy simulation tools, were investigated using screening and global SA methods that are compatible with the building LCA fields. The relative influence of the uncertain factors served as a metric to compare more precisely the results given by this large panel of methods. The results show that despite their different precision vs computational cost compromises, all the methods identified the same set of influential factors. In the studied case of a passive single family house, they consisted in the building lifetime, the electricity production mix and factors affecting the energy consumption. However, the relative influence of the factors differed. Two new method adaptations were investigated in order to obtain precise results in a reasonable simulation time. The adaptation of the Plackett and Burman (PB) screening performed well compared to the reference method (Sobol indices), as the same set of influential factors was always identified in a calculation time divided by almost 30. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the impact of technology on society has been widely studied in the literature, few studies have proposed a practical approach directly engaging stakeholders, including designers and engineers, in the development of new products and services. Within the degrowth movement, some approaches criticizing the western model of development suggest original criteria that could be integrated in the design process. The current study seeks to analyze the conviviality concept of Ivan Illich (1973) to develop a new framework for designers. To that end, current design literature and four industrial case studies were analyzed according to the five main threats to conviviality: the biological degradation of the ecosystem, radical monopoly, over-programming, polarization, and obsolescence. As a result, this paper proposes a framework that includes two guidelines: one for product scope and another for the socio-technical system scope. The guidelines are composed of a set of recommendations that emerge from the relationship between the threats to conviviality and life cycle stages of a product or service. These recommendations allow designers and engineers to better approach the complexity of the design process and co-create a strong sustainable society with stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design for Environment (DfE) and Design for Disassembly (DfD) have been recognized as an effective sustainable manufacturing approach to reduce environmental impact during product's life cycle. Although Malaysian manufacturers have long demonstrated a strong global market presence, the implementation of DfE and DfD among manufacturers are found lacking. This paper attempts to investigate the current state DfE and DfD implementation and the local driving force in the local Malaysian industry by addressing four research questions (RQ): RQ1 – How do Malaysian designers value the importance of DfE? RQ2 – What are the current approaches used by designers to incorporate environmental issues during product development stage? RQ3 – What difficulties are experienced in the implementation of DfE and DfD in the product development stage? RQ4 – What are the approaches needed to enhance the engagement of DfE and DfD into product design practices? Targeting product designers in Malaysia, a multiple approach using survey and interview is conducted shown that the current state of implementation and awareness within the local industry is fairly low. The soft approach of the local legislation does not contribute much towards seeing a major change in attitude as will be discussed further in the paper. The above two concerns are major challenges that require immediate attention. However, there seems to be growing concern from the industry and the government that pushes the need for options that could leapfrog the current situation. This presents an opportunity for the local research community to come up with various strategies that will be discussed. Finally, the paper proposes a more comprehensive strategy that is tailored to the local business environment in order for the local industry to be capable of maintaining its market presence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Facing globalization, territorial competitiveness is considered by (French) public policy makers as promising both economic and social value creation locally. Companies consider territorial specificities when selecting a location (e.g. low production costs, highly qualified labor pool) in a utilitarian perspective. This research proposes encouraging companies to consider territory as a value creation network where exploitable resources flow. The proposal presented in this paper is to integrate these latent territorial resources into the product development process to create value for both the company and its territory in a sustainable perspective. The literature review highlights that current eco design practices have great impact on territories, but that this dimension is not considered in terms of resources. Moreover, current assessment practices are not adapted to overall performance evaluation and need revision to meet the system innovation goal. After clarifying the concept of territory, two industrial cases are provided to analyze how territorial resources were included in the design process and how it improved the overall performance of the company-territory system. From the success factors emerging from literature and cases, a method to release the potential of territorial resources is presented. A revised strategic process dedicated to senior management is proposed as the enabler of system innovation with the intention of improving the design of sustainable products. This paper concludes with the necessary cultural evolution that every stakeholder in the value network must undergo to promote territorial values in a sustainable perspective. This study contributes to the emerging discipline of design for local value creation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Life cycle assessment (LCA) studies of lab-scale processes come with certain limitations as they are not reflecting e.g. higher efficiencies of large-scale production. To address this, we developed in an earlier manuscript a scale-up framework for chemical processes which is applied in this paper here. Following the framework's five-step procedure on the case of a new nanocellulose production pathway, a scaled-up LCA study for a future production of nanocellulose is performed. The comparison of these LCA results with competing and already commercially produced materials as well as with the lab-scale process demonstrates the usefulness of the whole scale-up procedure. The example shows that the environmental impact per kg of produced nanocellulose yarn can be lowered by a factor of up to 6.5 compared to the laboratory production, reflecting a projected impact that is closer to the values of an actual production plant in case the material will be commercialized. Our results got also better comparable to those of competing materials, showing values that are up to three times smaller than for carbon fibers. Looking into the process, the chosen example of nanocellulose shows a considerable change concerning the relative contributions of the various process steps. While in the lab scale, the enzymatic treatment step – which involved heating for an extended period – was the dominant contributor, this step proved to be negligible in terms of environmental impact at industrial-scale production given that a more efficient and well-insulated reactor is used. The identification of such changes is a major added value of the applied scale-up framework which cannot be achieved with scale-up procedures using a