FURNITURE PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

FURNITURE USE EXTENSION/INTENSIFICATION
  • Facilitate the removal and replacement of easy to wear-out parts, such as mechanisms and joints for movable parts, e.g. wheels or legs of seats, desks and storages.
  • Use universal standard elements for mechanisms and joints for movable parts.
  • Keep the same joints when changing furniture collections.
  • Facilitate the access to parts in order to simplify cleaning, avoiding narrow interspaces, slots and holes, e.g. by designing round internal edges of drawers and shelves for quick and easy cleaning. Natura office chair – Grammer
  • [seats] Properly cover chair mechanisms to prevent dust and dirt from accumulating and limiting their functioning, e.g. height adjustment mechanisms.
  • [desks] Properly cover desk height adjustment mechanisms to prevent dust and dirt from accumulating and limiting their functioning.
  • [storage] Install compensation boards at the top/bottom/side of storage furniture to avoid dust from getting under/on the top/side.
  • Consider using surfaces that are resistant to dust and dirt, such as sleek surfaces, dust/dirt-repellent surfaces or textiles.
  • Design products that allow maintenance with easily available tools, e.g. use screws with standard hexagonal heads in seats, desks and storage furniture.
  • Provide a maintenance kit for cleaning, such as customized brushes to clean (unavoidable) narrow interspaces, slots and holes or surface specific staining removal detergent for seats, desks and storage furniture.
  • Provide information on how to clean the product and multi-context maintenance tool kit.
  • Facilitate alternative cleaning solutions or more automatic cleaning systems, such as steam cleaning or UV solutions.
  • Reduce the need of maintenance operations/procedures, e.g. with textured seats cover to hide stains or with anti-dust surface treatments on seats, desk and storage products.
  • Design modular products to facilitate the substitution/cleaning of parts instead of substitution/cleaning of the entire product. The Klippan sofa – Ikea; Let it be modular sofa – Poltrona Frau; Vimle sofa – Ikea
  • Design reconfigurable furniture that is able to adapt to different spaces/situations, such as modular desk and storage structures that can be used for both the transformation of a given office space or for a new function (e.g. an individual working station that can be transformed into a collective one, and that can also be rearranged if the office moves to a new location). The Klippan sofa – Ikea; Hack table system – Vitra; Let it be modular sofa – Poltrona Frau; Vimle sofa – Ikea
  • Design family of products instead of single ones, with different properties and functions that enable adaptation. Modular furniture – Gispen
  • Include add-on parts to transform and/or upgrade function and properties of the furniture.
  • Design for changeable ergonomic positions, e.g. height adjustable desk and chairs.
  • Avoid premature aesthetic obsolescence by designing furniture that can be customized (e.g. exchangeable seat covers) or personalised with a corporate identity via software to avoid add-on brand identification operations (printing, adhesive plates, etc.) Modular furniture – Gispen
  • Consider designing multi-functional products that can adapt to the user’s development (physical and cultural). Care practical multifunctional product – Stokke
  • [Seats] Design modular and on-site upgradable seats, allowing the user to substitute (with standard tools) fixed feet with wheels and/or fixed components to adjustable ones. Modular furniture – Gispen; Let it be modular sofa – Poltrona Frau; Vimle sofa – Ikea
  • [Desks] Design modular and on-site upgradable desks, allowing the user to add (with standard tools) drawers, change drawer’s typology, add inner cabling cabinets, etc.
  • [Storage] Design modular and on-site upgradable storage, allowing the user to add (with standard tools) shells, change drawer’s typology, etc.
  • Co-design furniture and connection platforms such as flooring, ceilings and walls.
  • Include multiple connection possibilities on tables and storages, e.g. electricity cables, joints to combine table surfaces, etc.
  • Provide website and/or app with instructions and tools to enable maintenance and repair by the user, such as periodic maintenance procedures, e.g. cleaning of hard surfaces (desk, storage), inspection, repair and lubrification (height-adjustable mechanism for office chairs or wheels).
  • [Desks] If related to tech devices, enable upgrading and design reconfigurable desks according to forecastable technology development, e.g. Wi-Fi system/wireless system of automated desks.
  • Simplify the furniture as much as possible, e.g. by reducing the number of components.
  • Avoid weak connections, especially movable mechanisms such as fasteners joints between plastic components in chairs; use certified connectors (e.g. by CE).
  • Design resistant furniture to prevent damage: use high resistant materials for sensitive parts, e.g. edges of tables and cabinets, office seat back joints Navy Chair – Emeco
