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Eco-design is becoming a crucial challenge for many companies. The effective integration of environmental concerns into design is linked to the development of Knowledge Management Systems (KMS). In this context, this paper proposes a framework to support the design of KMS for eco-design. This framework consists of two complementary parts linked to the main knowledge management strategies that KMS generally support. The first part of the framework concerns codification strategy and relies on an eco-design process reference model and the related adaptation of the GAMETH® method used to locate and evaluate crucial knowledge systematically. The second part of the framework concerns the personalisation strategy. In this paper we propose to exploit the community of practice (CoP) theory by: (1) proposing guidelines defining the structural features of CoPs and (2) adapting a tool landscape providing insight on CoP instrumentation. Both guidelines support the setting up of a specific CoP. The exploitation of the framework is illustrated on a real case study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposed a modular eco-design method for life cycle engineering of electronic and electricity equipment (EEE). This method can help designers improve the maintainability, reusability and recyclability of EEE. Using modular method for eco-design is not a new idea. But most former methods have two common problems. For many researches including our research, modular method is used as a redesign method to improve the environmental attributes of their products. In redesign process, the configuration or some components of the original product will be changed. These changes will bring two very serious problems wherein how to ensure the original main functions can be satisfied and the new assembly can be realized. Most of the former researches used an empirical method to analyze their redesign result to show that their redesign process works. To theoretically solve these problems by a risk control method is the most important contribution of this paper. We introduced functional and physical risk assessment as two constraints of redesign optimization process. With these two constraints, designers can control the redesign risk to an acceptable value. We believe that this method can be used not only for our modular eco-design but also for other redesign methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background This paper addresses the escalating global issue of electronic waste (e-waste), a consequence of the burgeoning demand for electronic products coupled with their transient lifespan. The rapid accumulation of e-waste is a significant concern, especially in the context of climate change, necessitating a detailed analysis of current management strategies and the development of sustainable management practices. The intricate relationship between e-waste and climate change is emphasized, illustrating how improper disposal and recycling practices substantially contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Main body of the abstract A meticulous analysis is conducted to critique the prevailing e-waste management strategies, identifying their shortcomings and the urgent need for enhancement and globalization of these protocols. The paper argues for a fortified, universal approach to e-waste management to address the deficiencies in current methodologies. A set of strategic, sustainable solutions for e-waste management is proposed, encompassing comprehensive regulatory frameworks, advanced recycling technologies, the incorporation of eco-design principles, and the enhancement of consumer awareness. These solutions pivot around the circular economy concept, viewing waste as a valuable resource rather than a disposal predicament, thereby promoting sustainability. Short conclusion The paper concludes that a consolidated, global approach to e-waste management is imperative for addressing the proliferation of discarded electronics and is pivotal in the wider context of mitigating climate change and fostering sustainable development. It underscores the transformative potential of sustainable e-waste management, transforming a formidable challenge into an opportunity for environmental conservation, economic growth, and societal progress, emphasizing the importance of viewing e-waste management as a vehicle for sustainability.

It cannot be denied that environmental consciousness is becoming important. Ironically, legislation is probably the most satisfactory driver for pushing manufacturers to take environmental concerns into design considerations. In fact, the European Union introduced a new law (directive 2005/32/EC) for regulating the environmental consequences of all energy-using products (EuPs) in August 2007, the scope of which covers all products that rely on energy sources in any form for operation. Design alternatives are required in the product development stage so that environmental concerns can be considered as a decision parameter. In complying with the directive, life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a useful tool to draw conclusions and to compare the performance of alternatives. In this connection, a case study is carried out to assess the environmental impact of a personal electronic product through LCA, subject to the scope of the stated directive. The objectives of this paper are threefold: (i) to report the case in relation to the directive; (ii) to summarise the results of the LCA accordingly; and (iii) to suggest a new conceptual design and to compare the LCA of this new design with the original design. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Current changes in European Union legislation forces design engineers to incorporate sustainable thinking, environmental protection and eco-design into their design considerations. Many companies are concerned that integrating the eco-design principle into their product design process could result in increasing product cost and a loss of their competitive edge. Within this paper recent and possible future developments of the 'eco-design of energy using products' (EuP) Directive are discussed as well as the effects this has on companies. The main outcome of this research is the development of a design decision methodology that helps the design engineer of complex products to apply the eco-design principles without a trade-off on economic issues. The paper explains how the framework takes into account the product hierarchy and supports changes to the product design. Furthermore the paper presents an example of how the basics of the methodology are applied to a small household item. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents five case studies on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) recycling to provide a coherent overview on the likely impact of eco‐design measures on recycling of plastics used in energy‐related products within the EU. Whilst some eco‐design measures, such as improving disassembly of plastic parts, may generally benefit recycling operations, other measures were found to be ineffective or requiring further investigation. For example, product polymer marking, and provision of product‐specific information was rarely utilized by participant organizations, if at all. Additionally, this study highlights a disconnect between the aims of substance bans as an eco‐design measure and the impact upon plastics recycling in practice. Future research could help with quantitative and/or statistical analysis of WEEE processing to investigate across a wider selection of recyclers and recycling processes. Despite 20 years of research on eco‐design, it appears that EU eco‐design policies and voluntary initiatives are still being devised without adequate understanding of their impact on different types of recycling practices. Empirical research on recycling processes can provide important insight to ensure eco‐design measures are effective and avoid