Eco-design in innovation driven companies: perception, predictions and the main drivers of integration. The Spanish example

This study attempts to contribute to the scarce knowledge on how eco-design, and to broad extent sustainability, is connected to innovation driven companies. In particular, this cross sectional research verifies i) perception and knowledge of eco-design of the professionals from innovation driven companies in Spain, ii) specific eco-design strategies towards sustainability that innovation driven companies are integrating in their strategic plans and their application in the supply chain and iii) the companies’ future predictions on innovation and eco-design linkage. The methodology of this paper is based on a survey, developed defining measurable proxies for both eco-design and innovation approaches and conducted on 10,000 multidisciplinary professionals from Spanish innovation driven companies. The study shows that sustainability is a cardinal driver for innovation and that responses have specificities regarding company size, activity or respondent position. Innovation and eco-design strategies for the future aim to use materials with a lower environmental impact and to develop new concepts.     

Does the potential of the use of LCA match the design team needs?

Today, most people involved in the industrial engineering community (consultants, manufacturers, researchers and institutional actors) assert that Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is the most successful tool to assess environmental considerations in the product design process. This assertion is addressed in this article through a simultaneous check of the potential of this tool and the environmental needs of the design team. After a comparison of this potential to these needs, the following assertions may be made: (1) LCA is not an adequate tool for the designer, because its utility in the design process is limited to an analysis of existing products or well defined products at the final stages of the design process, and (2) LCA is not useful in creating a learning dynamic (awareness) within the company, because it does not improve the legitimacy or the credibility of environmental considerations. Moreover, it may generate confusion within the design team while restricting the capacity for innovation within the company. This paper concludes that, in the product design field, the LCA tool should be considered as a specialized tool handled by a specific player (the environmental actor) and should be dedicated to the strategic evaluation of new concepts.     

中国环境标志主要产品环境效益探讨

环境标志是环境保护事业的有机组成部分,是环境保护工作的经济手段。通过轻型汽车、水性涂料、人造板及其制品3个产品的环境标志标准与国家强制性标准相关指标的比较,给出了环境效益的定量计算公式或定性分析结果,可以看出这3个环境标志产品的环境效益显著,对行业的环境保护和技术进步起到了巨大的推动作用。     

Eco-efficiency in the SMEs of Venezuela. Current status and future perspectives

This paper presents a comparison analysis of eco-efficiency in the small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) of Venezuela. The research can be divided into three parts: the first part reviews similar studies in the literature on the level of eco-efficiency exhibited by the companies of Venezuela and other countries. In the second place, the findings of a survey conducted on Venezuelan SMEs allowed the definition of 54 eco-efficiency profiles. Thirdly, six national experts in cleaner production and eco-efficiency were interviewed. The interview was based on a questionnaire similar to that used in the survey of the Venezuelan SMEs. At a second meeting, the experts were asked to discuss on the similarities and differences between their answers and those of the company's managers.The findings of the survey allow us to conclude that Venezuelan SMEs understand the legal environmental regulations that affect them but they do not perceive the influence of external driving forces like customers demand for green products or institutional incentives. The adoption of eco-efficiency practices is not perceived as an incentive to improve competitiveness so that the environmental strategies adopted generally aim at reducing costs or avoiding non-compliance sanctions and negative effects on the company image. Materials recycling and reuse, especially packaging materials, are common practices; however, other environmental tools or practices have not been implemented yet, e.g. environmental management systems (EMS), process, product and services design tools based on the product life cycle, renewable energy resources or green marketing. There are also differences among the eight industrial sectors analyzed, food and chemical industries having the higher index of eco-efficiency practices, and plastic and wood industries the lower.     

Stimulating learning and innovation in networks for regional sustainable development: the role of local authorities

Inter-organizational collaboration in networks and partnerships is supposed to promote the potential for learning and innovation needed for environmental transformation and sustainable development. This paper aims at exploring the roles of local authorities (LAs) in actor-networks related to regional sustainable development, and examining their potential in stimulating learning and innovation related to sustainable development. From empirical case studies it is suggested that LAs can act as ‘teachers’ or ‘tutors’ in the networks. From further analysis, drawing also from literature on partnerships, innovation management, socio-technical change, and educational science, it is proposed that in the short run both the ‘teacher’ and ‘tutor’ approach would promote incremental innovation rather than the radical system innovations needed for sustainable development. However, there is potential for stimulating more long-term, radical change if the LA takes on the role of a ‘teacher’. This approach may favour close collaboration in long-lived, multi-actor networks with potential to (i) serve as forum for continuous dialogue on sustainable development at a community level, (ii) stimulate experimentation and learning needed for system innovations, and (iii) provide a basis for strategic niche management for development and testing of new technologies.     