  • Use highly resistant materials for handles, hinges and sliding mechanisms of drawers and storage furniture doors.
  • [Storage] If using glass doors, consider stratified glass.
  • [Desks] Avoid that table edges get quickly worn off.
  • Facilitate the access for the removal of parts and components (such as expensive mechanisms) that can be remanufactured, e.g. use reversible connections or two-way snap-fits without glue within assemblies; use removable cover protection to interchange components between products by differentiating structural parts from surface ones. Remanufacture furniture – Davies Office
  • Facilitate the access for the removal of parts (especially expensive mechanisms) that can be re-used, such as chair (e.g. seats, wheels, tripod legs, covers) and storage locker components (e.g. hinges, metal, rubber feet, handles, locks).
  • Use reversible connections or two-way snap-fits (avoiding whenever possible gluing in assembling processes), use removable cover protection to interchange components among objects (differentiate structure and surface).
  • Facilitate disassembly, especially for parts that are easy to wear out such as task chair wheels and back, upholstery and desk surfaces, by using reversible connections or two-way snap-fits system. Mirra chair – Herman Miller
  • Facilitate the replacement of external parts, such as castors, sofa covers (clothes), upholstered chair. Ara Chair – Orangebox
  • [Desks] Facilitate the disassembly of tabletops from the supporting structure/legs. Lisabo table – Ikea
  • [Seats] Facilitate the dismantling and substitution of upholstery/foam/ fabrics/leather of seats.
  • Design modular and interchangeable parts and components. Modular furniture – Gispen
  • Design standard parts and components that can be replaced, improve durability and facilitate easy repair, e.g. handles, screws, feet, shelves for storage lockers; wheels, bearings, screws, bolts, felt pads pillows, covers for chairs; pillows, felt, pads, feet for sofas.
  • Increase the resistance of easy to wear-out or easy to damage parts by using more resistant materials.
  • Increase the resistance of easy to wear-out or easy to damage parts by using protective removable layers, e.g. table edges, seat upholstery and fabrics, seat wheels, highadjustable mechanisms, armrest, table surfaces, storage shells; and by avoiding painting layers sensible to scratches.
  • Foresee re-use of auxiliary parts, e.g. desktop divider as shelves, the protective cover of mechanisms as sofa pillows, writing board of conference chairs. Remanufacture furniture – Davies Office
  • Incorporate packaging that can be re-used by the manufacturer, e.g. by using packaging that can adapt to different products or by using foldable and more resistant packaging materials.
  • Incorporate collapsible packaging.
  • Design structural parts that can be easily separated from external parts, such as mechanisms and their protection parts, bookcases and doors.
  • [Seats] Facilitate the substitution of furniture upholstery fabrics/leather by designing easy removable slipcovers.
  • Facilitate the substitution of movable parts, such as castors of furniture products, arm/ backrest of chairs and height-adjustable mechanisms.
  • Plan adequate tolerance or dimensioning at weak points, such as connection points or most used parts (e.g. storage corner joints, hinge and chair casters).
  • Avoid self-tapping screws that can be screwed and unscrewed only a few times.
  • Consider material abundance in points which are subject to wear and tear, e.g. abrasion of castors.
  • Use a larger amount of finishing/coating materials on surfaces that tend to deteriorate rapidly (e.g. table or storage edges).
  • Design products with integrated functions, e.g. chairs that allow different positions, storage furniture with integrated locker.
  • Design product-service systems for shared use.
  • [Storage] Consider storage furniture that is adaptable for different purposes, such as storage of personal belongings/eating (e.g. heating/cooling).
  • [Desks] Consider tables that are adaptable/customizable (e.g. exchangeable drawers for personal belongings).
REDUCE MATERIAL CONSUMPTION OF FURNITURE
  • Dematerialize the furniture or some of its parts, such as handle systems in store component shapes with handle as “hole” embodied in locker door shape. Ripple table – Layer Design
  • Design suitable dimensions for structure parts, e.g. reduce the thickness of components according to material properties, resistance requirements and processing technology.
  • Apply 3D printing in furniture, e.g. for chair backrest and handles.
  • Avoid over-dimensioning by analysing the function, standard references and typical use of the furniture.
  • Use reinforcing structures such as ribbed/honeycombed (e.g. for tabletop) structures or T-sections, hollow shapes (for rotationally moulded plastics and die-cast metals) to improve stiffness and avoid distortions. Setu chair – Herman Miller