simple, global scaling factor. One of the main purposes of the whole scale-up at such an early stage is to give improvement recommendations. The framework can be considered as being an effective support for eco-design purposes, helping in identifying hotspots for process improvements. It gives a better understanding of the process and shows the practical scalability of the various steps. Overall, it can assist in steering the research of new chemicals and materials more towards an industrial application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving structural performance of products is often realized by introducing increasingly advanced and complex materials as well as material combinations. What material to use in products is decided in the early product development phases and has a decisive impact for manufacturing, maintenance and end-of-life. A particular challenge is that the decisions need to be made upfront, where information of the forthcoming product is limited. This paper presents an early product development method to assess the criticality of alloy materials from a resource availability- and sustainability perspective. The method distinguishes itself from previous studies that focus on element criticality on a country level. The method is used to characterize and analyze the criticality of alloys in a three-step process that aims to support product design teams selecting what material alloy to use in early phases of design. It provides a proactive and systematic approach related to critical materials to avoid potential future problems on a long-term basis. The method presented has been developed in an action research-based approach in an aerospace company where a product design team validated and evaluated the material criticality method. The generic nature of the method is likely to be applicable not only to aerospace companies but also to other industries using advanced alloys. An important finding from applying the method in the company case was the clear link between long term business impact and sustainability performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In a very uncertain and competitive economy, companies have to cope with external constraints such as environmental and social issues, to gain competitive advantage. Over the last thirty years, numerous initiatives have appeared to deal with socio-environmental issues. However, contexts are complex and dynamics. Many authors therefore point out the need to establish a systemic perspective in order to improve the integration of sustainable issues into all company activities: from strategic decision-making to the end of the project. In addition, companies need to reinforce the relationship between general corporate development and eco-design activities. Based on literature review, this paper assumes that the integration of sustainability can be improved by developing a coherent and system approach between strategic, tactical and operational levels. The authors have chosen to demonstrate this assumption by targeting the environmental aspect of sustainability as a first step of their overall research. In this view, this paper proposes a navigation system composed of three modules: strategic, tactical and operational. This navigation system provides some pragmatic roadmaps for integrating environment into the company. Each module is linked to the others by the use of appropriate metrics. Bottom-up and top-down or middle-to-sides strategies are fully supported. To test this proposal, the navigation system is experimented retrospectively into an industrial process from the textile industry. The comparison between the initial situation and the experimental results allows authors to highlights potential environmental improvements. Some recommendations are made to challenges companies to use this navigation system, which argues in favor of environmental improvements. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The effectiveness of sustainable product and service innovations is often restricted by limited market acceptance or unexpected consumption patterns. The latter includes rebound effects, which occur when resources liberated by savings are used for further consumption. Recently emerging research from the Living Lab is striving to address and anticipate challenges in innovation design by integrating users in prototyping and field testing product and service innovations. The paper presents findings from a literature review on rebound effects and expert interviews identifying methods to monitor and measures to mitigate rebound effects in early innovation design via Living Lab research. We find that monitoring and mitigating rebound effects in Living Lab research includes technological and behavioural triggers as well as socio-psychological and time use effects in addition to economic re-spending effects. The experts have confirmed that Living Labs contain the potential to observe complex demand systems of users within experimental designs, encompassing indirect rebound effects in terms of expenditure as well as time use. In this respect, Living Lab research can facilitate support for sustainable innovations, which aim to encourage changes in consumer behaviour, considering re-spending and time use effects simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper advocates that a paradigm shift is required in order to improve the performance of the next generation Design for Environment (DfE) tools. Four output mechanisms were identified during the analysis of 22 DfE tools. Further analysis of these mechanisms revealed that the output was focused in one of two ways. In the majority of tools, strategies are prioritised to initiate the output mechanisms, resulting in guidance that is strategy focused and of limited use to the designer. The alternative is to focus on the product under development to initiate the output mechanism. This has the potential to deliver output and guidance that is directly relevant to the product. This paper identifies and discusses the types of guidance provided by DfE tools. The performance of each tool at assisting the user towards a better understanding of environmental issues and improving their ability to generate viable solutions is fully discussed. In summary, this paper explains the background to the study, outlining the research method, and discusses the importance of the findings relative to the future design of DfE tools. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Companies usually use Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) reports as a typical way to make their sustainability commitment transparent to stakeholders, without being concerned with making green supply chain management (GSCM) practices transparent. Given that the generic approach of the GRI framework makes it difficult to identify where and how GSCM practices are presented, this paper assumes that these GSCM practices are in the company's GRI reporting but are not transparent. Consequently, how GRI reports can reveal companies' GSCM practices remains underexplored in the literature. Guided by a qualitative approach, this study exploited data from the GRI reports of 30 Brazilian companies to verify the degree of GSCM transparency. Specifically, we use a theoretical structured framework for GSCM practices, consisting of four dimensions and 20 practices distributed among them. Our findings show that the current way of reporting actions to enhance companies' contribution to sustainable development can partially promote GSCM transparency. The findings also indicate which practices could be better documented in GRI reports to increase the visibility of GSCM actions, providing insights for managers and scholars seeking to define strategies to make