污染物总量控制制度创新与未来发展的思考

为解决污染物总量控制制度创新及与排污许可制的关系,探索我国未来水环境总量控制制度的发展方向,对美国、欧盟等发达国家和地区以及我国水污染控制的发展历程进行了回顾和对比研究.结果表明:①控制污染物排放总量是改善水环境质量的根本措施,排污许可制是水环境管理的核心手段.②我国水污染总量控制研究起始于20世纪70年代末的容量总量控制研究,先后经历了理论探索、应用探索和理论深化3个阶段,在管理上则经历了排污许可制试行阶段、制度探索阶段、总量控制目标责任制阶段.③我国目前实施的总量控制仍然是目标总量控制,难以与地表水质直接挂钩.对我国水环境保护形势和相关法律政策的研究表明,我国从污染源达标排放控制1.0时代、目标总量控制2.0时代,逐步进入容量总量控制3.0时代的条件已基本成熟.建议以排污许可制作为推进总量控制3.0的重要抓手,完善相关制度建设,严格问责机制,确保容量总量控制的真正落实.      

Manufacturing actor’s LCA

Modern industrial environmental management encompasses life-cycle thinking. This entails considering not only the emissions and resource use of the company’s production processes, but also the environmental consequences of all processes related to a product’s life cycle. However, no single actor can influence the whole life cycle of a product. To be effective, analysis methods intended to support improvement actions should therefore also consider the decision makers’ power to influence.Regarding the life cycle of a product, there are at least as many perspectives on life-cycle thinking as there are actors. This paper presents an approach with which manufacturing decision makers can sharpen the focus in life-cycle assessment (LCA) from a conventional ‘products or services’ emphasis to a company’s manufacturing processes. The method has been developed by combining knowledge gained from earlier LCA studies with new empirical findings from an LCA study of an SKF manufacturing line.We demonstrate how system boundaries and functional units in an LCA can be defined when adding the perspective of a manufacturing decision maker to the product life-cycle perspective. Such analysis helps manufacturing decision makers identify improvement potentials in their spheres of influence, by focusing on the environmental consequences of energy and material losses in manufacturing rather than merely accounting for the contributions of individual stages of the life cycle to the overall environmental impact. The method identifies and directly relates the environmental consequences of emissions or raw material inputs in the product life cycle to manufacturing processes. In doing so, the holistic systems perspective in LCA is somewhat diminished in favor of the relevance of results to manufacturing decision makers.     

Cost efficiency analysis and emission reduction by implementation of energy efficiency standards for electric motors

The industrial sector is the biggest electricity consumer in Malaysia. Electric motors account for more than 45% of the electricity consumption in the industrial sector in the country. Therefore, it is very important to implement energy efficiency standards for electric motors to reduce energy consumption growth in this sector. This paper attempts to calculate the cost efficiency analysis and emission reduction by implementing energy efficiency standards for electric motor in Malaysia. The energy efficiency standards are proposed based on the efficiency of electric motors from survey data. The study examines the potential energy, economical and environmental impacts of the implementation of energy efficiency standards for electric motors in three scenarios i.e. 0.5%, 1.0% and 1.5% of standards efficiency improvement. Standards also enable consumers to reduce their electricity bill and contribute to a positive environmental impact.     

Global environmental consequences of increased biodiesel consumption in Switzerland: consequential life cycle assessment

This study assesses the direct and indirect environmental impacts to be expected if Switzerland should replace one percent of its current diesel consumption with imports of A) soybean methyl ester (SME) from Brazil, or B) palm methyl ester (PME) from Malaysia. In order to take into account possible future consequences, what-if scenarios were developed and assessed by means of a consequential LCA. In contrast to attributional LCA, the consequential approach uses system enlargement to include the marginal products affected by a change of the physical flows in the central life cycle. This means that the LCA considers all inputs and outputs which are linked to biodiesel production and that the product system is subsequently expanded to include the marginal products affected. Both future systems are assessed in comparison with the environmental scores of the fossil equivalent to biodiesel, i.e. diesel low in sulphur. The environmental burdens are measured by means of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), land occupation and various non-aggregated and aggregated environmental impact indicators.In sum, the environmental impacts of an increased SME consumption depend on the environmental scores of the marginal replacement products on the world market, rather than on local production factors. In other words, the marginal products assumed to be affected are most important for the results obtained, i.e. in particular the marginal vegetable oil, fodder cake and land areas. In this study it is SME production increased at the expense of the available soybean oil which shifts the impacts associated with soybean oil production to the production of the marginal vegetable oils on the world market. In this perspective, it is not relevant in which country biodiesel production takes place, but rather which vegetable oil is involved. With respect to PME, the most relevant determining factor for the environmental impacts is the land area affected by the increased cultivation of oil palms. Currently, this expansion displaces primarily peat land and rain forest. This causes GHG emissions which are much higher than the emissions of the fossil reference. All in all, both PME from Malaysia and SME from Brazil cause more environmental impact than allowed by the Swiss tax redemption on agro-biofuels (max. 60% GHG emissions and 125% UBP of the fossil reference).     

