Ecodesign tools for designers: defining the requirements

This paper presents the findings from a research project which set out to understand the type of requirements that industrial designers have of ecodesign tools, through the use of a web based prototype. Through qualitative data collection and analysis a number of important criteria for ecodesign tools were identified. The conclusions recognise the importance of developing holistic tools for industrial designers, identifying that a combination of guidance, education and information, along with well considered content, appropriate presentation and easy access, are all critical to their success. A framework for ecodesign tools for industrial designers is presented along with the evolution of ‘Information/Inspiration’ into a fully working web-based tool.     

Handling trade-offs in Ecodesign tools for sustainable product development and procurement

Trade-off situations often occur in the product development and procurement processes when alternative solutions emphasize different aspects that have to be balanced against each other. Ecodesign tools can be used in both product development and purchasing, for example to prescribe design alternatives, assess environmental impacts or to compare environmental improvement alternatives. However, it is not always clear what should be chosen in trade-off situations. In this study, 15 different Ecodesign tools were analyzed to ascertain whether a valuation is included in the tools, in what way the tools give support in different types of trade-off situations and whether the tools provide support from a sustainability perspective.Nine of the 15 tools analyzed included a valuation and were able to provide support in a trade-off situation, but the support was not sufficient. The valuation should include a life cycle perspective and a framework for sustainability. Otherwise, it can lead to strategically incorrect decisions from a sustainability perspective with concomitant risks of sub-optimized investment paths and blind alleys. However, all the analyzed tools can be complemented with other tools and methods based on strategic planning towards sustainability in order to include a framework for sustainability.     

Ecodesign of automotive components making use of natural jute fiber composites

Nowadays, the world faces unprecedented challenges in social, environmental and economical dimensions, in which the industrial design has showed an important contribution with solutions that provide positive answers regarding these problems. In particular, due to its relevance, the automotive industry confronts a moment of crises, and based on the ecodesign of products it has been transforming the challenges in opportunities. In this context, the use of natural fiber composites, produced in developing countries, have presented several social, environmental and economical advantages to design “green” automotive components. Thus, this work through LCA method demonstrates the possibility to use natural fibers through a case study design which investigates the environmental improvements related to the replacement of glass fibers for natural jute fibers, to produce a structural frontal bonnet of an off-road vehicle (Buggy). Results pointed out the advantages of applying jute fiber composites in Buggy enclosures.     

Eco-efficiency gains from remanufacturing: A case study of photocopier remanufacturing at Fuji Xerox Australia

Achieving eco-efficient production and consumption systems requires ‘closing the loop’ to create cyclic systems. Product systems based on remanufacturing, where used products or components are restored to ‘as new’ condition for reuse, offer the potential to create such cyclic systems. For some existing manufacturers, the economic efficiency of remanufacturing is clear and it has become a widely held assumption that such systems would also be more eco-efficient. However, this assumption has not been systematically tested. This research attempted to quantify the life cycle environmental benefits achieved by incorporating remanufacturing into a product system, based on a study of Xerox photocopiers in Australia. The study found that remanufacturing can reduce resource consumption and waste generation over the life cycle of a photocopier by up to a factor of 3, with greatest reductions if a product is designed for disassembly and remanufacturing. This research represents a first-level assessment, limited by certain estimates and assumptions. It is intended that this research will form the basis of a larger, more detailed study of Xerox remanufacturing, worldwide.     

绿色再制造工业发展综述

绿色再制造工业是一个新兴工业，能够生产低价格、高品质、高环保的产品来满足公众需求，并为社会发展节约大量能源和材料。绿色再制造工业能够使社会财富进入健康的增长和可持续发展时期。通过综述再制造工业的发展历史、现状和巨大效益，提出再制造业的发展趋势，为再制造工业的研究提供有益参考。     

Product life-cycle implications for remanufacturing strategies

For remanufacturing to be successful, there is a need to gain information on future market needs of remanufactured products, and match this to information on the magnitude of return flows. One of the major issues impacting remanufacturing is in the difficulty of obtaining used products (cores) that are suitable for remanufacturing. The timing and quantity of product returns is dependent on the type of product. Factors such as the mean product lifetime, rate of technical innovation, and failure rate of components all influence the return rate of products from end-of-use and end-of-life. The balance between product returns and demand for remanufactured products is a function of many variables, where the rate of technological innovation and the expected life of a product are the major influencing characteristics. The main contribution of this paper is the support that is provided in different supply and demand situations. By using a product life-cycle perspective, the supply and demand situations can be foreseen, and support given regarding possible strategies in these situations.     