GSCM more observable (e.g. total quality environmental management, environmental compliance and auditing programs, cooperation with suppliers, and scrap selling). Furthermore, the theoretical linkage between the GRI and GSCM contributes to theory by presenting a novel view of GSCM practices' transparency through the generic GRI guidelines. • GRI reports can reveal companies' GSCM practices and increase the visibility of GSCM actions. • A representative number of GSCM practices can be found within the GRI reports. • Eco-design practices are practices more established. • Practices related to investment recovery are still little explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Centre for Design at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia has developed various quantitative and qualitative tools to support decision-making by industry and government partners in product design and policy development. The aim, in general, is to support development of attractive, functional, marketable products while enhancing their environmental performance. Depending on the product, the project scope and the client, the tools that are used can be anything from a half-day char-rette, environmental checklist, to a one-year life cycle assessment (LCA). In this paper we describe our approach and the various tools that have been developed by the research team at the Centre over recent years with the use of case studies. The paper argues that it is important for tool development to be based on solid research and information, but the key to influencing product design decisions is the translation of this information into a usable format for the users. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Significant environmental improvements can often be achieved by integrating environmental properties as an optimisation parameter in product development together with more traditional values such as production costs, functionality, aesthetics etc. This paper presents a professional method intended for managers based on quantitative life cycle assessment to identify environmental ‘hot spots’ in a reference product''s life cycle and to select new environmentally optimised solutions for a new product. The paper takes its starting point in traditional procedures for product development (idea, analysis, goal definition, concept development and detail development) and shows step by step how the environmental properties of the new product can be optimised and thus contribute to the overall competitiveness of the new product. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The case study presented in this paper is a follow up of a topic already examined in previous studies relating the life cycle assessment (LCA) of a chemical treatment process used to recycle a specific type of carbon fiber (CF) reinforced thermoset composite. In the present study the LCA is coupled with the life cycle cost (LCC) analysis for the economic assessment. Furthermore, the research sought to specify the best available technology for the reuse of the materials recovered through the chemical recycling process. The new LCA results are more reliable and more current than the scenario presented in the previous LCA studies. In the previous scenario the possibility to recover long carbon fibers "ready to use" was considered. This scenario, even if under investigation by the recycling company, is still not possible for technological limitations as the fibers recovered after the chemical process require further treatments before being used in thermoset composite. Consequently, a more feasible technology was investigated and, according to our laboratory research results, one practical way to recycle the CF-thermoset composites is to shred them before the chemical treatment in order to recover shredded CFs and epoxy thermoplastic from cleavable thermosets. These materials can be easily compounded together to manufacture a CF-thermoplastic composite through injection moulding as we demonstrated herein through some laboratory experiments. The LCA and LCC were accounted for the recycling process via solvolysis up to the recovery phase of the epoxy-thermoplastic resin and the short carbon fibers. The paper presents laboratory test results of the remanufacture of the two reclaimed materials for the production of a thermoplastic CF-composite. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pharmaceutical sector has the societal duty to make medical healthcare products both available and affordable. But like any human activity, it is not neutral in terms of environmental impact. Therefore, and like any industry, the pharmaceutical sector needs to consider the environmental aspects into its product design and activities in order to reach a sustainable production and consumption patterns, as defined by the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12 of the United Nations. With a holistic perspective, the eco-design concept is an approach that aims to integrate environmental aspects into product design. To contribute to the SDGs, the pharmaceutical industry needs to consider the environmental impacts of its products. Usually, experts within Research & Development (R&D) do not have the proper level of knowledge to integrate the environmental aspects, in a Lifecycle perspective, into their decision making. Even so, those parameters are not yet part of the New Product Development (NPD) process of the medicine product. With those elements in mind, the aim of this paper is to understand which phases of the pharmaceutical R&D process represent an opportunity to eco-design such products. We proposed two qualitative experimentations with, first interviewing ten practitioners of R&D; and second, with an assessment of the medicine NPD process and related deliverables, based on LCA results. The use of such results to investigate potential key contributors during NPD stages does not seem to be explored yet, especially for the pharmaceutical sector. Results show that eco-design approaches can be performed all along the development of a pharmaceutical product. Main eco-design levers appear in parallel to the clinical phases 2a and 2b, in other words, when the tests on the final marketed form are initiated. • Eco-designers identified all along the Pharmaceutical R&D process. • Qualitative approaches are recommended from research to early development. • Quantitative approaches are recommended from early development to market. • Main potential Eco-design levers are between the phase 2a and 2b. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eco-design that addresses the consumption of resources and energy, as well as pollution emissions from a product life-cycle perspective, is an effective way to solve environmental problems. However, the optimal eco-design solution is hardly generated in the conceptual design stage due to the complex association of the life cycle design information. To this end, this paper proposes a new eco-design model based on a life cycle integrated framework to effectively manage life cycle information in the conceptual design phase. In this work, (1) The life cycle-oriented model is proposed to integrate the product design information in terms of a systematic association mechanism between function, structure, material and process to construct the design space. (2) A life cycle design scenario-based similarity matching method is developed to support the environmental impact assessment of design options in the design space. (3) A hope tree-based heuristic search algorithm with the principle of minimizing environmental impact is proposed to efficiently obtain the eco-design solution. An application for eco-design of the lift equipment is given to demonstrate the capability of the