unintended consequences for the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainability-related information affects people's choices and evaluation. The literature has made significant efforts to understand the best ways of delivering this kind of information to shape consumer behavior. However, while most studies have focused on packaged products and direct information provided through eco-labels, preferences could be formed differently in other design domains. The paper investigates the effect of the perceived amount of indirect information on the evaluation of an architectural artefact. A sample of 172 participants visited a locally produced mobile tiny house, made with a considerable amount of sustainable materials. The same participants answered a questionnaire about their perceived knowledge, quality, appropriateness and sustainability of the tiny house. The general level of knowledge of the tiny house was used as a proxy of the amount of indirect information received. Although the knowledge of the tiny house was generally low, ratings regarding the other dimensions were overall extremely positive. In particular, no evident relation was found between knowledge of the tiny house and sustainability, while the latter is significantly linked to quality aspects. These outcomes deviate from the evidence from other studies; this might be due to indirect vs. direct information and the peculiarity of the study carried out in the field of buildings. The gathered demographic and background data of the participants make it possible to highlight the role played by gender and age in affecting the evaluations, but the absence of a significant impact of experience in the field, education and origin. The results are compared with findings related to the evaluation of sustainable products and green buildings in particular. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we describe a method for determining polymer compatibility, which will aid in establishing the requirements of polyolefinic materials for the eco-design of multilayer films for mechanical recycling while avoiding the use of reactive tie layers. Our ultimate goal is to define the molecular characteristics of the polyolefinic structural layer that improve compatibility with the tie layer during mechanical recycling. We have investigated the melting temperature depression of single crystals of various polyethylenes embedded in commercial polymeric matrices with various functionalities (ester, acrylate, acetate and methacrylic acid sodium ionomer), which can be potentially used as tie layers. We demonstrate how the concentration and molecular architecture of the matrices affect the melting temperature of the embedded single crystals differently depending on the latter's molecular architecture. The main finding indicates that the tie layers are more compatible with linear polyethylene than with branched polyethylenes. Indeed, our results show that the heterogeneous Ziegler–Natta linear low-density polyethylene is incompatible with all of the tie layers tested. The depression of melting temperatures observed are in excellent agreement with the results obtained by investigating the rheological behaviour and morphological features of solution-mixed blends in which segmental interactions between polymeric chains have been, in theory, maximized. Because Ziegler–Natta linear density polyethylene is one of the most commonly used polymers as a structural layer in multi-layer applications, the findings of this study are useful as they clearly show the unsuitability of this type of polyethylene for recycling from an eco-design standpoint. The specific molecular requirements for polyethylene layers (branching content less than 0.5/100 carbon atoms) can be specified for use in packaging, guiding the eco-design and valorisation of recycled multi-layered films containing this material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is urgent to introduce life cycle assessment (LCA) into eco-design in order to conduct eco-design in the quantitative and systematic era. In the design phase, various uncertainties in product life cycle inventory (LCI) are emerged. In practice, the real value of LCI calculated in the product end-of-life phase may be much different from the target LCI value predicted in the design phase. The aim of this research is to propose a robust design method to overcome the uncertainty issue. Regarding the scope of LCI analysis, this paper focused on the product manufacturing phase and its end-of-life phase. In this paper, the design problem of robust eco-design is modeled in a mathematical way, the novel sensitivity coefficient of LCI with uncertainty is proposed to solve the robust eco-design problem from mathematical perspective, and a guideline-based approach for robust design is proposed based on the new sensitivity coefficients. A case study is provided to illustrate the application of this research and validate our methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing awareness of sustainability, eco-design has been an important trend in the fashion industry. Many fashion brands such as Nike, Adidas, and The North Face have developed sustainable fashion by incorporating eco-design elements. Eco-design is an important part of sustainable supply chains. In this paper, we conducted a product line analysis of eco-designed products from a famous outdoor sportswear brand, Patagonia. We collected Patagonia's 2017 Spring Season product line data and analyzed the data through descriptive analysis, factor analysis and correlation analysis. We found that Patagonia mainly uses organic, recycled, and traceable materials in their eco-product line development. We identified that the usage of eco-materials may significantly affect the number of color choices and product weight as well as gender difference, pattern design, product fit and online reviewers' opinions at Patagonia. We argued that Patagonia should focus on functionality more than aesthetics in eco-design. We discussed how sustainable fashion firms should manage eco-design in the supply chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lean manufacturing accomplishments have led researchers and practitioners to consider extending lean to different engineering enterprise parts, including product and process development. However, in the early phases of product development, it is important to both reduce costs and improve a product's sustainability performance. This paper develops a framework to guide designers and manufacturing managers to design products that better meet customer needs and requirements for sustainable products and services. To achieve this, a critical review of the existing literature in the field of lean design, and eco-design was conducted to fill the research gap and then develop the proposed methodological framework. The integration aimed to create synergies to extend the integration benefits and promote rational use of resources and time to create value for customers by eliminating waste and unnecessary actions in the product development process. The main objective is to ensure the development of products with minimal negative impacts on the natural environment. To our knowledge, this is the first time in the literature that an integrated framework is bringing together lean design and eco-design principles, practices, guidelines, drivers, barriers, and success factors. The framework can potentially serve product designers, manufacturing engineers, sales/marketing personnel, in fact, anyone who has a vested interest in designing environmentally friendly products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eco-feedback is a design strategy that reminds users of their resource consumption as they use a product. The ultimate goal is to promote pro-environmental behaviors in users by making them aware of the environmental impact of their consumption. The way these designs present resource usage information can significantly impact user perceptions. This