  • Take material reduction and structural reinforcement, such as rib reinforcements to reduce materials, into consideration especially regarding storage doors or desks. Ripple table – Layer Design
  • Avoid parts or components which are not strictly functional. Eco Monomateric wooden chair – Futureproof
  • Provide storage cabinets options with reduced components, e.g. with or without doors.
  • Prefer production processes that minimise scraps and waste, such as bent plywood instead of massive wood. Eco Monomateric wooden chair – Futureproof
  • Design tabletop, storage shelves and sides taking into consideration modularity and standardization to avoid leftovers.
  • Select processing technology according to material properties and product requirements, such as die casting instead of moulding (e.g. for chair legs, etc.).
  • Avoid waste in injection moulding plastic parts caused by excessive wall thickness.
  • Apply 3D printing technologies when possible, e.g. for handles. From plastic waste to furniture with 3D printing – The New Raw
  • Use packaging material only where it is strictly necessary, e.g. protect with consistent packaging fragile parts of the furniture, such as glass tabletop, handles in locker storage, etc.
  • Design for the most efficient use of materials needed for maintenance, such as self-cleaning materials, materials that avoid/reduce the need of cleaning agents (e.g. water, soap, detergent), water repellent materials.
FURNITURE MATERIALS LIFE EXTENSION
  • Facilitate and foresee closed-loop recycling of materials within components with lower aesthetic/formal requirements.
  • Facilitate recycling of highly structural materials (e.g. wheels) into components with lower mechanic requirements (e.g. seat back).
  • Facilitate recycling of massive wood into chipboard.
  • Facilitate recycling of visible components into non-visible filling materials (e.g. chair or sofa pillows).
  • Facilitate and foresee closed-loop recycling of materials within components with lower mechanical requirements.
  • Avoid the use of contaminant materials, such as glued paper labels on the furniture and glued natural fibres.
  • Prefer label information that could be embedded in the injection process.
  • Avoid painting or coating on polymers (e.g. for chair seat, arms, back) in favor of colored polymers.
  • Select materials that recover more easily the original material characteristics after recycling.       
  • Adopt ribbed structures (or similar) to improve the stiffness of polymers instead of using reinforcing fibres, e.g. Nylon reinforced with glass fibres (PA-GF) as often involved in office chairs [chair].
  • Prefer thermoplastic polymers instead of thermosetting.
  • Avoid composite materials such as sandwich laminates (e.g. for tables or storage shelves) or fiber-based components (e.g. for chairs) in favor of monomaterial solutions (metals or polymers).
  • Avoid the use of fireproof additives by selecting thermoplastics that resist to high temperatures.
  • Design furniture considering the existing recycling systems, e.g. urban waste collection system.
  • Reduce product dimension and foresee easy stocking of disposed furniture products.
  • Facilitate the disassembly of furniture junctions. Lisabo table – Ikea
  • Design chair, tables and storage shapes according to stoking standards.
  • Design stackable chairs, foldable tables or compactable storage.
  • Facilitate the design of components for easy stocking, e.g. tabletops, shelves.
  • Reduce the weight of the furniture components/materials.
  • Design furniture that is able and easy to be compressed when disposed.
  • Inform the user about how the furniture or its parts can be disposed of.
  • Codify materials according to their type. Mirra chair – Hermann Miller
  • Add information on material age, conducted recycling processes and additives use.
  • Indicate the presence of toxic residues and contaminant materials.
  • Apply identification codes in places visible during the disassembly, e.g. near joints, places not subjected to wear out, on flat surfaces.
  • Use international standard identification systems, such as SPI codes, especially when open-loop recycling may occur.
  • Use one single material on a furniture product or one single material to produce each one of its parts, if possible (mono-material strategy). CAB Chair System – Cassina; Celle office armchair by Hermann Miller
  • Avoid the use of contaminant materials, such as adhesives for labels.
  • If necessary, facilitate the removal of contaminant materials, such as water-based adhesives for labels.
  • Use compatible materials that could be recycled together with the furniture or its subassembly.
  • Use joints made of the same or with compatible materials to the parts that need to be joined. Facilitate the sorting process in wood recycling.
  • Facilitate the design of components for easy stocking, e.g. tabletops, shelves.
  • [Desks] Facilitate the separation of bolts, nuts, screws and other small parts that are made of non-compatible materials, e.g. metal joints over plastic components.
