Product Environmental Sustainability Guidelines

PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

MINIMISING MATERIALS CONSUMPTION

Minimise material content of a product

Dematerialise the product or some of its components -Monospace Eco-Disc Elevator.
Digitalise the product or some of its components – Ebook Reader.
Miniaturise
Avoid over-sized dimensions -Unspon.
Reduce thickness
Apply ribbed structures to increase structural stiffness-Ripple table – Layer Design；Setu Chair.
Avoid extra components with little functionality -Wright Guitar Tecnology.

Minimise scraps and discards

Select processes that reduce scraps and discarded materials during production -Compwood Machine; -EOS and Air Bus -Son of a Tailor
Engage simulation systems to optimise transformation processes

Minimise or avoid packaging

Avoid packaging – Lancome; -Lush
Apply materials only where absolutely necessary – Minimize with Bicycle；-Televison set
Design the package to be part (or to become a part) of the product -Ice Cream；-Studio Boca；

Minimise material consumption during usage

Design for more efficient consumption of operational materials Leafy green machine – Freight-farm; -The ecloth System；-Ceramica dolomite;
Design for more efficient supply of raw materials -Novape
Design for more efficient use of maintenance materials
Design systems for consumption of passive materials -Algreen
Design for cascading recycling systems
Designing Materials Recovery Systems -Roca
Facilitate the user to reduce material consumption –Grohe
Set the product’s default state at minimal materials consumption

Adopt flexible material consumption systems (during use)

Engage digital support systems with dynamic configuration
Design variable material consumption systems for different operating requirements -Cesame
Use of sensors to adjust material consumption to operational requirements -Washing Machine Bosch
Reduce resource consumption in the product’s default state

Minimise material consumption during the product development phase

Minimise the consumption of stationery goods and their packages
Engage digital tools in designing, modelling and prototyping
Engage digital tools for documentation, communication and presentation

MINIMISING ENERGY CONSUMPTION

Minimise energy consumption during pre-production and production

Select materials with low energy intensity
Select processing technologies with the lowest energy consumption possible
Engage efficient machinery
Use heat emitted in certain processes for preheating other process flows
Engage pump and motor speed regulators with dynamic configuration
Equip the machinery with intelligent power-off utilities
Optimise the overall dimensions of the engines
Facilitate engine maintenance
Define accurately the tolerance parameters
Optimise the volumes of required real estate
Optimise stocktaking systems
Optimise transportation systems and scale down the weight and dimensions of all transportable materials and semi-products
Engage efficient general heating, illumination and ventilation in buildings

Minimise energy consumption during transportation and storage

Design compact high-density storage products -Fly Seld
Design concentrated products -Earthsuds
Equip products with onsite assembly ‘UP’ vacuum packed seat collection – B&B Italia; Flat packed and easy assembled stool – King & Webbon; Olga montable chair – Ikea,
Scale down the product weight
Scale down the packaging weight -Air Cushion
Decentralise activities to reduce transportation volumes -Electronic Meter Enel；
Select local material and energy sources Hack table system – Vitra；-Solar Cookers

Select the most efficient energy consumption systems during use

Design products for collective use -Disan
Design for the efficient use of resources needed for operation -Cold water Maschine Samsung -Aufla
Design for energy-efficient maintenance -Ably
Design systems for consumption of passive energy sources -The passive house
Adopt high-efficiency energy transformation systems -Luceplan
Design/adopt more efficient motors -Volkswagen；-Milano ATM
Design/adopt highly efficient energy transmission systems -Oxford PV -ScotchLit 3m
Use highly insulating materials or technical components
Design systems with localised insulation or energy delivery -Aeroshield
Scale down the weight of transportable goods
Design energy recovery systems -Dancing Floor -TGO
Facilitate users in reducing energy consumption

Enable a variable consumption of energy, to follow demand fluctuations

product default state at minimal energy consumptions
Design dynamic energy consumption systems for differentiated operational stages
Use sensors to adapt consumption to operational needs -Zumtobel
Incorporate auto switch-off mechanisms into products -TVlights group
Program product default state at minimal energy consumption -Microsoft Windows 11

Minimise energy consumption during product development

Engage efficient workplace heating, illumination and ventilation
Engage digital tools for communicating with remote working sites

MINIMISING RESOURCES TOXICITY AND HARMFULNESS

Select non-toxic and harmless materials

Avoid toxic or harmful materials for product components -Woodly
Minimise the hazard of toxic and harmful materials
Avoid materials that emit toxic or harmful substances during pre-production -Foxfiber Cotton
Avoid additives that emit toxic or harmful substances -Ecobalanza
Avoid technologies that process toxic and harmful materials
Avoid toxic or harmful surface treatments Plant-based fibres clothes – Flavia Aranha
Design products that do not consume toxic and harmful materials
Avoid materials that emit toxic or harmful substances during usage
Avoid materials that emit toxic or harmful substances during disposal