proposed method. The results show that the environmental impact of the generated eco-design solution is improved by 19.48%, and the material and use stage has the highest environmental impact which accounts for 39.59% and 47.74% respectively. This work provides a targeted method for guiding designers to implement eco-design in the conceptual design phase through the life cycle. [Display omitted] • An integrated life cycle model is proposed to express the design information of function, structure, material and process. • A scenario-based similarity matching method is proposed to acquire the LCI for the design options. • Hope tree-based algorithm is used to efficiently obtain the optimal eco-design solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ambitions toward a circular economy will necessitate more pro-activity in the current practices of many organizations in order to reduce environmental impacts. Since a product's environmental fate is dictated by organization's product development, it is essential to better understand how environmental issues are taken into account in product development practices. Building on constructs from empirical research in eco-design, this paper investigates how these issues are integrated into product development practices based on the perceptions of employees drawn from a non-probability sample. We assessed employees' perceptions of how frequently these environmental considerations are applied within individual product development phases, and how are they managed. We also explored whether employee's attitudes influenced perception of these practices, and if so, how. For instance, different attitudes seem to influence product development practices at different levels of abstraction. Furthermore, these results suggest that indeed environmental considerations have not yet become a mainstream topic within product development practices; for instance, there remains much potential for more frequent inclusion of environmental considerations within various product development phases, and for highlighting their role as criteria in decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eco-innovation methodologies and tools are being applied in companies to an increasing extent. None of them, however, are particularly adapted to complex systems industries, where the eco-design requirements are highly specific. These systems are characterized by large size and mass, and relatively long and uncertain life cycles. The associated organization is also complex as there are multiple highly specialized experts, who rarely collaborate, and much less so on environmental aspects. In this paper, an adapted eco-innovation process based on the eco-design strategy wheel is proposed for use with a working group of internal technical experts. A first phase involves generating a high number of potential eco-innovative R&D projects that are then analyzed and assessed using an appropriate multi-criteria grid. Three structured filters enable an informed selection of the most promising projects that will then make up a balanced R&D project portfolio. The whole process has been successfully applied at Alstom Grid on large electrical stations used in the primary aluminium industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have been developed implementing TRIZ (Russian acronym of Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) for eco-innovative design tasks, establishing a link between eco-efficiency and the Inventive Principles and the Contradiction Matrix. However, very few works have linked TRIZ evolution trends and eco-design. This paper presents an innovative methodology to help designers to predict technological evolutions for more environmentally friendly products. The main novelty of our proposal is the use of Fuzzy Cognitive Maps (FCMs) to analyse, identify and quantify the relationship between the strategies of the Eco-Design Strategy Wheel and the TRIZ evolution trends. This methodology has been applied to the Spanish ceramic industry using data from a survey to their business leaders. Results show evolution trends of ceramic products focused on Material, Design Process and Geometry are more environmentally friendly. In contrast, evolution trends included in the category Aesthetics are harmful for the environment. The methodology proposed can be applied for greener product design and technological forecasting in other industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing concerns regarding the environmental pollution derived from anthropogenic activities, such as the use of fossil fuels for power generation, has driven many interested parties to seek different alternatives, e.g. use of renewable energy sources, use of “cleaner” fuels and use of more effective technologies, in order to minimize and control the quantity of emissions that are produced during the life cycle of conventional energy sources. The work presented in this paper focuses on the examination of the possibilities of integrating the environmental aspects in the preliminary phase of the conventional design and planning of energy systems in conjunction with other parameters, such as financial cost, availability, capacity, location, etc. The integration of the environmental parameter to the design is carried out within a context where Eco-design concepts are applied. Due to the multi-parameter nature of the design procedure, the tools that are used are Life Cycle Analysis and Multi-criteria Analysis. The proposed optimization model examines and identifiesoptimum available options of the use of different energy sources and technologies for the production of electricity and/or heat by minimizing both the financial cost and the environmental impacts, with regard to a multiple objective optimization subject to a set of specific constraints. Implementation of the proposed model in the form of a case study for the island of Rhodes in Greece revealed that an optimized solution both cost and environmental-wise, would be an almost balanced participation of renewables and non-renewable energy sources in the energy mix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is crucial to have insight in users and their context when designing products to create behaviour change. The discipline of User Centred Design has developed, appropriated and modified numerous methods to provide this type of insight, but limited attention has been directed towards what insight various methods may provide. This paper presents a review of user research methods from the User Centred Design literature, and assesses their potential for acquiring specific insight. The review focuses on the investigation of those factors that affect behaviour according to social psychology literature, which may assist designers to create solutions that stimulate sustainable or avoid unsustainable behaviour. The result of the analysis is an overview of which methods are most suitable to use when investigating particular aspects of behaviour. This result is compared with experiences in two case studies from literature, indicating the potential value of the results and in particular the value of distinguishing between methods suitable to investigate internal or external factors, and conscious or unconscious factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Textiles can be applied in a wide variety of aircrafts' components and it is known for its highly polluting dyes, short life-cycle and small concern with end of life. Combined with the aeronautic emissions, the textile industry represents a clear threat to the environment, but it also represents opportunities. In order to promote sustainability in the completion industry, the product development process is of central importance. A large number of