  • [Seats] Consider castors with cores made of one material and that enable the easy disassembly of the outer rubber part.
REDUCE TOXICITY OF THE FURNITURE SYSTEM
  • Avoid the use of toxic and harmful materials for furniture products, such as toxic paintings, additives, adhesives or refinements for table-tops/edges, storage surfaces or chair joints. Customized organic furniture – EcoBalanza
  • Prefer water-based varnishing, additives, adhesives or refinements for all components of furniture. Renewable and biodegeable material furniture – Woodly
  • Avoid the use of additives and adhesives causing toxic and harmful emissions. Renewable and biodegeable material furniture – Woodly
  • Avoid toxic and harmful finishing processes/materials, such us formaldehyde and chromium plating.
  • Minimise the dispersion of toxic and harmful residues during furniture’s use, such as Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) emissions.
  • [Seats] Use low emission polyurethane or latex foam padding materials.
  • [Seats] Select Polyurethane foam complying with the requirements for VOC emissions.
  • Select surface material and finishing processes for furniture that avoid the need of toxic detergent for maintenance, such as use stainless steel with semi-gloss treatment.
  • Select energy resources that minimise toxic/harmful emissions during pre-production and production, such as electricity coming from renewable sources instead of fossil fuels.
  • Select energy resources that minimise toxic/harmful emissions during distribution, such as electric vehicles.
  • Select energy resources that minimise toxic/harmful emissions in disposal treatments, e.g. avoid furniture moving mechanisms with heavy metals batteries.
REDUCE ENERGY CONSUMPTION OF THE FURNITURE SYSTEM
  • Design for local-focused resources supply, such as energy generated by local renewable systems (e.g. photovoltaic systems, wind turbines, geothermal systems, hydroelectric systems).
  • Design for energy consumption efficiency, such as planning a production process shared by different furniture components.
  • Prefer materials with low energy consumption in pre-production and production, e.g. recycled aluminium instead of primary aluminium.
  • Prefer packaging processing technologies with low energy consumption levels.
  • Favour mechanical devices instead of electric powered devices, e.g. for adjustable office seats. iRock power generating rocking chair – Micasa Lab
  • Prefer cleaning processes that avoid energy consuming equipment.
  • Avoid internet-based manual and instruction for furniture assembling, maintenance, etc.
RESOURCES CONSERVATION/BIOCOMPATIBILITY FOR FURNITURE
  • Avoid materials from exhaustible resources.
  • Favour the use of highly renewable materials. Packaging artisan bamboo bed; a certified timber for furniture production, such as FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) and PEFC(Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification). Renewable and biodegeable material furniture – Woodly
  • Use materials derived from other production processes, such as chip wood scraps from massive wood production (e.g. table-tops) or fabric for chair upholstery taken from furniture production waste (e.g. sofa).
  • Use components from disposed products, such as handles, joints and mechanisms, e.g.use height and armrest regulation of chairs/desks as cables holder for desks. RePlastic Tables – Rype Office
  • Use recycled materials or recycled materials combined with new materials (e.g. mixtures for injection moulding consisting of recycled plastic and recycled wood chips). Navy Chair – Emeco; Econyl synthetic waste into new nylon yarn – Aquafil
  • Select renewable/non exhaustible energy resources.
  • Select small scale local energy resources.
DESIGN FOR FURNITURE DISASSEMBLY
  • Prioritize the disassembly of toxic and dangerous components or materials.
  • Prioritize the disassembly of components or materials with higher economic value, such as metal mechanism or wood panel. Office chairs – Wilkhahn
  • Prioritize the disassembly of more easily damageable or consumable components and materials, such as table top, book shelves, etc. Mirra chair – Herman Miller
  • Prefer modular structures, such as modular closet, sofa, etc. Vimle sofa – Ikea
  • Construct the product into easily separable and manipulatable sub-assemblies, such as bookshelves/wardrobe with inner panels. Ara Chair – Orangebox
  • Facilitate the removal of other components like handle.
  • Minimise the overall dimensions of furniture.
  • Minimise the quantity of different components.
  • Minimise hierarchically dependent connections among components, such as the mechanisms of task chair.
  • Co-design cutting or breaking paths with appropriate separation technologies for separating incompatible materials.
  • Suggest to the users how and with what device they could separate incompatible materials.
  • Provide information to the user together with the furniture about the characteristics of crushing separation, such as providing video resources online (website, app).

