Industrial Ecology U.S.-Japan Perspectives (1994) / Chapter Skim
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5 Manufactured Products
5 Manufactured Products
Pages 28-36
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From page 28... ...
Integrating environmental concerns in design entails incorporating those factors and activities downstream and upstream from design activities. Much of this integration involves unspecifiable knowledge of the downstream and upstream operating environment.
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P E R S P E C T I V E S Evaluating Environmental Impacts RICHARD DENISON Efforts to effect environmentally conscious design and practices in industry involve the serious evaluation of lifecycle environmental burdens associated with a product, process, or practice. As industry moves to integrate environmental concerns into product and process innovation, it needs to appraise the energy and materials uses and environmental releases associated with that innovation.
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From page 30... ...
This third component of the LCA model, improvement analysis, draws on the inventory and effects analysis. It is a systematic quantitative and qualitative evaluation of opportunities to improve efficiency and productivity, use raw materials frugally, substitute more abundant and environmentally preferable materials for those that are less so, find new uses for waste, and reuse or recycle products at the end of their lives.
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From page 31... ...
Combined with environmental data bases, it may be used to meet customer demands for environmentally preferable products. Japan is exploring use of the C&C structure of flexible manufacturing systems to incorporate environmental considerations into manufacturing practice.
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Leading firms that adopted the concurrent engineering approach early on have claimed significant benefits in reducing product development time and product costs and in improving quality. This existing design program appears to be the best route for integrating environmental considerations in design.
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From page 33... ...
In general, the elimination of a component is preferable to making it lighter, its design for reuse is preferable to design for recycling of its materials, and so on through the hierarchy. Throughout the design process, general rules for environmental performance are used, such as the following: · Does the design minimize environmental impact by the product?
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From page 34... ...
Does it help achieve sustainable development? Products that exhibit environmentally sensitive designs include paints that eliminate the use of volatile organic solvents; electronic equipment housings made of a single polymer without using labels or captive metal fasteners, which allows for easier material recycling; and even an electronic answering service provided by a telephone company in place of a hardwired answering machine at the user's office.
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From page 35... ...
Studies of fairly simple consumer items, such as reusable versus disposable diapers, have come to opposite conclusions, depending on the assumptions made. Decisions based on LCA alone are clouded by poor data, uncertainties, and conflicting social values inherent in the analysis.
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From page 36... ...
1991. A Technical Framework for Life-Cycle Assessments.
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