paper investigates two aspects of resource usage presentation, quantitative feedback and emotional evocativeness, by evaluating 32 designs spanning electricity, materials, transportation, and water via surveys of 619 university students in the US and Saudi Arabia. Both these aspects are positively correlated with perceived product appeal and perceived effectiveness in encouraging sustainable behavior. It was found that presenting quantitative resource usage information was more helpful to respondents who could better estimate resource consumption, while the emotional evocativeness of a design aided respondents with lower and higher resource consumption knowledge to a similar degree. In addition, we found that images of living creatures and strong visual cues evoked strong emotions in users. Female participants, in general, responded more strongly than males to this emotional evocativeness. These experimental findings cast light on how to better design eco-feedback products to be more widely accepted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper is dedicated to modern ecological challenges of urban space, which are social and existential challenges to humanity. The prospect of biomorphic urbanism as the most ecological program of urban life in our era of continuous growth of urbanization and development of high technologies is revealed. It is emphasized that isolation from wildlife in the artificial structure of the city threatens environmental problems, reduces and automates the urban way of life, deprives it mentally. The following thought is substantiated that now it is necessary to focus on the preservation of urban flora and fauna, revitalization of industrial zones, promote the creation of new green areas, which today is metaphorically called the "green wave" of the future. The essence of biomorphic urbanism as a means of combining technological development of cities and preservation and development of wildlife potential in cities is revealed. Since the implementation of biomorphic programs involves social activity of citizens, obviously this problem can be explained in the context of sociophilosophical approach to urban problems. It is noted that today there is a lack of such research perspectives, and the achievements of social ecology are insufficient for a universal understanding of the meanings of biomorphic urbanism. Examples are given of successful implementation of biomorphic projects in the world's leading smart cities, and some review of futuristic models of biomorphic urban transformation. It has been shown that biomorphic urbanism has a deep philosophical meaning, as it returns modern human not only to the surrounding nature, but also to its own nature that making urban life more humane, harmonious, aesthetic that encouraging urban residents to social activity. The prospects of embodying the "synthetic" plant world in urban design as part of a biomorphic strategy are identified separately. Emphasis is placed on the need for collaboration of progressive forces of the city (government, urban planners, creative class, public assets) for the implementation of biomorphic urban projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims to present the main tendencies on the global and European natural polymer markets in recent years from the point of view of the requirements and achievements of the European Commission that have been expressed in recent programs and Strategies, with special reference to the Circular Economy New Action Plan and the European Green Deal—the EU Strategies for Climate Neutrality. Natural polymers play an important role among biodegradable products whose role in the production and international trade has been systematically increasing, especially since the middle of the last decade of the new century (2015). Natural polymers are also recommended by the EU from the point of view of their specific importance in the group of biodegradable products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The French network Eco-design of Sustainable Systems (EcoSD) has initiated collaborative research projects in order to foster collaborations between academic and industrial partners. Two projects concerning eco-innovation processes, methods and tools have been carried out between 2012 and 2014. This paper first offers a synthesis of the projects, and questions the new directions to feed research in eco-innovation for the forthcoming years. The first project concerned the perception of eco-innovation by companies. It aimed at defining the features and goals of eco-innovation compared to eco-design through a survey with 12 French industrial partners. Results confirm that eco-innovation still is an emerging topic and does not seem to be supported by any structured process. The second project made a focus on the stage of eco-evaluation and eco-selection of the most promising ideas. In order to understand the emergence of ideas with a high environmental potential, three groups of mixed academics and industrials were asked to test two methods involving mapping, selection, combination and environmental evaluation of ideas. Main results show that there is a large inter-group variability in the evaluation of the environmental potential of ideas. Lastly, three interlinked directions for research in eco-innovation are identified. The first direction deals with the eco-ideation phase, where appropriate stimulation mechanisms should be integrated to. The second direction deals with the environmental evaluation of ideas very early in the process. It is necessary to characterize the inputs and outputs from this phase, building a bridge towards a latter simplified environmental assessment. The last direction deals with the construction of an efficient eco-innovation process based on the two previous phases. The challenge is to reduce the gap between academia and industry, enabling companies to introduce an eco-innovation process into their current design process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of military technology in recent years has made tremendous progress. However, some of these technologies have a direct impact on environmental degradation. This makes it necessary to introduce new solutions and technologies in the field of environmental protection. The paper provides a literature review on issues such as eco-design and its tools, life cycle assessment as well as attempted use of them in the defence sector. The environmental regulations and standards ensuring the quality of defence product have been described. In the military industry whose priorities are primarily related to defense the classic approach to design and its tools focused its attention on safety, functionality, ergonomics, costs, strength and technical parameters, instead of environmental problems. In fact militarism has huge impact on the climate because of giant greenhouse gas emissions, the main problem of the Armed Forces is the increased carbon footprint emissions which should be reduce of therefore case studies of eco-design and its tools, commercial software tools for carbon footprint calculation and life cycle assessment are described. The research is co-financed under the Program of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education "Implementation Doctorate". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medical devices (MDs) are important health instruments, encompassing an enormous diversity of products, from simple ligatures to pacemakers, bone grafts or auxiliary life support machines. Despite the growing social and economic relevance of the MD industry in the health sector, its environmental problems have only recently started to be discussed. MDs companies worldwide are being pressed to assess the environmental impacts of their products by considering the full life cycle. These pressures are leading to the use of tools which promote fact-based environmental decision-making toward a more sustainable health sector. Life cycle assessment (LCA) and eco-design are well-known methods which may provide the MDs industrial sector with knowledge of the environmental impacts associated with their products and subsequently promote informed decisions leading to more sustainable materials, devices and services. This paper selects and reviews relevant studies using the methodology of LCA or eco-design, either applied in a singular basis or simulated, to access impacts of MDs. Seeking for a comparative analysis, this review is extended to LCA studies for the most used material in the MDs industry: the polymers. Results show that the number of studies is not vast, realizing the yet scarce use of either LCA and eco-design in the scientific literature for MDs. Nevertheless, it is observed that when applied either LCA and eco-deign can promote grounds for an increase in the environmental sustainability of MDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of eco-design within any existing business requires change. Change is required because eco-design involves the introduction and integration of new design criteria within an existing product development system. To support meaningful change, it is important to understand the current situation, or business context. The first eco-design case study presented in this paper, illustrates a failure to recognize the importance of understanding the business context. Through a retrospective analysis of this case study, a company characterization process (CCP) has been developed. The CCP is presented in this paper, and a further case study is provided to help exemplify its application. The CCP has been developed using an action research methodology to support the development of effective and efficient eco-design projects, through a three-step process that characterizes business features for eco-design activity planning. The tool has been developed for use in any company in the early stages of eco-design implementation, and particularly for to academics and industrial eco-design practitioners who are supporting company efforts from outside the company. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eco-design is a crucial approach in achieving sustainable manufacturing, which seeks to reduce the environmental impact of products and processes throughout their lifecycle. This paper explores the principles and tools that are used in eco-design, providing an overview of the key concepts and methods for sustainable manufacturing. The principles of eco-design are centered on minimizing the environmental impact of products and processes through the use of renewable resources, reducing waste and emissions, and improving energy and material efficiency. The paper discusses these principles in detail and highlights the benefits that can be achieved by implementing eco-design in manufacturing. The tools and methods of eco-design include life cycle assessment (LCA), design for environment (DfE), and environmental management systems (EMS) whereas DfE involves designing products and processes to minimize their environmental impact. EMS provides a framework for managing environmental performance across an organization. The paper also discusses the challenges of implementing eco-design in manufacturing, including the need for collaboration across different functions within an organization, the availability of data and resources, and the complexity of the supply chain. Organizations can implement eco design by utilizing Life Cycle Assessment, eco-labeling, and Design for the Environment. This approach can help organizations initiate or improve sustainable production practices.

Modern lifestyles have popularised the use of food containers, also known as food savers or Tupperware. However, their environmental impacts are currently unknown. To fill this knowledge gap, this paper presents the first comprehensive assessment of the life cycle environmental sustainability of reusable plastic and glass food savers and evaluates different options for improvements, focusing on European conditions. Taking a cradle-to-grave approach, the paper considers twelve environmental impacts, including global warming potential (GWP), acidification, eutrophication, human and ecotoxicities. The results suggest that, for example, the total GWP of using both types of food saver in the European Union (EU) amounts to 653 kt CO 2 eq./year, equivalent to the annual greenhouse gas emissions of Bermuda. The use stage is the main contributor to the impacts (>40%), related to the washing of containers. Glass food savers have 12%–64% higher impacts than the plastic and should have up to 3.5 times greater lifespan to match the environmental footprint of plastic containers. Three improvement scenarios have been considered at the EU level for the year 2020: low-carbon electricity mix; implementation of the EU eco-design regulation for dishwashers; and adoption of more resource-efficient hand dishwashing techniques. The results suggest that the implementation of all three improvement options would reduce the impacts by 12%–47%. The option with the greatest potential for reducing the impacts (12%–27%) is improved hand dishwashing to reduce the amount of water, energy and detergents used. Thus, policy makers and manufacturers should devise strategies to raise awareness and guide consumers in adopting these techniques with the aim of reducing the environmental impacts associated with reusable food savers used by millions of people worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global supply chains (GoSCs) have become common for industries. However, relatively little research has emphasized products' complex supply chain environmental assessments. Against this background, this paper maps key environmental issues in the GoSCs of the West Africa cashew industry. The initial-oriented green design and supply chain-wide assessment of the kernel product system was conducted through an eco-design approach based on the matrix method, life cycle design strategy wheel and analytical hierarchical process. The results reveal static/technical eco-design issues that can reduce negative environmental impacts. Additionally, it highlights the strategic opportunities for redesign related to the selection of low-impact materials and gaseous emission. The main issues that arise in mapping the complex supply chains such as the need to re-examine some environmental issues such as solid and liquid residues from production and processing stages as more strategic concerns are discussed. In conclusion, the study points out that it is important not to compromise supply chain-wide assessment of environmental impacts and to understand both technical and strategic values of environmental issues in complex supply chains of products even at the initial stage of interest in green supply chain design. Thus, the eco-design approach of the study has potential to enhance environmental sustainability. [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]

This paper examines the emerging circular economy trends in universities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The circular economy is a model that aims to reduce waste and maximize the use of resources, promoting sustainable development. The study analyses UAE universities' various initiatives to adopt circular economy practices, including using renewable energy, sustainable building design, and waste reduction strategies. The paper also discusses the challenges and opportunities for implementing circular economy practices in universities in the UAE and highlights examples of circular economy initiatives in various universities. The paper concludes by providing recommendations for universities in the UAE to promote sustainable practices further and contribute to the circular economy movement. The findings of this study provide insights into the emerging circular economy trends in universities in the UAE and offer directions for future research in this area. The ADKAR change management can be adapted to inspire the CE initiatives of the UAE Education sector.