Select nontoxic and harmless energy resources

Select energy resources that reduce dangerous emissions during pre-production and production -Thorens AG；-Ljusa crunk Ikea; -Seiko
Select energy resources that reduce dangerous emissions during distribution
Select energy resources that reduce dangerous emissions during usage -CRV Honda；-Sunride Politecnico；-Hydra Light
Select energy resources that reduce dangerous residues and toxic and harmful wast

OPTIMISING RESOURCES RENEWABILITY AND BIO-COMPATIBILITY

Select renewable and bio-compatible materials

Use renewable materials -Bamboo Bicycle ; -Peacock Designs；-Palm Fibers Sandals; -Pumpkin Soap Be9；-The body shop； -Rothys;
Avoid exhaustible materials
Use materials derived from production waste -Tulip Box；-Orange Fiber
Use retrieved components from disposed products -Ecolo Projects; -Alan Tompson; -Freitag bags；-Replastic Table
Use recycled materials, alone or combined with primary materials –Navy Chair – Emeco; -Abet Laminati; -Aquafil；-EcoaLf
Use bio-degradable materials

Select renewable and bio-compatible energy resources

Use renewable energy resources -Ceam Group; -Voltaic Systems
Engage the cascade approach -Saitex
Select energy resources with high second-order efficiency

PRODUCT LIFESPAN OPTIMISATION

Design for product and component durability

Design durable components, choosing materials and the appropriate ways to preserve performances in relationship with the foreseen usage conditions -D’Light
Design components with co-extensive lifespan -Kycoera
Design lifespan of replaceable components according to scheduled duration
Enable and facilitate the separation of components with different lifespans -Canon
Select durable materials according to the product performance and lifespan -Nobili
Avoid selecting durable materials for temporary products or components -Novamont

Design for reliability

Reduce overall number of components
Simplify products
Eliminate weak connections

Facilitate upgrading and adaptability

Enable and facilitate software upgrade
Enable and facilitate hardware upgrade –Modular and easy to repair smartphone – Fairphone
Design modular and dynamically configured products to facilitate their adaptability for changing environments -The movable dividing office walls – Sorin; -Wilkhahn OfficeChair; –Let it be modular sofa – Poltrona Frau
Design multifunctional and dynamically configured products to facilitate their adaptability for changing cultural and physical individual backgrounds –Busunge extendable bed – Ikea; –Lemuria；-Petit Pli ；-Stokke AS
Design products that can be upgraded and adapted onsite -Eket Moduar Ikea
Design complementary tools and documentation for product upgrade and adaptation

Facilitate maintenance

Simplify access and disassembly to components to be maintained -DeLonghi
Avoid narrow slits and holes to facilitate access for cleaning
Pre-arrange and facilitate the substitution of short-lived components Silver care toothbrush with replaceable brushes – Spazzolifico Piave; ‘Re-soleable’ mountain boots – La Sportiva
Equip the product with easily usable tools for maintenance
Equip products with diagnostic and/or self-diagnostic systems for components requiring maintenance -ElectroLux
Arrange and design for easy maintenance, making it possible at the place of use to clean and/or replace certain parts -Charile Banana
Design complementary maintenance tools and documentation -Piano bookshelves equipped with maintenance kit – Riva
Design products that need less maintenance

Facilitate repairs

Arrange and facilitate disassembly and re-assembly of easily damageable components Mirra chair – Herman Miller
Design components according to standards
Equip products with automatic damage diagnostics system Photocopiers with automatic systems for monitoring – Xerox; Damage signal lights and component map – Dell
Design products for facilitated onsite repair
Design complementary repair tools, materials and documentation

Facilitate re-use

Increase the resistance of components most subject to wear or damage
Arrange and facilitate access and removal of reusable components -Gispen
Design interchangeable and modular parts and components Natura office chair – Grammer;
Design components according to standards to facilitate replacement
Design reusable auxiliary parts
Design refillable and/or reusable packaging –Refillable glue stick – Henkel; –Returnable-Reusable refrigerator shipping packages – Samsung
Design products for secondary use –Nutella glass bottle – Ferrero; -Reuse of glassbottle

Facilitate re-manufacturing

Design and facilitate the removal and replacement of easily worn components
Design structural parts that can be easily separated from visible parts
Facilitate access to components to be remanufactured
Provide adequate tolerances for points most subject to wear
Design with additional material for refinishing certain surfaces

Intensify use

Design product-services for a shared use Power bank sharing system – Anker;
Design multifunctional products with common substitutable components
Design products with integrated functions Skypass access – Swatch
Design products or product parts on demand
Design products or product parts based on availability -Car Sharing Service

EXTENDING THE LIFESPAN OF MATERIALS

Adopt the cascade approach

Arrange and facilitate recycling of materials in components with lower mechanical requirements
Arrange and facilitate recycling of materials in components with lower aesthetical requirements
Arrange and facilitate energy recovery from materials throughout combustion

Select materials with most efficient recycling technologies

Select materials that easily recover their original performance characteristics after recycling
Avoid composite materials or, when necessary, choose easily recyclable ones
Engage geometrical solutions like ribbing to increase polymer stiffness instead of reinforcing fibres
Prefer thermoplastic polymers to thermosetting
Prefer heat-proof thermoplastic polymers to fireproof additives
Design considering the secondary use of the materials once recycled