多晶硅光伏组件生产可持续性评价

分别采用了全生命周期评价软件、全生命周期成本法、社会性指数评价法,对我国多晶硅光伏组件生产阶段的环境影响、经济性和社会性影响进行了定量评估.结果表明:多晶硅生产、多晶硅电池片生产、电池组装3个阶段的环境影响相对较大,其中多晶硅生产阶段对气候变化的贡献率在50%以上.经济成本分析显示,原料和劳动力的成本占总成本的70%以上.多晶硅电池片生产阶段的成本在光伏组件生产过程的5个阶段中所占的比重最大.社会性影响分析结果显示,在光伏组件生产中,劳动岗位增加的贡献指数值为0.72,劳动力就业贡献较大,而生产能力提高的贡献指数值仅为0.18,显示生产能力提高的贡献较小.研究显示,为提高多晶硅光伏组件的可持续性,在生产过程中需寻找清洁能源、寻找环保替代材料以降低环境影响;积极鼓励支持企业进行技术研发创新,着力提高电池转换效率以降低生产成本;通过市场良性竞争提高多晶硅光伏行业的社会贡献.      

Selection of product categories for a national eco-labelling scheme in developing countries: a case study of Vietnamese manufacturing sub-sectors

Although the selection of product categories is a deciding factor for the success of eco-labelling schemes, there are no consistent methods for determining selection factors and how to prioritise product categories for developing countries (DgCs). This paper attempts to identify appropriate factors for product category selection and formulate a prioritisation method applicable to DgCs. We first examined the selection factors currently utilised in schemes worldwide by conducting a questionnaire survey of representatives of foreign schemes. Selection factors were illustrated on a plot graph, which indicated the percentage of factors implemented in the schemes of DgCs and developed countries (DGs), and their plausibility assessed when utilised in the schemes of DgCs. In this way, we proposed three groups of factors: an exclusion factor, five core factors and seven operational factors. Then, under the conditions of DgCs, such as socioeconomic issues and availability of data, we used and modified some judging guidelines of the European Ecolabel (the EU Flower), e.g. determining the environmental impacts and potential of environmental improvements, in the scoring method to prioritise product categories by weighting factors. In light of our findings, we utilised the proposed factors and modified the scoring method to prioritise the screened primary list of product categories of Vietnamese manufacturing sub-sectors. By scoring factor-based questions and prioritising in three ways, i.e. following the scoring method of the EU Flower programme, totalling all values with equal weighting, and totalling all values but by doubling the weighting of core factors compared with operational factors, we observed that the weighted prioritisation differentiates priority product categories more clearly than the other methods. We propose the two highest potential candidates for eco-labelling in Vietnam, namely textile/garment and fishery products.     

Geometric morphometrics as a tool for improving the comparative study of behavioural postures

Describing postures has always been a central concern when studying behaviour. However, attempts to compare postures objectively at phylogenetical, populational, inter- or intra-individual levels generally either rely upon a few key elements or remain highly subjective. Here, we propose a novel approach, based on well-established geometric morphometrics, to describe and to analyse postures globally (i.e. considering the animal’s body posture in its entirety rather than focusing only on a few salient elements, such as head or tail position). Geometric morphometrics is concerned with describing and comparing variation and changes in the form (size and shape) of organisms using the coordinates of a series of homologous landmarks (i.e. positioned in relation to skeletal or muscular cues that are the same for different species for every variety of form and function and that have derived from a common ancestor, i.e. they have a common evolutionary ancestry, e.g. neck, wings, flipper/hand). We applied this approach to horses, using global postures (1) to characterise behaviours that correspond to different arousal levels, (2) to test potential impact of environmental changes on postures. Our application of geometric morphometrics to horse postures showed that this method can be used to characterise behavioural categories, to evaluate the impact of environmental factors (here human actions) and to compare individuals and groups. Beyond its application to horses, this promising approach could be applied to all questions involving the analysis of postures (evolution of displays, expression of emotions, stress and welfare, behavioural repertoires…) and could lead to a whole new line of research.     