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether circular economy principles are applied in existing residential solar thermal systems, and to propose a pathway that will combine existing tools and methods for assessing life cycle data under proper design modifications and labelling options, to reach circular economy targets. The proposed holistic scheme covers various aspects (i.e., energy saving potential, environmental impacts, expected lifetime, recycling-reusing capabilities, use of advanced materials, and purchase cost) and comprises the implementation of eco-design principles based on life cycle assessment results and categorization of the final outcome via a circular economy modified label. Thus redesigned solar thermal systems will exhibit optimized characteristics being more lightweight and durable with minimized use of resources/waste and providing ease of disassembly of selected parts aiming for reuse options. • Examine if circular economy principles apply to residential solar thermal systems. • AsSessing LCA data under proper ED and EL options, to reach CE targets. • Use of LCA and EL in an ED implementation context in solar thermal systems. • Redesign solar thermal devices for optimized technical - environmental performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental protection, quality requirements for products, eco -design of materials, increasing of production volume and market competition force the manufacturers to adapt to these requirements and also to economic issues. A mathematical method is applied to the solution of this problem. The individual factors of environmental and economic character are expressed by means of different equations having universal validity. The most important factor of the given ones is the so called natural capital, alias natural resources. They are derived from the environment. Each of summarized criterions is represented by its graphical form. An application to the automotive industry closes the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Demand for urban mobility continue to be on the rise and the changing landscape has profound repercussions on a varied range of issues as well as health, safety, water, transport and energy consumption. For this reason, to achieve sustainable urbanization, cities must generate better employment opportunities, expand the necessary infrastructure, ensure equal access to services, preserve the natural assets within the city and surrounding areas. In this context, even in motorsport (particularly in FIA) future trends are beginning to be oriented to sustainability issues and there is a growing interest in assessing the sustainability profile of racing vehicles. Environmental protection and eco-mobility represent the main challenge facing Formula-E by offering electric vehicles (EVs) designed to combine technology, innovation and sustainability, as well as to enable the transition towards low-carbon smart cities in the next future. Up today the sustainability issues in Formula-E have been treated exclusively at system level (i.e. logistics and management, travel, infrastructure and so on), but no studies exist at component level. Technological development related to racing performance field is also potentially boosting innovation, thus supporting continuous improvement of electrical powertrain in terms of efficiency, performance and optimal use of materials, such as rare earths for electric motors and active materials for batteries. The target of the paper is the development and implementation of a tailored methodological approach to assess the environmental impacts of the whole Life-Cycle (LC) of a Formula-E electric motor. The primary data collection is functional to enhance knowledge and inventory regarding the specific application. At the same time, the results provide useful indications to both improve product development under eco-design perspective and ensure technology transfer from racing high-performance cars to commercial vehicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes an eco-design method to suggest improvements over an existing diaphragm forming process (DFP). In the proposed method, a systematic procedure is developed to provide eco-design guidance to engineers, and it includes four steps. In Step 1, design functions are analysed through functional diagrams to provide the information of sub-functions and functional flows. In Step 2, the eco-design requirements are captured via quality functional deployment (QFD) and then translated to design functions via functional analysis (FA). Then, the design functions are prioritized according to the eco-design requirements in considerations. In Step 3, the prioritized design functions are used to generate possible design concepts through the morphological chart. In Step 4, the generated concepts are assessed based on the energy use and process time of DFP. The utility of the proposed method is to adapt quality tools for continual improvements in the context of eco-design. An existing DFP is used for this work to demonstrate and validate the method’s applicability. The result of this research shows that the integration of QFD and FA can systematically guide the generation of new eco-design concepts for DFP with less dependence of design intuitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The choices made in the early design stage (EDS) will largely define the environmental impacts of a product. The purpose of this paper is to develop an ecodesign method used for assessing semi-quantitatively the sustainability of an additively manufactured product since the EDS. This article presents a semiquantitative method to support EDS-conscious environmental decisions. A novel Sustainable-Failure Mode, Effect, and Criticality Analysis (S-FMECA) tool is developed to support designers in the conceptual design phase, to guide the choices, and to provide a valuable evaluation of the future additively manufactured product. Through the integration of the environmental aspects in FMECA analysis, systematic prevention of errors, and enhancement of sustainability since the EDS would be the main advantage of this tool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrification of vehicles is seen nowadays as a promising way to decarbonize the personal transportation. The assessment of environmental impacts of electric batteries is usually case-specific due to the complex modelling of such systems which present a large variability in designs, in user behavior or in geographic use conditions. A typical example is the battery lifespan which is arbitrarily chosen in most cases, even though it has a decisive influence on lifecycle emissions. Computing the battery lifespan in addition to a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) would enable to highlight new hotspots and new parameters to reduce the environmental impacts of batteries. This paper introduces a new approach, based on a LCA conducted with the open-source software Brightway and built on primary data collected from a complete disassembly of a commercial electric vehicle. An original functional unit has been proposed that better represents the service offered by the battery over its lifetime and a semi-empirical ageing model has been integrated to predict more precisely the battery lifespan depending on design parameters and the use conditions. This innovative methodology is easily