Life Cycle Commonality: As a Systematic Approach to Achieve Product Design for Sustainability

Author(s):  
Wenyuan Wang ◽  
Mitchell M. Tseng
Author(s):  
Yunpeng Li ◽  
Utpal Roy

Industries often employ heterogeneous computer aided tools (CAD/CAE/CAM) to carry out complex product designs and simulations resulting in a need for data sharing, data exchange, and computational activities. Nowadays the concept of “Design for Sustainability (DfS)” heightens this challenge, as most DfS approaches especially the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) involve large amounts of data collection, sharing and computation tasks throughout the product life cycle. ISO 10303, also known as STEP (STandard for the Exchange of Product model data), has evolved for several decades and provides a set of standards for industrial automation systems and integration. In this paper, we propose a STEP-based collaborative framework to integrate heterogeneous CAD tools, LCA tools and other necessary computational tools to support cooperative product design for sustainability. The geometric information from CAD tools and the material/process information from material/process databases are formally represented in suitable STEP application protocols (APs). An agent is implemented to parse the geometric and non-geometric information encoded in STEP data format, and compose them into a complete product tree represented with a NIST CPM (Core Product Model) based information model. The information in the product tree is then evaluated by a LCA tool to obtain environmental impact score. The feasibility and benefits of the proposed methodology have been illustrated with a typical stapler product.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7957
Author(s):  
Marco Haid ◽  
Julia N. Albrecht

This study examines sustainable tourism products in tourism destinations. Based on concepts of sustainable product design, our study proposes a framework for sustainable tourism products by adapting an existing Design for Sustainability Framework to consider and analyze the characteristics and themes of sustainable (tourism) products as well as their impact and scope. Using a pragmatic qualitative approach, 15 semi-structured interviews with destination managers from the German-speaking Alpine region formed the empirical basis of the study. The results emphasize key themes and multiple characteristics associated with sustainable tourism products in tourist destinations, addressing all sustainability components and design innovation levels. This study is the first to apply existing sustainable product design concepts to destination contexts and discuss their applicability for sustainable tourism products. For practitioners, this study provides support for the development of sustainable tourism products and contributes to a better understanding of the effects and levels of these products as well as sustainability marketing.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1036
Author(s):  
Siri Willskytt

Consumable products have received less attention in the circular economy (CE), particularly in regard to the design of resource-efficient products. This literature review investigates the extent to which existing design guidelines for resource-efficient products are applicable to consumables. This analysis is divided into two parts. The first investigates the extent to which general product-design guidelines (i.e., applicable to both durables and consumables) are applicable to consumables. This analysis also scrutinizes the type of recommendations presented by the ecodesign and circular product design, to investigate the novel aspects of the CE in product design. The second analysis examines the type of design considerations the literature on product-type specific design guidelines recommends for specific consumables and whether such guidelines are transferable. The analysis of general guidelines showed that, although guidelines are intended to be general and applicable to many types of products, their applicability to consumable products is limited. Less than half of their recommendations can be applied to consumables. The analysis also identified several design considerations that are transferable between product-specific design guidelines. This paper shows the importance of the life-cycle perspective in product design, to maximize the opportunities to improve consumables.


Author(s):  
Marilia Riul ◽  
Ingrid Moura Wanderley ◽  
Maria Cecilia Loschiavo dos Santos

Stuart Walker is Professor of Design for Sustainability and Co-Director of the Imagination Lancaster design research Centre at Lancaster University. Focused on design for sustainability; product aesthetics and meaning; practice-based design research and product design that explores and expresses both human values and notions of spirituality. He was interviewed in his second visit to Brazil to attend the Conference and Workshop "Design and the national policy of solid waste: dialogues on sustainability," held in the Sustainability Laboratory (Lassu) at the University of São Paulo (USP) in 2013, an activity of the research project sponsored by CNPq: Product design, sustainability and national policy on solid waste, coordinated by Professor Maria Cecilia Loschiavo dos Santos. Through the suggested questions, Professor Stuart Walker built a severe critique of our social system of mass production and reminded us that values really matter to our journey.


Author(s):  
Matt R. Bohm ◽  
Karl R. Haapala ◽  
Kerry Poppa ◽  
Robert B. Stone ◽  
Irem Y. Tumer

This paper describes efforts taken to further transition life cycle analysis techniques from the latter, more detailed phases of design, to the early-on conceptual phase of product development. By using modern design methodologies such as automated concept generation and an archive of product design knowledge, known as the Design Repository, virtual concepts are created and specified. Streamlined life cycle analysis techniques are then used to determine the environmental impacts of the virtual concepts. As a means to benchmark the virtual results, analogous real-life products that have functional and component similarities are identified. The identified products are then scrutinized to determine their material composition and manufacturing attributes in order to perform an additional round of life cycle analysis for the actual products. The results of this research show that enough information exists within the conceptual phase of design (utilizing the Design Repository) to reasonably predict the relative environmental impacts of actual products based on virtual concepts.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (8) ◽  
pp. 28-36
Author(s):  
S. V. GRIGORIEVA ◽  

The article highlights a systematic approach to the formation of a strategic stability management system for a transport enterprise. The transport enterprise is considered as an open socio-ecological-economic sys-tem. In this aspect, the essence and life cycle of the strategic sustainability management system of the enter-prise are considered. The main administration is considered as the technological basis of the strategic stability management system of the enterprise.


Author(s):  
Patrick Di Marco ◽  
Charles F. Eubanks ◽  
Kos Ishii

Abstract This paper describes a method for evaluating the compatibility of a product design with respect to end-of-life product retirement issues, particularly recyclability. Designers can affect the ease of recycling in two major areas: 1) ease of disassembly, and 2) material selection for compatibility with recycling methods. The proposed method, called “clumping,” involves specification of the level of disassembly and the compatibility analysis of each remaining clump with the design’s post-life intent; i.e., reuse, remanufacturing, recycling, or disposal. The method uses qualitative knowledge to assign a normalized measure of compatibility to each clump. An empirical cost function maps the measure to an estimated cost to reprocess the product. The method is an integral part of our life-cycle design computer tool that effectively guides engineers to an environmentally responsible product design. A refrigerator in-door ice dispenser serves as an illustrative example.


Author(s):  
R. J. Engel ◽  
P. J. Tyler ◽  
L. R. Wood ◽  
D. T. Entenmann

Westinghouse has been a strong supporter of Reliability, Availability, and Maintainability (RAM) principles during product design and development. This is exemplified by the actions taken during the design of the 501F engine to ensure that high reliability and availability was achieved. By building upon past designs, utilizing those features most beneficial, and improving other areas, a highly reliable product was developed. A full range of RAM tools and techniques were utilized to achieve this result, including reliability allocations, modelling, and effective redesign of critical components. These activities began during the conceptual design phase and will continue throughout the life cycle of these engines until they are decommissioned.


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