LeNSin – the International Learning Network of networks on Sustainability

2015-2019

Promoter and coordination of the EU-supported (ERASMUS+) project.

Multipolar and open network of networks for curricula development on Design for Sustainability, focused on Sustainable Product-Service Systems (S.PSS) applied to Distributed Economies (DE), funded by the European Union Erasums+ program (multiregional with 36 universities as partners and associate partners from Mexico, Brasil, South Africa, India, China and in Europe UK, Finland, The Netherlands, and Italy).

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LeNSes – the Learning Network on Sustainable energy systems

2013-2016

Promoter and coordination for the international research.

Multi-polar and open network for curricula and lifelong learning capacity development on System Design for Sustainable Energy for All (SD4SEA) focused on Sustainable Product-Service System applied to Distributed Renewable Energies (DRE), funded by the European Union Edulink program (bi-regional with Africa).

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Sustainability Maker

2012-2015

National coordinator for the international research, funded by the European Union Life+ program.

The Sustainability Maker project, promotes open innovation, crowd-sourcing, crowd-voting, crowd-funding platforms, and an online marketplace for Sustainable Solutions (www.sustainabilitymaker.org – www.innonatives.com). The platform combines a website and mobile application, to connect people who have identified sustainability-related problems with those who like to help to develop creative problem-solving solutions and support their implementation.

The SuM project has published on the platform several Design Challenges related to climate change, energy, resource efficiency, water, food, and agriculture/land use, urban environment, waste, and recycling; and encourages the innovation community of the Sustainability Maker platform to develop solutions to solve these problems. The ideas/concepts/solutions submitted are voted by the crowd (crowd-voting) and sustainability experts. The best solution(s) can be implemented either by the external actors who formulated the challenge or by other members of the platform and additional stakeholders (e.g. crowd-funding).

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TANGO – Towards A New interGenerational Openness, Project

2011-2013

National coordination for the international research funded by the European Union Culture program.

In this European level culture project, contemporary, sustainable and accessible design meets different European audiences of different age groups. The project brings forth issues of creativity, social design, and sustainability, and promotes intergenerational dialogue in three European countries: Finland, France, and Italy. The project explores different forms of sustainable design and how users, consumers, and audiences of different ages perceive them. One of the main results of the project is traveling exhibitions named TANGO, aiming at being a lab and a window to diffuse sustainable innovations.

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LeNS – the Learning Network on Sustainability

2007-2010

Promoter and coordinator of the international research, funded by the European Union Asia Links program, EuropAid, bioregional with Asia.

The Learning Network on Sustainability – LeNS is a 3 years project, involving 7 design schools in Europe and Asia, to develop an Asian-European multi-polar network for curricula development on Design for Sustainability focused on Product-Service System and to contribute to curriculum development, in a reciprocal understanding of cultures, by promoting a new generation of designers (and design educators) capable to effectively contribute to a transition towards a sustainable society.

LeNS promotes a new shared and articulated disciplinary ground on Design for Sustainability focused on Product-Service System, through a series of exchange activities and pilot courses at the partner institutions. LeNS has produced an open learning e-package, a modular package of teaching materials (texts, slide shows, audio, video, etc.) and tools for designers that design educators worldwide are able to download (free of charge), modify/remix and reuse (copyleft).

LeNS also promotes diffusion activities targeting the design community worldwide. As a project spin-off, the following affiliated HEIs network was established: LeNS Africa, LeNS South America, LeNS Central America, LeNS Oceania, LeNS German Speaking Languages, LeNS China, and LeNS India.

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SCORE! – Sustainable Consumption Research Exchanges

2005-2008

Coordinator of the design area for the international research, funded by the European Union, 6° Framework program.

Sustainable consumption and production (SCP) is key policy priority world-wide. In our view, sustainable consumption and production structures can only be realized if experts that understand business development, (sustainable) solution design, consumer behavior and effectiveness of (policy) instruments work together in shaping them. Furthermore, this should be linked with the experiences of actors (industry, consumer groups, ecolabelling organizations) in real-life consumption areas.

Since in the EU a network with these characteristics is absent, this project sets up a Co-ordination action on SCP, emphasizing “user awareness” for sustainable consumption, involving key expertise covering all relevant steps of the value chain in the priority consumption domain s Mobility, Agro-Food, and Energy/electronics. These domains contribute to over 70% of the life cycle impacts of household consumption, are a priority in the EU's Environmental Technologies Action Plan (ETAP), and give good examples of user awareness schemes (e.g. labeling).

The CA is organized around a series of Workshops and Conferences. The first workshop will provide a general exchange of views. The second phase of the project gives sustainable consumption cases in the domains center stage. These are used as vehicles for a positive confrontation of insights from different science fields, leading to true best practice generation, suggestions for implementation of user awareness approaches, research programming, and development of conceptual insights. The science and consumption domains are covered by 8 WP leaders and 21 Participants and will involve a much larger community of SCP experts from industry, government, and science. A close liaison with UNEP, promoting a 10 Year Framework of Programs on SCP will be organized. Finally, the CA should have to build a permanent, self-supporting research network in this field.