The recycling of plastic wastes from discarded TV sets: comparing energy recovery with mechanical recycling in the context of life cycle assessment

Two treatment options, i.e. energy recovery and mechanical recycling of plastic wastes from discarded TV sets, were compared in the context of life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. An estimate for the environmental burden of each option was calculated as the sum of the depletion of abiotic resources (ADP), the global warming potential (GWP), the acidification potential (AP), the photo-oxidant formation potential (POCP), the eutrophication potential (EP), and the human toxicity potential (HTP). After calculating the environmental burden of each treatment option, a sensitivity analysis was conducted. The ultimate aim was to indicate which parameters of the system have the strongest influence on the results of the LCA in order to find ways for lowering the environmental burden, and ultimately suggest a “design strategy” for TV sets.The main finding of this study was that mechanical recycling of plastics is more attractive treatment option in environmental terms than incineration for energy recovery, which generates a larger environmental burden. Finally, based on the results of sensitivity analysis, a “design strategy” was suggested, i.e. reducing the number of plastic types being used in the manufacturing process of TVs – preferably excluding the PVC.     

中国南方红壤丘陵区湖南水环境时空变化研究

以中国南方红壤丘陵区的典型区域-湖南省为例,利用1990～2000年湘、资、沅、澧四水和洞庭湖区重要断面的水质数据,采用综合污染指数方法和污染分担率方法,研究了湖南省水环境质量时空变化特征,并选取1990～2005年经济和废水排放数据,分析了经济因子与废水排放之间的相互关系,建立湖南省废水排放的库兹涅茨曲线模型。研究结果表明,从时间上看,湖南省的总体水环境污染有加重的趋势;从空间上看,水环境质量是从湖南省的西部向东部恶化。在流域和地区对比中,湘江和位于该流域的株洲市最为严重,总氮和汞是湖南省最主要的污染因子;通过环境库兹涅茨曲线模型模拟表明,湖南水环境与经济发展的关系位于环境库兹涅茨曲线上升段。本研究结果对于改善整个湖南省水环境污染状况,以便采取正确的防治策略具有一定的实践意义。     

Corporate environmental responsibility in the supply chain

A continuing trend in outsourcing increases the complexity of supply chains. Global supply chains extend over numerous echelons of countless companies. In parallel, the company-internal view on corporate environmental responsibility is being challenged as customers and legislation alike broaden a company's environmental responsibility to include organisations' upstream as well as downstream in the supply chain. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine corporate environmental responsibility beyond corporate boundaries, i.e. in the supply chain. A cross-industrial study based on 16 case studies in Finnish trans-national corporations sheds light on various dimensions of corporate environmental responsibility upstream and downstream of product and process supply chains. Conclusions were drawn for corporate environmental responsibility as well as for the role of supply chain management in extending environmental demand over several echelons and diverse industries.     

Life cycle assessment of spray dried soluble coffee and comparison with alternatives (drip filter and capsule espresso)

This paper aims to evaluate the environmental burdens associated with spray dried soluble coffee over its entire life cycle and compare it with drip filter coffee and capsule espresso coffee. It particularly aims to identify critical environmental issues and responsibilities along the whole life cycle chain of spray dried coffee. This life cycle assessment (LCA) specifically uses foreground data obtained directly from coffee manufacturers and suppliers. Aside from energy consumption and greenhouse gases emissions, water footprint is also studied in detail, including regionalization of water impacts based on the ecological scarcity method 2006. Other impact categories are screened using the IMPACT 2002+ impact assessment method.The overall LCA results for a 1 dl cup of spray dried soluble coffee amounts approximately to 1 MJ of primary non-renewable energy consumption, to emissions of 0.07 kg of CO_2-eq, and between 3 and 10 l of non-turbined water use, depending on whether or not the coffee cultivation is irrigated and wet treated. When considering turbined water, use can be up to 400 l of water per cup. Pouch – and to a lesser extent metal can packaging alternatives – show lower environmental burdens than glass or sticks.On average, about one half of the environmental footprint occurs at a life cycle stage under the control of the coffee producer or its suppliers (i.e., during cultivation, treatment, processing, packaging up to distribution, along with advertising) and the other half at a stage controlled by the user (shopping, appliances manufacturing, use and waste disposal). Key environmental parameters of spray dried soluble coffee are the amount of extra water boiled and the efficiency of cup cleaning during use phase, whether the coffee is irrigated or not, as well as the type and amount of fertilizer used in the coffee field. The packaging contributes to 10% of the overall life cycle impacts.Compared to other coffee alternatives, spray dried soluble coffee uses less energy and has a lower environmental footprint than capsule espresso coffee or drip filter coffee, the latter having the highest environmental impacts on a per cup basis. This study shows that a broad LCA approach is needed to help industry to minimize the environmental burdens directly related to their products. Including all processes of the entire system is necessary i) to get a comprehensive environmental footprint of the product system with respect to sustainable production and consumption, ii) to share stakeholders responsibility along the entire product life cycle, and iii) to avoid problem shifting between different life cycle stages.     