parameterized and aims to compare several eco-design strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, the reduction of weight in automotive is a very important topic to reduce the air pollution. In this context, the purpose of the present paper is to analyze a real case study through a comparison of the environmental impacts between a conventional steel bumper and a polyester prototype. In the first part of this work, a door-to-door life-cycle assessment methodology was used throughout the study of the component manufacturing phase. The SimaPro 7.1 software is used to evaluate the impacts of both bumpers on the environment and health. The second part is devoted to dust analysis from the polyester workshop. The obtained results have allowed us to show the company that its choice of steel substitution by the polyester is advantageous for certain impacts including the impact of climate change, but unfortunately there may be, given the working conditions of the polyester workshop, a transfer of impact, since we will end up with a risk of health (irritations, cancers) for the workers. LCA has proven to be a very useful tool for validating a redesigned automotive component from an environmental point of view; from this case study, several recommendations were made for the company to design environmentally friendly components, and ecodesign should be introduced into the company's procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the environmental crises of recent decades, a turning point in the awareness of the fragility of ecosystems has been marked, i.e., environmental awareness. This has contributed to the development of various environmental laws and regulations such as the "Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment," the "Restriction of Hazardous Substances," and the "Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals" regulations and the "Energy Using Products" Directives. Our work contributes to the development of eco-friendly product manufacturing processes. In order to estimate and optimize the environmental impacts of a product, most of the methodologies, concepts, and tools that integrate computer-aided design (CAD) and life cycle assessment systems generally exploit the feature technology at the level of each feature independently of the others, i.e., "microplanning." The feature interaction technology (FIT) is treated only in few studies, but it is pivotal in the eco-manufacturing process. In this paper, we propose a new manufacturing-scenarios-based methodology by using FIT and a Multi-criteria Decision Support Method (MCDSM), which helps manufacturers maintain their marketplaces by producing goods in an eco-friendly way. In fact, this methodology helps designers choose from the CAD design phase the most ecological manufacturing process from possible existent scenarios in real time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the role of design in making firms eco-innovate. Going beyond the 'packed' approach of environmental studies about 'eco-design', we maintain that the eco-innovative impact of design is correlated with the firm's decision to invest in it. In turn, design investment is assumed connected with the use firms make of design. By pooling the Eurobarometer 2015 and 2016 surveys, we test for these arguments with respect to a sample of nearly 4500 European and non-European (US and Switzerland) manufacturing firms. Results confirm that the firms' capacity of eco-innovating increases when they invest in design, also by making this investment dependent on the role of design within the firm. The relationship between eco-innovation and design appears robust with respect to the different kinds of 'eco-innovators' that the Eurobarometer enables us to consider, while some interesting variability emerges when splitting the sample by group of countries and industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Welding is a widely used technology that allows the joining of thick metal plates for the development of large structures (e.g. piping, tanks, vessels). Many industries are intensively using welding for manufacturing and assembly activities. Sustainability assessment of welded structures is currently performed with misleading information in terms of data heterogeneity (nature) and quality (source). The data required to carry out a robust environmental analysis are spread among different documents and become available only when the project is finalized. This paper aims to define a data framework for a life cycle inventory of metal arc welding processes to preventively assess the environmental performances of different processes for comparison and decision-making analysis. The framework is presented as innovative solutions for life cycle inventory that provide (i) a common data structure (model), (ii) necessary data (input/output), and (iii) physical allocation/placement of data (project design documents). This study was performed in accordance with the international standard organization ISO 14040/14044 by using an attributional life cycle assessment (aLCA). Two structures (an oil and gas riser and a ship hull) were investigated considering the same functional unit: the manufacturing, use, and disposal of a welded structure able to guarantee the engineering requirements (according to a specific standard) in terms of strain, stress, and corrosion allowance over the expected lifetime of 20 years. In both cases, the share of welding process in respect to an overall product/structure life cycle impact assessment is strictly dependant on the project design choice and can be negligible for high-corrosion-resistance materials (e.g., Inconel alloy). On the other hand, the use of traditional metals (e.g., carbon steel) allows a large decrease of the environmental load, and the influence of the welding process becomes significant in a life cycle perspective. [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]

This paper attempts to conduct a comparative life cycle environmental analysis of alternative versions of a product that was manufactured with the use of additive technologies. The aim of the paper was to compare the environmental assessment of an additive-manufactured product using two approaches: a traditional one, based on the use of SimaPro software, and the authors’ own concept of a newly developed artificial intelligence (AI) based approach. The structure of the product was identical and the research experiments consisted in changing the materials used in additive manufacturing (from polylactic acid (PLA) to acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)). The effects of these changes on the environmental factors were observed and a direct comparison of the effects in the different factors was made. SimaPro software with implemented databases was used for the analysis. Missing information on the environmental impact of additive manufacturing of PLA and ABS parts was taken from the literature for the purpose of the study. The novelty of the work lies in the results of a developing concurrent approach based on AI. The results showed that the artificial intelligence approach can be an effective way to analyze life cycle assessment (LCA) even in such complex cases as a 3D printed medical exoskeleton. This approach, which is becoming increasingly useful as the complexity of manufactured products increases, will be developed in future studies.