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System design for sustainable pilot project

2007-2008

Coordinator of the design area for the research.

Focused on the development of System design for a sustainable pilot project aiming at an introduction of locally-based and long-lasting mobility system for low-income contexts in Africa, within the international research Global UNIDO Network of University Chairs on Innovation, involving some African and some European universities (among which the Politecnico di Milano).

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MEPPS. Product Service Systems Methodology – Development of a toolkit for industry.

2001-2004

Coordination of the design area for the international research, coordinated by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), funded by the European Union, 5° Framework program.

The aim of this project was to develop an integrated methodology for the design of sustainable Product Service Systems (PSS), starting from three main thematic areas:

– PSS design (scenario development and sustainable PSS design)

– Assessment of environmental impacts (impact on micro, meso, and macro level)

– Success and failure factors (consumer acceptance, culture, and ethics)

These diverse approaches are converged in a unique methodology. The application of a common language as well as the definition of an ideal design process was crucial.

MEPSS is part of the Competitive and Sustainable Growth Programme of the Fifth Framework Programme, coordinated by PricewaterhouseCoopers N.V. with eight partners and 14 subcontractors.

The dimension of this project is strictly necessary, as its strength lies in its multidisciplinarity. This allows the chance to achieve one of the principle aims of the research: the development of an integrated methodology and theory on PSS.

Every scientific group of the project will provide its contribution to the development of this integrated methodology. At the same time, all of the results will be tested by an internal peer group and applied to pilot projects by other industrial partners (part of a larger group of participants who are coordinated through MEPSS).

The project proved promising because of its approach and because of the concreteness of the expected results, which were possible thanks to the direct application of the results and to the test of the set of tools and methods through pilot projects. All of the project participants agreed that the complexity of the problems raised from environmental degradation can be faced only through a complex approach made up of many different contributions. Communication among diverse disciplines is only possible through a common language and the overcoming of diverging purposes (industrial and private needs vs. social and public problems).

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The UNEP ecodesign guidance package

2004

National coordinator for the international research, funded by the United Nation Environment Program (UNEP).

Preparation of the UNEP ecodesign guidance package: modules on Product Service Systems (PSS) and a module on internal communications.

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Product-Service Systems and Sustainability

2001-2002

Coordinator for the international research, funded by the United Nation Environment Program (UNEP).

Product-Service Systems and Sustainability, Orienting an ongoing trend towards sustainable solutions

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Strategies towards the Sustainable Household

1998-2000

National and clothing care area coordinator for the international research, funded by the European Union, Environment and Climate program.

SusHouse is concerned with developing and evaluating scenarios for transitions to sustainable households. It focuses on ‘Shopping, Cooking and Eating’,’Clothing Care’ and ‘Shelter’. The project was carried out by six research teams from five countries – Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom – from January 1998 to June 2000. It was funded by the European Union (Environment and Climate Research Programme Theme 4: on Human Dimensions of Environmental Change, ENV-CT97-0046).

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Competitiveness and Sustainability: Synergies and opportunities

1998

Contribution to the international research.

System innovation and new business Idea, for the preparation of the 5° Framework program, coordinated by the CIR.IS research Centre of the DITec department of the Politecnico di Milano, funded by the European Union.

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EXPRES: Extended Producer Responsability for Complex Product.

1995-1996

Contribution to the international research.

Research Analysis of the Socio-Economic and Technical Implication of Devising and Implementing a Policy on this Principle, funded by the European Union.

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Sole, vento, acqua, vegetazione e tecnologia avanzata quali matrici di un nuovo approccio progettuale al territorio, architettura e disegno industriale

2005-2007

Co-coordinator of the strategic design area for the national (italian) research, Sole, vento, acqua, vegetazione e tecnologia avanzata quali matrici di un nuovo approccio progettuale al territorio, architettura e disegno industriale (Sun, wind, water, vegetation and advanced technologies as bases for a new design approach to territory, architecture, and design), coordinated by the Reserch Unit Pianificazione e progettazione urbano-architettonica INDACO dept. Politecnico di Milano, funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR).Union.

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Package of 3 software multimedia tools

1999-2003

Promoter and coordinator of the national (Italian) research, Package of 3 software multimedia tools to support didactic activities on the themes of Life Cycle Design (LCD) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA): Eco.cathedra, Eco.Oficina and Eco. disco, funded by the National Environmental Protection Agency (ANPA now ISPRA).

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Network of labs for environmental requirements of industrial

products

1999-2002

Promoter and coordinator of the national (Italian) research, Network of labs for environmental requirements of industrial products. Establishment of a network of coordinated University labs as centers for students and for vocational training on the discipline of environmental requirements of industrial products, funded by the National Environmental Protection Agency (ANPA now ISPRA).