环境决策支持系统中两类模型方法的整合

该文对环境决策支持系统中情景分析和数学优化两类模型方法的优缺点和适用范围进行了比较分析。实例研究表明,两类模型方法的整合使用可以有效地支持较为复杂的决策过程。      

Assessment of tomato Mediterranean production in open-field and standard multi-tunnel greenhouse,with compost or mineral fertilizers,from an agricultural and environmental standpoint

This study presents detailed and comprehensive inventories on the horticultural production of tomato using compost (CM) or mineral fertilizers (M), in both open-fields (OF) and greenhouses (GH), providing information on the environmental impacts and assessing the agronomic viability of the four cultivation options. Life cycle assessment (LCA) was used to calculate the potential environmental impacts of the tomato production cycle per ton of product. The stages in the assessment included: mineral and organic fertilizers production, fertilizers transport, cultivation stage and greenhouse stage. The data were obtained experimentally in pilot fields and in an industrial composting facility using municipal organic waste, both located in the Mediterranean area. The results indicate that replacing a fraction of the mineral fertilizers dosage with compost is a good option, as this did not alter yield or fruit size parameters. Greenhouse protection increased infrastructure materials requirements but enhanced harvest by almost 50% and reduced the water and pesticides requirement. Compost production and greenhouse stages were the most impacting stages. Without subtracting the avoided burdens by composting and not dumping organic waste, the cultivation option OF_M had the lowest and OF_CM the highest impact. When avoided burdens were taken into consideration, the environmental impacts of the four cultivation options varied, depending on the impact category, with bigger differences due to fertilization as a variable rather than the production system.     

Environmental assessment of laser assisted manufacturing: case studies on laser shock peening and laser assisted turning

Laser assisted manufacturing processes, when compared with traditional manufacturing processes, have the potential to reduce cost, increase surface resistance to wear and fatigue, extend part/tool life, and expand the range of manufacturable materials. These processes have found niche applications in automotive, aerospace, and defense industries. However, very limited research has been conducted to evaluate and compare the environmental performance of laser assisted processes with traditional methods. This paper conducts case studies on two representative laser based processes, i.e. laser shock peening of 7075-T7351 Aluminum and laser assisted turning of compacted graphite iron. Life cycle assessment is used to benchmark the environmental performance of these two processes to conventional processes, i.e. shot peening and turning, respectively. The life cycle inventory of both the laser based processes and conventional processes are developed using SimaPro 7.1 and the Ecoinvent 2.0 database and life cycle impact assessment is performed using US EPA TRACI. The results of this study show that the environmental performance of the two laser based processes is significantly better than conventional processes. For laser shock peening of aluminum, contribution analysis indicates that this is mainly due to the significant extension of fatigue life of the workpiece being treated. For laser assisted turning of compacted graphite iron, the improved performance is mainly due to the extended tool life since cutting tool manufacturing is an energy intensive process. Development of high-power laser with a lower wavelength (e.g. direct diode system) could eliminate the use of paint in laser assisted turning. This, along with improved wall plug efficiency, makes laser assisted turning even more environmentally benign compared to conventional process. A brief cost analysis suggests that both laser shock peening and laser assisted turning can be economically viable with payback period less than three years for niche applications.     

LCA环境影响分析新探

影响分析是ＬＣＡ的核心内容,也是难度最大的部分。目前采用的定性方法和定量方法都存在不少缺点。本文在笔者构筑的ＬＣＡ指标体系的基础上探索在影响分析中引入了我国现行的环境质量评价方法和手段使影响分析的方法更易于操作,其结果更具有客观性和可比性。本文论述了各项评价指标和计算方法及要素指标的形成并指出利用５个要素指标的数据能比较全面地反映产品的环境性能。