Emergy as a tool for Ecodesign: evaluating materials selection for beverage packages in Brazil

The life of a product begins with the initial product design concepts; the costs and potential impacts of a product are heavily influenced by the final design, the production processes, the economic and environmental costs of all raw materials. Additionally, both of these factors are very much affected by how the products are managed during and after consumer usage. Thus, there is an urgent need for a tool to facilitate the integration and assessment of environmental and economic demands into the product planning and development processes. The introduction of environmental accounting based on emergy as a tool to assist in product design is proposed. This complementary tool may be inserted into the conventional design methodology to facilitate in the selection of materials and processes as well as in the actual design of the products. To illustrate the application of the proposed method for material selection, PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles and aluminum cans for beverage packaging are compared. Despite the exceptional condition of aluminum recycling in Brazil, results show that the best option for beverage packages is the PET bottles.     

A new business model for baby prams based on leasing and product remanufacturing

A shift in business thinking from selling products to providing service solutions to customer needs is becoming noticeable. It is driven by increasing competition and the need to identify new profit centres for producers of mature products. This paper identifies a new product group that could be interesting from the product-service system perspective – baby prams. The study presents a new business model based on selling the function that baby prams provide through leasing prams. It discusses potential barriers and necessary changes in product design and the supply chain to make it work. The product-service system in this case could include the organisation of a reverse logistics system with different levels of refurbishment and remanufacturing of prams, partially by retailers. The new model may provide customers with a high quality pram in a “like new” condition for the period they need it, and may help avoid transaction costs of having to sell the pram on the second-hand market. Economic estimations point to a significant potential for increased profits, while the environmental potential should be further investigated.     

Implementing extended producer responsibility: vehicle remanufacturing in China

With the rapid growth of vehicle population in China and subsequent environmental problems, remanufacturing has become the development direction of the vehicle industry for its huge environmental benefit. However, the current vehicle remanufacturing industry is still in its infancy, which makes the introduction of extended producer responsibility inevitable. This paper describes the development of China’s remanufacturing policies based on EPR and discusses the recycling system in line with the country’s actual conditions. This then can provide some ideas on EPR application to other developing countries.     

Development of multi-criteria decision making model for remanufacturing technology portfolio selection

Remanufacturing represents a business opportunity and in many cases a means to promote environmental sustainability. To help enterprises economically and effectively implement remanufacturing, a multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) model for selecting remanufacturing technology is developed. The model considers remanufacturing technology portfolios. The enterprise benefits associated with each portfolio, including economic and environmental benefits, are evaluated using six main criteria: cost, quality, time, service, resource consumption, and environmental impact. In addition, the synergies among the different types of technologies for each remanufacturing technology portfolio are also considered. The pair-wise comparison approach of Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is employed for remanufacturing technology portfolio selection. An illustrative example is provided to lend insights into the application of this methodology.     

Aftermarket remanufacturing strategic planning decision-making framework: theory & practice

The authors of this paper offer an aftermarket, remanufacturing (or reman) decision-making framework (RDMF), developed, based on a comprehensive set of strategic factors (Subramoniam et al., 2009a) derived from an in-depth literature review and case studies. RDMF is also grounded on results from an industry survey and related theory. The survey targeted Original Equipment (OE) suppliers that are involved in automotive OE production and also provide remanufactured (or reman) parts for the aftermarket, which includes the Original Equipment Service (OES) and/or the Independent Aftermarket (IAM) business. A response rate of 42% was obtained for the survey; the respondents were business unit managers or chief engineers from 18 companies in the United States and Europe who are actively involved in the reman businesses. The survey results helped the authors of this paper to prioritize and confirm the strategic decision-making factors from previous research. The key factors considered to be important by more than 50% of the survey respondents, constituting roughly 79% of the strategic factors were then incorporated into RDMF. The RDMF will be useful for aftermarket supplier companies in general and in particular, will be useful for automotive suppliers, involved with OE and aftermarket production.     