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Handbook for participatory design for sustainability

1999-2001

Promoter and coordinator of the national (Italian) research, Handbook for a participatory design for sustainability, for the integration of Life Cycle Design of product and participatory design in the framework of system innovation processes, funded by the National Environmental Protection Agency (ANPA now ISPRA).

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Multimedia didactic LCD software system

1999

Promoter and coordinator of the project Multimedia didactic LCD software system. Design and implementation of a multimedia software system to support didactic activities on Life Cycle Design (LCD) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), funded by Politecnico di Milano “Young researchers” program.

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Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of

products, services, and systems

The goal is to identify the critical features of a specific product, or those related to a sector of the market, in order to give it an environmentally sustainable profile. The environmental impact of the product/service/system is determined considering all the processes involved with its entire life cycle. Through a Life Cycle Assessment is possible to trace its environmental footprint and its specific contribution to the environmental effects (global warming, acidification, ozone layer depletion, etc.)

Consutled Companies/ Organization

KONE; NECTA; BONAVERI; GIFCO; Bestack; Illy caffè; FEDERLEGNO-ARREDO; Artemide

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Company-specific guidelines for

low environmental

impact design

The goal is to provide an operative support tool for environmentally sustainable product / service / system design based upon LCD (Life Cycle Design) strategies. The handbook, containing strategies and guidelines, is a practical guide to help the person who is carrying out the project to generate sustainable ideas. After the analysis of a product/service/system and the identification of its critical features, this useful and strategic tool allows a company to have innovative ideas and organize them in order of priority and effectiveness.

Consutled Companies/ Organization

KONE; NECTA; BONAVERI; SOLIANI EMC; Caremi; Fumagalli; Combustion&Energy

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Tools for product/ service/

system design and assessment

for sustainability

The goal is to provide tools and procedures to help companies integrating environmental requirements within their product/service/ system development process. Starting from the analysis of the existing range of products and its critical features it is in fact possible to determine the competencies to acquire, the instruments to use, and the procedures to follow in order to introduce Life Cycle Design criteria in a company’s portfolio.

Consutled Companies/ Organization

SOLIANI EMC; Caremi; Fumagalli; Combustion&Energy

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Product/ service/ system design

for Sustainability support

The goal is to help companies to design eco-efficient products, services, and systems by giving them operative support. The assistance is intended to generate sustainable concepts but, if needed, can cover the whole design process until engineering.

Consutled Companies/ Organization

Artemide; GENERAL BEVERAGE; ARCHIMEDE ENERGIA; UNDIO;  ASM-Brescia; KONE; Tetra Pak; Vehicle Design Summit (VDS);

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Development of sustainable

design orienting scenarios

The goal is to propose innovative models of development for companies and market sectors, foreseeing potential future scenarios that are socially, environmentally, and economically sustainable. Visions and clusters of potentially sustainable ideas will be suggested, evaluated, and explained in detail.

Consutled Companies/ Organization

ASM-Brescia; KONE; Tetra Pak; Vehicle Design Summit (VDS)

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Company-specific training

courses on design for

sustainability

The courses offer constantly up-to-date information for the integration of sustainability requirements in products/service/systems. The goal is to provide competencies and a set of tools specifically designed for the reality where a company operates. The modules cover the themes of product Life Cycle Design, Life Cycle Assessment, System Design for Sustainability.

 

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Bonaveri

(mannequins)

Life cycle assessment for the development of a new generation of low environmental impact mannequins.
Life Cycle Assessment of a mannequin and handbook of design guidelines for the development of mannequins with a low environmental impact.

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Tetra Pak

(beverage packaging)

Eco-efficient scenario development and eco-efficient Product-Service System concept design.

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Kone company

(elevators)

Eco-efficient  scenario  development and eco-efficient Product-Service System concept design. 
SEED, Sustainable Elevator Eco-Design. Elevator-specific Ecodesign guidelines/checklist.
Design strategies for environmental quality improvement of Kone monospace elevators

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Area Tortona lab

(exhibitions/ events promoter)

Development of design assumptions for tortona design week/zone Tortona sustainable island.

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NECTA vending

(vending machine)

LCA of a vending machine with spirals and development of low environmental impact design guidelines.
LCA and development of low environmental impact design guidelines for vending machine.

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Artemide

(lightening)

Support to the design of an eco-efficient lighting system, with a prelaminar Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), the definition of design priorities and final assessment of environmental improvements.