The extended producer responsibility system and government intervention are among the essential requirements for constructing sustainable economies. In a closed-loop supply chain consisting of an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and a third-party remanufacturer (TPR), this paper develops four Stackelberg game models for four modes of government intervention under patent licensing: no intervention, tax and subsidy, tax and subsidy plus eco-design tax deduction, and eco-design tax deduction only. The impacts of the different government interventions on the optimal production decision, social welfare, and environment are analyzed and compared. The results indicate that, compared with no government intervention, government tax and subsidy decrease the supply of new products, increase supply of remanufactured products, and raise recycling rates of end-of-life products; on top of tax and subsidy, the government's eco-design tax deduction can further increase OEM and TPR profits; the environmental impact under different government intervention depends on the ratio of the environmental impacts of remanufactured to new products and the level of eco-design effort. This study provides decision makers (i.e., OEM and TPR) and policy makers (i.e., governments) with new managerial insights on the benefits of eco-design and effective mechanisms to promote it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proposed methodology is based on a (global and multi-criteria) simplified environmental but thorough assessment. In this stage we do not directly give the solution to designers. It will therefore translate the results of evaluation design axes, but in general, the lines proposed are inconsistent or contradictory. Therefore, what we find is a compromise given to the solution. The challenge we are facing in an industrial reality is that one should not go for a compromise solution. TRIZ (Teorija Reshenija Izobretateliskih Zadatch) or the theory of solving inventive problems, in the field, will be reformulated and go through the contradiction matrix and then intervene with the principles of interpretation resolutions to give possible solutions. To assist small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in their product development, the objective of this paper is to propose a methodological approach named Ecatriz , that will allow us to achieve our eco-innovative goal. The applicability of this method is justified by the many contradictions in the choices in a study of the life cycle. As a starting point, a qualitative multi-criteria matrix will allow the prioritization of all impacts on the environment. A customized implementation of the inventive TRIZ (Teorija Reshenija Izobretateliskih Zadatch , Russian acronym for theory of solving inventive problems) principles will help us choose eco-innovative solutions. To that end, we have created a new approach named Ecatriz (ecological approach TRIZ), based on a new contradiction matrix. It was tested in various contexts, such as the "24 h of Innovation" competition and eco-innovative patents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the new model for eco-design of fixtures based on life cycle and cost assessment. Four fixture types with different mechanical and physical properties as well as different manufacturing costs have been evaluated. The life cycle results show that the environmental impact is closely related to the mass of steel needed for fixture manufacture. On the other hand, the fixture with the largest environmental impact had the smallest total fixture cost and vice versa. The results show that it is possible to implement environmental and cost analysis in fixture design process and to enable comparative analysis of fixture constructions by three standpoints, technical, environmental and economic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Goal: Companies are increasingly concerned about the life cycle of their products in the economic and environmental perspectives. One of the processes that generates great financial returns is the injection molding process. But this process results in many impacts to the environment. The environmental concern has generated many studies involving this theme and the difficulty of measuring the impacts generated by this process. In view of the environmental concern and the injection molding process this study aims to review in the literature on eco-design tools based on the Streamlined Life Cycle Assessment of plastic injection molded products. Design / Methodology / Approach: The review of the literature was carried out by researching for complete articles published in three databases (Science Direct, Scopus and Web of Science), among the years 2013 - 2018, using combinations of keywords and Boolean operators. Results: Several studies revealed that injection molding generates many impacts, such as the high consumption of electricity caused by the emission of greenhouse gases and use of raw material. Limitations of the investigation: This paper is not free of limitations. The study analyzed the literature through three databases for a period of time and used a combination of keywords. It may be that some document has not been analyzed. Practical implications: The development of a rapid tool for the application of LCA studies will allow quick decision-making to the managers in the environmental perspective, besides reducing costs, reducing time with the application of complex studies, and assisting the designer to develop the Eco-design. Originality / Value: The study addressed the injection molding process and there are no studies in the literature that characterize this theme. Thus, a study that addresses this gap and evidences the importance of the development of an environmental tool that assists sustainable practices in the process of plastic injection molding becomes important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Designing environmentally friendly products has become a tighter requirement in the marketplace because of both the increasing trend in awareness of consumers and the obligations from legislation requirements. Unfortunately, this is not a straight forward decision for designers to evaluate whether their design options are satisfactory in terms of balancing various factors (for examples, different forms of environmental assessment) or not. This is partly attributed to the fact that there is no universally accepted approach for conducting such analysis. In this connection, this research makes reference to a European Union (EU) directive as a reference model and makes use of Analytic Hierarchical Process (AHP), which is a useful tool to help designers to make decision, for evaluating eco-design options. The AHP model is developed based on two case studies on consumer electronic products. Pairwise comparisons, one of the key steps in AHP, are conducted with the expertise gained from the case studies and the help from the software package Expert Choice. The paper also reveals how design options can be evaluated, or be screened out. The proposed method does not require the designers to conduct detailed analysis (life-cycle assessment for example) for every new product options and hence can save their time. This is particularly important when they are facing shorter and shorter product life cycle nowadays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pakistan is a developing country characterized by a growing industrialization, which is the major cause of environmental pollution in the country. To control the significant increase in pollution a green incentive has started, aiming to moderate the adverse effects of environmental pollution. Thus, Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) plays an important role in influencing the total environment impact of any