general approaches and methods for the development of sustainable products has been proposed and used in the literature, but how they can be integrated to improve the design process in the Green Aircraft Completion (GAC) sector is an open research question. This paper was developed from this question and it reviews and analyses several design methods and eco-design approaches from the literature in order to propose a novel integrative conceptual framework for the GAC. This framework is then applied in a large North American company so that it could be tested and improved. This experience allowed the researchers to verify whether the development of new textiles in the studied company comply with the sustainable frameworks and good practices proposed by the literature. Empirical evidences also indicate that the proposed framework would enable companies in the GAC and aeronautic industry to develop systems involving the final consumer, suppliers and the local communities; not only decreasing its carbon footprint, but also improving the company's corporate social responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Companies face challenges and need support when applying specific knowledge to their innovation processes, such as design for sustainability. The providers of innovation support in innovation systems are intermediaries. While the literature on intermediaries focuses on various roles and approaches, the way in which intermediaries function in specific fields such as design for sustainability remains underexplored. This paper investigates how intermediaries provide innovation support in the design for sustainability field today, with a focus on the services and support they offer, the approaches and drivers that shape them, as well as the challenges of the intermediation process, particularly concerning sustainability and design. To do this, 14 intermediaries from the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Turkey were investigated through case studies. The role of design in support processes, especially during implementation, the importance and types of collaborations among various actors of innovation systems, and the emergence of a new type of intermediary that promises radical innovation in sustainability are among the findings. In addition, based on the empirical data, we suggest a framework for describing the roles and attributes of a group of five intermediaries that meets the needs of all types of companies engaged in design for sustainability. Finally we offer suggestions for Turkey on how to raise the capacity of its intermediaries operating in the design for sustainability field, which might be applicable to other similar contexts as well. This study contributes to the theory and practice of innovation support in the sustainability field, from which all innovation system's actors, especially intermediaries and governmental institutions, might benefit in designing support programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) systems have been criticized to provide little incentive for producers to eco-design. To this end, an incentive scheme, called eco-modulation, based on modulated product fees according to their level of eco-design has recently been introduced. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the introduction of this scheme as part of the collective EPR system in the WEEE sector in France and discusses the impacts of this policy instrument on product design (direct effects) and collective action and innovation (indirect effects). From a theoretical standpoint, we consider policy instruments in our research as part of complex policy mixes and within adaptive policy-making, i.e. on how these mixes evolve over time to adapt to complex and changing issues and collective dynamics. In this perspective, we stress that, while eco-modulation has shown little direct impact, important indirect effects can be identified. We argue that framework conditions, i.e. how the EPR system is organized and conducted in practice, explain better the occurrence of such indirect effects rather than the policy instrument in itself. In this perspective, the paper provides insights on the role of Producer Responsibility Organizations (PRO) in linking individual and collective producer responsibilities and organizing collective action. Moreover, it shows that implementing such a policy instrument requires intense dialog with stakeholders to advance its acceptability, a collective organization to organize its monitoring and deployment, and careful integration with other instruments within a coherent and adaptive policy. • Eco-modulation has little direct effect in the short term but may have important indirect effects in the long term. • Eco-modulation will be all the more effective if it is combined with other instruments. • PROs play a key role in the implementation, support and evolution Eco-modulation. • Eco-design requires collective support that can be provided by PROs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Altruistic preference (AP) and government subsidies are both crucial for manufacturing-recycling systems to stimulate eco-design and recycling. This paper discusses the impacts of AP and two government subsidies (an eco-design subsidy and a recycling subsidy) on a manufacturing-recycling system with eco-design, and explores rational AP coefficient and subsidy strategies from the perspective of the economy, environment, and social welfare. The principal results are 1) AP will improve the eco-design level and recycling rate, but the AP coefficient should be set below a certain threshold; 2) recycling subsidy is always conductive to both eco-design and recovery, while eco-design subsidy only has this effect when manufacturers develop recycling-biased eco-design; 3) eco-design subsidy has more negative spillover effects and sometimes conflicts with the effect of AP; and 4) subsidies are crucial in manufacturing-recycling systems with AP but governments should implement an appropriate subsidy strategy based on the specific goals and types of the eco-design. [Display omitted] • Altruistic preference and subsidies in manufacturing-recycling system are considered. • Altruistic preference helps to improve eco-design level and recycling rate. • The effects of subsidies might conflict with the impact of altruistic preference. • Manufacturers should control the degree of altruistic preference below a threshold. • Governments should devise appropriate subsidy schemes according to specific goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reduction in the use of raw materials and the spread of energy efficient processes and components are necessary from both the economic and the environmental viewpoints. This paper presents the design of an innovative multi-functional agricultural machinery able to integrate three separate traditional implements used for hay raking, hay baling and bale wrapping, i.e. hay rake, round baler and bale wrapper machines, with the aim of speeding up the harvesting operations and reducing both the energy consumption and the global environmental impact. A comparative analysis about the adoption of the traditional implements and the new multi-functional machinery is reported. Particularly, the reduction in both the fuel consumption (−32%), the human labor (−66.7%) is discussed together with a differential environmental analysis of the proposed system and the traditional implements. To meet such a last purpose, the study adopts the life cycle assessment methodology carefully quantifying the impact indicators for three different categories, i.e. human health, ecosystem quality and resource depletion. The results highlight a global environmental impact reduction of about 35%. The