Facilitate end-of-life collection and transportation

Design according to the intended end-of-life product recovery system
Minimise overall weight
Minimise volume and improve the stackability of disposed products
Design for the compressibility of disposed products Re(new) compressive water bottle after use – Evian; Can compactor – Attila;
Provide users with information on how to dispose of the product or its parts Water bottle labels – Evian

Material identification

Code the different materials to identify their type
Provide additional information on material age, the number of previous recycling cycles, and the additives used
Indicate the presence of contaminants or toxic and harmful materials
Use standard identification systems
Place identification codes in clearly visible locations
Avoid coding operations after component production

Minimise the number of different incompatible materials

Integrate functions to reduce the overall number of materials and components
Monomaterial strategy: only one material per product or per sub-assembly CAB Chair System – Cassina; Mirandolina aluminum chair – Zanotta; Celle office armchair – Herman Miller; -Monomaterial packaging
Use only one material, but processed in sandwich structures -GreenForest
Use compatible materials (that could be recycled together) within the product or sub-assembly
For joining use the same or compatible materials as in components (to be joined)

Facilitate cleaning

Avoid unnecessary surface finishes
Avoid hard-to-remove coating materials
Facilitate removal of contaminants
Use coating procedures that comply with coated materials
Avoid adhesives or choose ones that comply with materials to be recycled
Prefer the dyeing of internal polymers, rather than surface painting T2 Eco telemark boot – Scarpa
Avoid using additional materials for marking or codification
Mark and codify materials during moulding
Codify polymers using lasers

Facilitate composting

Select materials that degrade in the expected end-of-life environment
Avoid combining non-biodegradable materials with products that are going to be composted
Facilitate the separation of non-biodegradable materials

Facilitate combustion

Select high energy materials for products that are going to be incinerated
Avoid materials that release dangerous substances during incineration
Avoid additives that release dangerous substances during incineration
Facilitate the separation of materials that would compromise the efficiency of combustion (with low energy value)

FACILITATING DISASSEMBLY

Reduce and facilitate operations of disassembly and separation: Overall architecture

Prioritise the disassembly of toxic and dangerous components or materials
Prioritise the disassembly of components or materials with higher economic value
Prioritise the disassembly of more easily damageable components
Prioritise the disassembly of the parts that are more subject to technological/aesthetic obsolescence
Adopt modular structures
Divide the product into easily separable and manipulable sub-assemblies -Interface Inc
Minimise overall dimensions of the product
Minimise hierarchically dependent connections between components
Minimise different directions in the disassembly route of components and materials
Increase the linearity of the disassembly route
Adopt a sandwich system of disassembly with central joining elements

Reduce and facilitate operations of disassembly and separation: Shape of components and parts

Avoid difficult-to-handle components
Avoid asymmetrical components, unless required
Design leaning surfaces and grabbing features in compliance with standards
Arrange leaning surfaces around the product’s centre of gravity
Design for easy centring on the component base.

Reduce and facilitate operations of disassembly and separation: Shape and accessibility of joints

Avoid joining systems that require simultaneous interventions for opening
Minimise the overall number of fasteners ‘DRY’ collection of armchair and easy demountable tables – Giorgetti Matrix
Minimise the overall number of different fastener types (that demand different tools)
Avoid difficult-to-handle fasteners
Design accessible and recognisable entrances for dismantling
Design accessible and controllable dismantling points.

Engage reversible joining systems

Use two-way snap-fits -Ara Chair; -Lisabo table
Use joints that are opened without tools -Alessi
Use joints that are opened with common tools
Design joints made of materials that become reversible only in determined conditions -Fastening screws made of polyurethane Brunel university
Use screws with low-wear drive heads, such as Torx or external hex-head screws
Prefer removable nuts and clips to self-tapping screws
Use screws made of materials compatible with joint components, to avoid their separation before recycling
Use self-tapping screws for polymers to avoid using metallic inserts

Engage easily collapsible permanent joining systems

Avoid rivets on incompatible materials
Avoid staples on incompatible materials
Avoid additional materials while welding
Weld with compatible materials
Prefer ultrasonic and vibration welding with polymers
Avoid glueing with adhesives
Employ easily removable adhesives.

Co-design special technologies and features for crushing separation

Prepare frangible areas with thin sections for removal by pressure or lever of incompatible inserts
Co-design cutting or breaking paths with appropriate separation technologies for incompatible materials separation
Equip the product with a device to separate incompatible materials
Use joining elements that allow their chemical or physical destruction
Make the breaking points easily accessible and recognisable
Provide the products with information for the user about the characteristics of crushing separation.

Use materials that are easily separable after being crushed

Use additional parts that are easily separable after crushing of materials

-Fueltank feature that facilitates its removal Fiat

Default title

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.

This will close in 0 seconds

Default title

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).

This will close in 0 seconds

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).

This will close in 0 seconds