organizations. This study considers ten Pakistani industries that have implemented GSCM practices. The Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory technique (DEMATEL) is used to find influential factors in selecting GSCM criteria. The results show that organizational involvement is the most important dimension useful to implement GSCM practices. In addition, commitment from senior managers, ISO 14000 certification of suppliers and recycle of waste heat are considered significant factors. The paper also signifies the casual relationship among the dimensions and the factors in the form of diagraphs. The main management implication of the paper is to help decision makers to focus on the critical dimensions/factors in order to implement the GSCM practices more effectively in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even though the relevance of solid waste management goals for our societies becomes more and more acknowledged around the globe, one of the major challenges is to get the level of attention needed from those who are responsible for making the decisions. Waste management is one issue among others of the issues policy-makers do have to take care of, but many times other issues seem to have a higher priority. This prioritization often is also based on the aim of achieving short term effects and does not take into account infrastructural synergies that may be realized when tackling waste management issues as well as middle and long-term effects of addressing or neglecting waste management challenges, even though when basic waste management needs are addressed there are interfaces between the waste sector and the producing sectors that need to be handled in a reasonable way in order to allow for securing that pollutants and harmful substances are being concentrated in the waste management sphere and a portion of secondary materials as high as possible is being recycled. This paper shows examples of the challenges addressed and proposes how these could be handled in the future for the sake of the implementation of a circular economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Refrigeration is used in several sectors: starting from large-scale distribution to the medical industry. It is responsible for about 17% of total electricity consumption and around 8% of greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental performances analysis of refrigeration machines thus represents a significant step towards emissions reduction related to their use. This paper shows a comparative life cycle assessment among three refrigeration systems: the first one operating with a traditional refrigerant, the latter with a natural one. The analysis was performed following the international standards ISO 14040/14044. The functional unit was: 'the storage of food at 0°C, for a lifetime of 10 years in cold rooms of a supermarket. The aim was to define useful ecodesign rules applicable during the design phase; this represents a starting point for a constant improvement of company products. The results highlight how the use phase weights the most on the environment: it represents about 99% of the whole life cycle impact in the climate change indicator. The new design machine with natural fluid, proves to be the most eco-friendly; on the other hand, the one operating with a traditional refrigerant is the most impactful in each phase of the life cycle, due to both its higher power consumption and weight. Based on results, company strategies are drawn up to optimise refrigeration systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) represent a promising solution to mitigate carbon emissions by road transportation. However, life cycle assessment (LCA) studies on BEVs have demonstrated that batteries are responsible for around 30% of the vehicle's environmental impacts. Therefore, the integration of circular economy (CE) criteria in battery design and life cycle management is key to improve resource efficiency and environmental sustainability. Nevertheless, literature analysing the implementation of CE design criteria in BEVs´ battery development is scarce. Focusing on Li-ion batteries (LIB) for BEVs, this paper examines the potential for implementation of life cycle-based CE design criteria. Accordingly, a CE design assessment tool, including a list of 53 relevant design criteria gathered from the literature, industrial practice and EU legislation, with application to BEVs´ batteries, was shared with industrial stakeholders from the H2020 LIBERTY project (LC-BAT-10-2020 No. 963522) to receive feedback. The industrial stakeholders were asked to evaluate the potential implementation of each CE design criteria based on the relationship between importance and viability by providing scores from 0% to 94%.The results indicate that the most important CE design criteria are related to the manufacturing stage of LIBs, including innovations oriented to increase the performance and quality of the final product by anticipating to new legislation requirements, including resource and environmental aspects, for BEVs. On the other hand, design criteria related to the end of life (EOL) management of LIBs show low implementation potential due to low viability scores. The benefits of considering CE design criteria in LIB development are discussed as well as the potential trade-offs in order to support well-informed decision-making. This includes an analysis of the causes for the low score for some CE design criteria and the opportunities to improve their implementation potential to increase the resource efficiency and environmental performance of BEVs´ LIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design is preponderant in the world economy; it allows competition and enhances the development of innovations in the market. The expansion of product offerings provides options to satisfy the user's needs, which is an undeniable advance driven by design. However, this has led to a significant increase in the production of solid waste related to design, which generates environmental deterioration. Additionally, the supply of design products has been concentrated in the most economically favored sector, leaving out a large part of the world's population which are not met because they are not a market of interest for the productive industry in general. The content of this paper is the result of a collective debate from the authors, based on the analysis of documentary sources and their own experience as academics. Our objective is to encourage discussion for the creation of a common front oriented towards a design practice focused simultaneously on social development and environmental care; a design practice based on ethics and commitment to the environment and society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For many modern products, the use phase is intensive and poses a serious environmental impact because of the energy and resources consumed. This could be resolved by optimizing the product's environmental impact by improving the understanding of the users' relationship with it. In this work, we propose a model that can be used to include the use phase and the eco-oriented strategies in the environmental impact assessment of a product. This model takes into account the changing nature of the interactions between the user and the product over time. An indicator designated mitigation rate is introduced to help model this change. It acknowledges the loss in performance of eco-oriented strategies over time. This work presents the methodology to understand, model, and select among different eco-oriented strategies with different time frames. A case study is also presented, where four alternative models considering different eco-oriented strategies are shown and compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]