A critical assessment of motives for product recovery: the case of engine remanufacturing

Over the past decade, there has been an increasing interest in product take-back, product recovery and the (re-)distribution of these products. The automotive sector, in particular, has a strong history of product recovery operations, such as remanufacturing. Alongside this development, an academic interest in the management of re-use, recycling or remanufacturing has evolved and developed into the field of closed-loop supply chain management. Closed-loop supply chain management, however, is only characterised by a short research history, the earliest contributions can be found on reverse logistics and were published in the early 1990s. Due to the novelty of the field there are still a large number of unsolved research problems. One of these is the question for the rationale behind product recovery operations. This research is based on in-depth case studies within the remanufacturing facilities of a major European Vehicle Manufacturer. The article examines whether the ‘classic’ motives for product recovery are applicable to automotive remanufacturing. It concludes with a summary of the contributions this research makes to theory, to industry and to future research in the field.     

A life cycle perspective on environmental effects of customer focused packaging development

This study explores the possibilities of increasing customer satisfaction and reducing the environmental impact from food-packaging systems in a life cycle perspective using results from a study on consumers' demands on packaging based on Kano's Theory of Attractive Quality. It assesses the environmental effects of potential improvements in quality attributes. The results show that there are obvious potentials to increase customer satisfaction and at the same time decrease in the environmental impact of the food-packaging system, especially when the packaging design helps to decrease food losses. There were many connections between quality attributes and environmental impacts.     

A hierarchical end-of-life decision model for determining the economic levels of remanufacturing and disassembly under environmental regulations

Remanufacturing, in contrast to material recycling and disposal, can reduce environmental impacts by retaining the geometrical form of the product, thereby regarded as a more eco-efficient approach. In this paper, an end-of-life (EOL) decision model for remanufacturing options is presented to facilitate remanufacturing. The proposed model, in order to maximize the economic value of remanufacturing options while meeting environmental regulations, takes an integrative approach to EOL-option decision-making. Also presented in this paper is a hierarchical approach that represents both the overall hierarchical structure of a product and the interconnections among components. Illustrative examples are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the model.     

News: The 595 th Session of the Xiangshan Science Conferences focused on water disinfection by-products

正The 595~(th) session of the Xiangshan Science Conferences was recently held in Fragrant Hill Hotel,Beijing,on May 22-23,2017.The theme of this highly successful session was on"Health Risk ad Control of Disinfection By-products(DBPs)in China".More than fifty prominent scientists from Australia,Canada,China,and the United States actively participated in the two-day meeting and engaged in lively discussions.     

前寒武纪褶皱之地球物理学研究

通过乌克兰地盾地磁异常与地质调查结果的拟合确定基底一种新的褶皱类型--断裂性褶皱.已经表明,剪褶皱机制是上叠构造中形成褶皱的原因.建议利用地质--地球物理综合方法来研究前寒武纪互相交切的褶皱.     

海洋生物多样性评价方法综述

海洋生物多样性研究与保护是当前生物多样性领域的热点问题,而海洋生物多样性评价则是其管理和保护的基础。本文介绍了全球、区域和国家尺度海洋生物多样性评价方法概况,着重阐述了当前国内外海洋生物多样性评价的主要方法及其应用情况,包括生物群落多样性的测度方法、地球生命力指数法、海洋营养指数法和快速评估法等。分析了海洋生物多样性评价存在的主要问题及发展趋势,指明今后海洋生物多样性评价的发展方向。     

河口生态安全评价方法研究综述

介绍了河口生态系统的内涵,总结对比国内外学者对流域-河口及海洋生态安全评价方法的分类,认为基于评价技术方法对生态安全评价方法进行分类比较合理.介绍了一些国内外主要的生态安全评价方法,及其在流域一河口及海洋生态安全评价中的应用,为河口生态安全评价拓宽思路、提供方法.对生态安全评价的发展趋势和发展要求进行分析,认为在河口生...     

海水养殖自身污染的定量化研究

叙述了国内外养殖自身污染的定量化研究,总结了五类方法的研究现状和结果。其中"养殖区现场测定法"主要叙述贝类养殖中生物性沉积量及其中营养盐的研究结果;"基于现场测定的数学模型法"分析比较了竹内俊郎法、物料平衡法和化学分析法等估算方法;"养殖池中N、P收支的定量化研究"总结了投饵养殖中溶入水体的N、P占投饵N、P总量的比例,其中虾类分别为8%～12.8%和7.2%～40%,鱼类分别为49%～61%和16%～26%。此外还有对"室内模拟试验与测定法"以及"观测对照养殖区内外环境指标的研究"两种方法简单的分析和总结。