proposed system represents an effective and competitive improvement to ease and speed the haymaking process and to reduce the environmental impact of such a key farmer activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Most common eco-design methods for SMEs often provide guidelines and suggestions too general, if not contradictories, to be considered as a real design practice. This paper presents a method, named “iTree”, based on a set of eco-design guidelines specifically conceived to support designers in developing new greener products in accordance with the output of a product Life Cycle Assessment-LCA. The “iTree” guidelines are particularly suitable for SME – Small and Medium Enterprises, because they do not specifically require eco-design or problem solving experts. They have been conceived to provide clear and detailed suggestions on where and how to intervene and are based on problem solving methods, such as TRIZ, design for disassembly, and other computer aided tools, adapted for eco-design purposes and simplified for non-expert users. “iTree” method provides the user with an easy and graphical way to visualize the life cycle inventory and critical areas of intervention. For each area, it suggests only the pertinent set of guidelines, customized to the specific situation. In this way, there is a direct link between the visual outcomes of the Eco-assessment phase and the Eco-improvement phase. The experimentation of the proposed method and guidelines is described with an explanatory example. Furthermore, the method has been tested within the European project, named Remake, which aimed at testing new methods of eco-improvement for SMEs in Europe. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The aim of this paper is to analyse the environmental impacts of the Conector® Enciclopedia, and to recommend and apply improvement strategies based on eco-design principles. For this purpose, the work develops a methodology that integrates life cycle assessment (LCA) and eco-design. The LCA was performed using the GaBi 9.2 software and the CML 2002 method. To evaluate the influence of the operating hours of the toy two use scenarios were defined: 'minimum use' and 'continuous use'. The comparison was made on a common functional unit of 'hour of use'. Results showed that the environmental impact of the original toy was heavily dependent on the use phase, given the comparatively large impact caused by employed batteries. Beside the batteries, the electrical and electronic circuit and the game board were the components with the greatest environmental impact in the production stage. Based on the environmental profile of the toy, different strategies were identified, proposed to the company and developed in an eco-designed toy version. The new eco-designed version of the toy achieved approximately 50% impact reductions in all impact categories in the production stage, with very small investments. Despite the environmental benefits found in the eco-design product, the paper concludes that also the consumer acceptance and the technical and economic viability should be considered, trying to maximize the ecoefficiency of the solutions. • The eco-design of an electronic toy was performed proposing improvement strategies. • Life Cycle Assessment was applied to identify the processes to be eco-designed. • The highest environmental impact of the original toy was found in the use stage. • Eco-design measures reduced more than 50% the environmental impact of the toy. • Consumer acceptance and technical and economic viability should be also considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper describes the life cycle engineering of an integrated desktop computer system from the perspective of a small to medium enterprise (SME). Using a novel approach which considers the motivations of actors at various stages during the life cycle of the PC it attempts to engineer the lifecycle through design features which have been chosen to influence these critical decision points leading to more desirable pathways from an environmental perspective. Using these motivations it extracts design principles and ultimately design and service features to (1) promote long lifetime with the original user (2) facilitate refurbishment and reuse (3) be easy to disassemble and (4) contain minimal valueless fractions at end of life. This has been achieved largely through two specific design features and supported by post-sale services to the consumer. The first of these features is a high quality finish using a solid hardwood chassis to create an emotionally durable product that is easy to refurbish and eliminates negative value plastic fractions at end of life. The second feature is a strong focus on ease of disassembly to facilitate upgrade, refurbishment and deep disassembly at end of life. The service offering is also crucial and upgrade services and buy back are available. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper offers a prescriptive suggestion to preserve the extended producer responsibility goal in an eco-industrial park. A novel Hotelling model in reverse trading direction is developed to examine the technology-position decisions between specialized recycling processors. We find that the notion of eco-industrial parks may not always be compatible with extended producer responsibility, which motivates producers to improve their eco-design in clean production within the context of competition. Based on our analysis, competition helps certain types of parks become self-organized such that constituent firms spontaneously improve their eco-design. If eco-design is not improved in a park due to the existing competition and production conditions, an ordinary tax-subsidy should be sufficient to make the parks self-organized. Therefore, eco-industrial parks can be re-aligned to their environmental goals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Lighting products are widely used nowadays; however, their environmental impact is considerable and should be reduced. In order to contribute to the reduction, a novel eco-lighting product has been developed. The product has a number of eco-features, such as using LED as its lighting source and recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) material for its casing. Different eco-design tools were integrated into the design process, to significantly reduce the product's environmental impact. In this paper, the eco-design tools are introduced first, including databases, prescriptive tools, and analytical tools; then a detailed presentation is given to show how the tools were integrated in the product design specification, conceptual design, detail design and evaluation. A prototype of the product has been tested and compared with an existing LED lighting product of the same category, which was designed not following an eco-design method. The test and comparison results show that the new eco-lighting product performs the required functions with less environmental impact than the existing lighting product. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Large forming presses require great amounts of construction metal materials. Nevertheless, eco-design principles in the field of forming presses have seldom been confronted in the scientific literature. In this paper, an optimization model is proposed, suitable for designing press frames which are optimal in terms of energy efficiency. First, a framework is proposed for modular and functional description of a machine tool is described, in order to identify the largest energy consuming modules and functions. Then, a simple analytical model of loads, stresses and deformations is proposed for pre-stressed structures. Then, the equations of the analytical models are used as the constraints of a numerical global optimization algorithm, aimed at minimizing the amount of energy stored into the press frame and the extra-energy due to deformation of the columns in the usage lifetime of the press. The results clearly show that, only if the press frame structure is monolithic, it is possible to obtain a solution which is truly optimal. This conclusion is robust with respect to potential noise or uncertainty issues, which in this case are mainly related to the coefficient of the objective functions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper evaluates the recycling rates, costs as well as the disassembly time of a notebook at its end-of-life stage through Prodtect 1.3 calculation using data collected during disassembly processes. The results show that the disassembly and recycle of a notebook at its end-of-life stage may exert positive influence on the environment by introducing the eco-design concept to the product re-design, thus creating more resource-conserving products and enhancing recycle efficiency. Through proper disassembly and disposal processes, a notebook at its end-of-life stage may yield the recycling value of 1.61 EUR. Furthermore, the most revenue of 1.44 EUR is attributed to the recycle of metallic and plastic parts, the major constituents of a notebook. As for the time required for disassembly, the Top Case, Motherboard and LCD (CHI MEI) are the three most time-taking parts in the disassembly process, and their total times required are 133, 67 and 64 s, respectively. Prodtect calculation to assess notebook recycling benefits provides a new set of guidelines for the notebook designer to propose potential modifications of the re-design for reducing the environmental impacts arising from the next-generation products. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Environmental design (eco-design) has been identified in both academic and policy circles as a point of intervention in the product lifecycle to promote environmental performance. The benefit of eco-design would be enhanced by rooting it firmly within theoretical design principles and establishing ‘sustainability’ as a functional requirement within a regulatory framework. Formulating such an innovative approach requires first understanding current practices of eco-design in industry. This paper, therefore, addresses three questions: 1) To what extent is the design process structured in practice as suggested by design theory? 2) What, if any, environmental issues do designers consider to be relevant to their products? and 3) To what extent are environmental issues incorporated into product design? Targeting primarily large UK based companies, the authors conducted open ended interviews in conjunction with a postal survey of a sample of manufacturing companies incorporating a wide range of industrial sectors. Critically, many designers are not following good design practice, which limits the possibilities for radical environmental innovation. The environmental design behaviour of companies reflects a complex balance of designers'' understanding of environmental issues and the extent of the design space, influenced by legal requirements, economic and supply chain constraints. A more effective regulatory strategy informed by good design practice is required to assist companies in achieving an effective implementation of eco-design. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Electric motors are one of the most common electrical components used both in industrial and household applications. In order to reduce world energy consumption and environmental impact, electric motors need to be improved in terms of efficiency and eco-sustainability. For this reason it is necessary to improve environmental consciousness, favouring the application of eco-design guidelines in the design phase, which is the most important stage where “green” solutions can be rapidly ideated, evaluated and optimized. Different aspects have to be concurrently considered in order to achieve a high quality product in a short time to market. In this context, the present paper describes an innovative web-based software platform to configure and simulate customized energy efficient electric motors. The core of the platform is a knowledge-based system which aims to standardize the design process according to the rules which represent the company know-how and best practices. The platform integrates different software tools to support the development from conceptual design to detailed design, and from the configuration of design solutions up to environmental impact assessment and manufacturing cost evaluation. It also provides a collaborative area in order to improve the collaboration among remote users involved in the design process, thanks to the sharing of important design data and models. The presented practical case studies demonstrate the effectiveness of the platform application. The achieved results demonstrate the improvement of the configured solutions in comparison with the traditional adopted motors. The new motors exhibit both a considerable increase in energy efficiency and at the same time relevant improvement in product sustainability combined with acceptable production costs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Pressure on consumer goods manufacturers to develop new products with significantly less environmental impact is growing, through increased consumer awareness of environmental issues and governments setting ambitious emissions reductions targets. A strategic response to this pressure is to prepare a portfolio of innovative product ideas to meet a range of future emissions reductions targets. However, although extensive work exists on ideation (the generation of novel product ideas) and eco-design (design for reduced environmental impact), eco-ideation (generation of ideas that particularly aim to reduce environmental impacts) has had little attention. The challenge of eco-ideation is to release the creativity of a broad range of employees, only few of whom may be familiar with the drivers of environmental impact. This paper proposes a novel tool to facilitate the generation of radical product and process ideas giving step-change reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. The features of products and processes that drive greenhouse gas emissions across the product life cycle were characterized with a set of indicators. A simple visual tool was created to show these indicators on a sliding scale between best and worst imaginable performance. A leading question associated with each slider was designed to stimulate lower impact ideas. The tool was iteratively refined and simplified through structured testing with individuals from across a range of roles and differing knowledge of environmental impacts. The final eco-ideation tool used 14 scales, with leading questions for each scale developed to stimulate idea generation. The tool’s effectiveness was evaluated through use in a series of 15 individual workshops and compared with the outcomes of an equal number of conventional 12-person group-brainstorming sessions. The comparison suggests that using the simple tool generally leads to a wider range of more radical ideas than emerge from group brainstorming. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This study attempts to contribute to the scarce knowledge on how eco-design, and to broad extent sustainability, is connected to innovation driven companies. In particular, this cross sectional research verifies i) perception and knowledge of eco-design of the professionals from innovation driven companies in Spain, ii) specific eco-design strategies towards sustainability that innovation driven companies are integrating in their strategic plans and their application in the supply chain and iii) the companies’ future predictions on innovation and eco-design linkage. The methodology of this paper is based on a survey, developed defining measurable proxies for both eco-design and innovation approaches and conducted on 10,000 multidisciplinary professionals from Spanish innovation driven companies. The study shows that sustainability is a cardinal driver for innovation and that responses have specificities regarding company size, activity or respondent position. Innovation and eco-design strategies for the future aim to use materials with a lower environmental impact and to develop new concepts. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The lack of reliable communication tools is anticipated to become an important barrier to design and sell products with improved environmental performance. In this paper, environmental product declarations, EPDs, and in particular a Stepwise EPD approach is investigated as a means to overcome the communication barrier. The experiences of ten European SMEs who have tried to use Stepwise EPDs for market communication and as a basis for eco-design are described and discussed. The experiences suggest that Stepwise EPDs based on life cycle assessment can be a cost-efficient tool to improve the environmental performance of products. For normal marketing activities the Stepwise EPDs were disappointing. Using the underlying LCA as a platform for in-depth communication with selected parties in the supply chain showed more promise. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

For industrial enterprises, the transformation to circular business models can be curbed both by operational tools and the lack of relevant data. Lean thinking has offered great flexibility in production processes and systems by challenging mass production practices, resulting in more "Lean" products with less waste. Lean design and Eco-design, associated with Industry 4.0 technologies, can be an efficient structured and methodological approach in developing products based on the circular economy strategies. Indeed, decisions made during the product design stage can significantly impact the sustainability of products throughout their life cycle. Hence, lean design combined with eco-design and Industry 4.0 represents an innovative model to include sustainability throughout the product life cycle. This paper explores the relationship between lean eco-design and I4.0 strategies for designing eco-efficient products based on a literature review. The proposed framework is based on the synergic use of Lean design, Eco-design, and Industry 4.0. It offers the right formula to deliver better and cleaner products using appropriate processes to support manufacturers in designing products, fulfilling customers' needs and expectations. It provides scholars, designers, and managers with valuable insights into deploying strategies to design sustainable products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The China's chemical industry has been endeavouring to promote sustainable development through practicing green supply chain management (GSCM). This paper proposes a multi-criteria decision framework with twenty practices to guide companies in the industry to enact GSCM effectively. The exploratory factor analysis (EFA) has been used to cluster the proposed practices. We found five aspects, including economic initiatives, environmental management, eco-design, resource recycling, and stakeholder and employee, constitute the underlying structure of GSCM. A mixed decision tool combining the entropy weight method (EWM) and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been developed and applied to identify key factors. Official website information has been collected and used to analyse the website contents of five benchmarking companies in the China's chemical industry. The results reveal that the aspects of environmental management, eco-design and resource recycling are the most important GSCM themes. Moreover, the top five practices are top management support, performing life cycle assessment, managing environmental risks, advancing recycling technologies and integrating reverse logistics. Conceptual and practical implications are discussed. • A novel five-dimension GSCM framework is proposed using EFA. • A mixed decision method combining EWM and AHP is developed and applied. • Corporate websites and experts' assessments are used to benchmark GSCM practices. • Decisive GSCM aspects and practices for China's chemical industry are identified. • Integrating corporate website information notably modifies analytical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Sustainability Victoria is a State Government agency working with Victorians to use resources more sustainably and to reduce the everyday environmental impacts of communities and business. Sustainability Victoria was formed by the Victorian Government from EcoRecycle Victoria and the Sustainable Energy Authority, in October 2005. This paper discusses Victoria''s past successes with recycling and cleaner production, the lessons learnt from these programs and how Sustainability Victoria is stimulating behaviour change across the production and consumption cycle through the establishment of innovative partnerships, towards the goal of high factor improvements in resource efficiency. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A shift in business thinking from selling products to providing service solutions to customer needs is becoming noticeable. It is driven by increasing competition and the need to identify new profit centres for producers of mature products. This paper identifies a new product group that could be interesting from the product-service system perspective – baby prams. The study presents a new business model based on selling the function that baby prams provide through leasing prams. It discusses potential barriers and necessary changes in product design and the supply chain to make it work. The product-service system in this case could include the organisation of a reverse logistics system with different levels of refurbishment and remanufacturing of prams, partially by retailers. The new model may provide customers with a high quality pram in a “like new” condition for the period they need it, and may help avoid transaction costs of having to sell the pram on the second-hand market. Economic estimations point to a significant potential for increased profits, while the environmental potential should be further investigated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Sustainable Product and/or Service Development (SPSD) approach is a pragmatic industry support encompassing a range of strategies aimed at maximising environmental and social performance in all types of “offerings” whether they are “products”, “services” or Product Service Systems (PSS). Implementation of the approach was tested in industry and conclusions reached on the effectiveness of the strategies included in terms of developing an offering with improved sustainability performance as well as practical use as an industry approach. Two strategies incorporated are functional and systems thinking, as these are seen as key for increasing the environmental benefits of offerings. This paper summarises the SPSD approach, general industry testing results, describes how and why functional and systems strategies are incorporated in it and industry testing results relating to their use. This provides valuable information on how functional and systems related considerations can be practically and effectively included in sustainable offering development. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]