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ASM Brescia company

(waste treatement)

Less waste other ways of doing. Design of scenario for the upstream reduction of wastes in the city of Brescia.

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Illy coffee

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of two different solutions for the disposal of Polypropylene coffee pod.
Comparative Life Cycle Assesment (LCA) of various coffe packagings and guidelinees for low environmental impact design.

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General Beverage

(vending machine)

Eco-efficient re-design of a drink dispenser,Design of an eco-efficient dispenser for draft cold drinks.

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Federlegno

(professional associations of

furniture producers)

Contribution to the applied research Environmental report of Federlegno arredo 2007, coordinated by the INDACO dept. of Politecnico di Milano.

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GIFCO

(professional associations of

corrugated cardboard producers)

Energy and environmental analysis of the life cycle of the production processes for the packaging in the fruits & vegetables sector.

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Dandy Line

(electric beds)

Environmental impact analysis comparing two electric hospital beds.

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The most important research projects are the following: (1998-2000) national coordination of the EU funded research Strategies towards the Sustainable Household; (2001-2004) coordination of design research area of the EU funded research, MEPSS. Product Service Systems Methodology – Development of a toolkit for industry; (2005-2008) coordination of the design research area the EU funded research SCORE! Sustainable Consumption Research Exchanges; (2007-2010) coordination of the EU funded research (Asia Link project) LeNS. The Learning Network on Sustainability. Network for curricula development on Design for Sustainability focused on Product-Service System; (2011-2013) national coordination of the EU funded research, TANGO-Towards a new Intergenerational Openness; (2012-2014) national coordination of the EU funded research Sustainability maker; (2013-2016) coordination of the EU funded research (EduLink program) LeNSes.

The Learning Network on Sustainable energy systems. Multi-polar and open network for curricula and lifelong learning capacity development focused on locally based Sustainable Energy System Design and Engineering; (2013-2016) coordination of the EU funded research (Erasums+ program) LeNSin. The international Learning Network of networks on Sustainability. A Multi-polar and open network for curricula and capacity development focused on design for sustainability and focused on Sustainable Product-Service Systems (S.PSS) applied to Distributed Economies (DE).

Among the consultancies done, some examples are the following: NECTA vending (vending machine), Dandy Line (electric beds), Illy coffee, GIFCO (professional associations of corrugated cardboard producers), Federlegno (professional associations of furniture producers), Caremi (furniture), Soliani (furniture), Fumagalli (building components), Kone (elevators), Tetra Pak (packaging), Artemide (lightening), General Beverage (vending machine), ASM Brescia company (waste treatment), Kone company (elevators), Tetra Pak (beverage packaging), Area Tortona lab (exhibitions/events promoter) and Bonaveri (mannequins).

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Design for sustainability involves three interlinked dimensions, which are: environmental protection, social equity and inclusion and economic prosperity.

Environmental protection refers to a respectful use of natural resources in order to reduce and avoid irreversible phenomena of degradation such as global warming, ozone layer depletion, acidification, and eutrophication.

Social equity and inclusion refers to the ability of future generations to meet their own needs and the achievement of social equity and cohesion, where a key issue is equal redistribution of resources following the principle that everyone should have the same access to global natural resources.

The economic prosperity refers to the promotion of inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment, and decent work for all.

These three dimensions are key elements in the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) proposed by United Nations (UN). These goals are the main output of Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, that has been approved by the UN in 2015 as a mutual commitment to global development, in favor of human well-being and to preserve the environment. The 17 SDGs correspond to the main challenges to be achieved within 2030 in relation to the three dimensions of sustainable development.

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Soliani

(Electromagnetic protection)

Coordinator of the area design for environmental sustainability for the research BABYLANDIA, coordinated by the Politecnico di Milano.

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Tempotest Para​

(Textiles stain-, fire- and

acarus-resistant)

Coordinator of the area design for environmental sustainability for the research BABYLANDIA, coordinated by the Politecnico di Milano.

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Caremi​

(Furniture system for children)

Coordinator of the area design for environmental sustainability for the research BABYLANDIA, coordinated by the Politecnico di Milano.

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Fumagalli

(Seat for disabled children)

Coordinator of the area design for environmental sustainability for the research BABYLANDIA, coordinated by the Politecnico di Milano

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Bestack​

Energy and environmental analysis of the life cycle of the production processes for the packaging in the fruits & vegetables sector.

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Combustion&Energy

(Floor lighting system)

Product-specific lcd guidelines and product-specific toolkits for sustainable concept design sustainability.

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Braun

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Kenwood

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De’Longhi

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Nutribullet

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