Transcript Idea generation based on the results of life cycle assessments

Life cycle assessment and idea
generation
Mats Zackrisson
[email protected]
Christina Jönsson
[email protected]
Life cycle assessment and idea generation
• Life cycle assessment, LCA, is a great tool for facilitating eco-design
• It makes you see all the life cycle environmental impacts
• At Swerea IVF we apply LCA all the time:
• in national or international technology development projects;
• when internally evaluating project proposals and;
• for clients who want to improve their product´s environmental
performance
We are
Jan
Bäck
Anna Karin
Jönbrink
Anna Rúna
Kristinsdóttir
Sandra
Roos
Energy and Environment
at
Elisabeth
Ohlsson
Swerea IVF
Hans Lennart
Norrblom
Christina
Jönsson
Mats
Zackrisson
Stefan
Posner
Karin
Wilson
But
It is a challenge to communicate LCA results
• The LCA report is often shelfed and forgotten because:
• Only one person as a counterpart who understands the results
• All the others in the project or in the company do not understand the
results
We want the LCA
results to be used,
therefore…
Idea generation workshop
• At Swerea IVF we always offer an
”idea generation workshop” in
addition to the normal reporting
and presenting of an LCA
• The idea generation is basically a
one-day workshop, thus
inexpensive
• It is no rocket science….
• ….. but a very cost-effective way of
increasing the value of a life cycle
assessment, LCA
How we do idea generation
1. Present LCA results and
conclusions to
multifunctional group
•
•
•
•
Purchasing
Design
Production
Management
2. Brainstorm ideas
3. Evaluate ideas
4. Report ideas
Knowledge and
competence about
sustainable
development
The eco-design journey
When is idea generation done on a company´s eco-design
journey?
4. Implementation
in product
development
procedure
3. Idea
generation
2. Life cycle
assessments
1.Eco-design
initiation
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
Time
frame
The idea generation workshop
• Before meeting
• Agree on main LCA conclusions with client
• Formulate brainstorming objective and preliminary evaluation criteria
• During meeting
•
•
•
•
•
•
Explain and discuss LCA results and conclusions
Agree on brainstorming objective
Explain brainstorming rules
Brainstorming improvement ideas
Take a break and categorize
Evaluate results
• After meeting
• Write and distribute report
Brainstorming
• Objective:
• For example: ”Generate ideas
that could decrease product
environmental impact”
• Write down your improvement
idea on large post-its with quite
thick pen
• Get up and read your idea out
loud so that all participants can
hear it
• Post your idea on the wall
• Keep on going for at least one
hour
• No criticism allowed – ideas
are fragile!
Take a break
and categorize
Take a break and categorize
•
•
•
•
•
Smaller group
Decide on categories
Write them on the wall
Rearrange post-its
Continue the brainstorming
again
Evaluation
• Discuss, critize and evaluate each idea 5-10 minutes
• Each participant picks agreed number of favourite ideas to defend
• Other people´s ideas or your own ideas
• Explain evaluation criterium, for example:
• Improvement of environmental performance
• Small (0-5 %*)
• Medium (5-30 %*)
• Large (>30%*)
• Ease of implementation
• Time to technical feasability (long, short, today)
• Market potential (small, medium, large)
• Each participant defends his/hers chosen ideas
• Chosing or picking ideas is a first selection of the best ideas
* % refer to decrease in global warming, smog, eutrophication or acidification, without
significant increase in any of the other
The evaluation
Improvement of
environmental
performance
3
Ej använda
UF och ändå
få samma
funktion
Minskad färgmängd
per enhet genom
Hat”, “top” or
förbättrad
pack Minskad
bag to
färgöverföring,
minskat
översprut,
reduce
the air
optimeradthinnerförbru
resistance
at
applicering
kning/återanv
Eco-inspections,
service á la
“Sten-Åke”. Could
help the users to
take care of the
products.
transport
ändning
/återvinning
Minskad färgmängd
perMinska
enhet genom
VOCförbättrad
halten i färg t. ex
färgöverföring,
high
solid
SB
minskat översprut,
färg med 60-70%
optimerad
applicering
torrhalt och 30-
2
ÅteranvändningMinska
av
rinse/thinner
rengöringen i
till SB
genom–
systemet
ex destillation
ökad batchtid
40% VOC
1
Mer
värmeväxling
Minska
antalet
kulörer
1
Lighter material
and/or lighter design
Pumpar
of the
hammer,med
e.g
titanium.
Reduce
högre
transport weight and
verkningsUtnyttja
working
environment
problems.
grad
lägesenergin
Lysdiod
istället för
lampor
i
vattnet
2
3
Ease of implementation
Results of idea generation - examples
• Stepwise EPD project1
• Three SMEs achieved 7,
12 and 23 improvement
ideas respectively
• 12 ideas implemented
within 3-year project time
frame
• Mercatus Engineering
implemented 8 of 12
ideas in new orders
within one year
1Zackrisson
et al. (2008). "Stepwise environmental product declarations…. Journal of Cleaner Production….
Hultafors Group
• More than 200 improvement ideas generated in two workshops4
•
•
4Zackrisson
16 and 13 respectively selected for evaluation, about 1/3 with significant
environmental improvement potential
Introduced products with improved environmental performance based on these ideas
one year later
et al……Application of eco-design …at Hultafors Group. SETAC 18th LCA Case Study Symposium .. 2012.
Hultafors Group
Example of product with improved environmental performance
• Gloves wear out differently
• Different tasks require different gloves
• Hands do different things
• Why treat your hands the same
• Forget the pair of gloves
• Left and right gloves sold one by one
Observations
• All ideas are not new; old
ideas can find a new
context in which to flourish
• The whole exercise makes
the participants learn and
embrace the LCA results
• Implementation in:
• new products
• eco-design checklists
• in product development
procedures
Energy and Environment at Swerea IVF
- some tools that we use
• Life cycle assessment with or without
idea generation
• Measuring your companies
environmental impact (book)
• Practical substitution of chemicals
• Eco-design, practical guidance (book)
• Sustainability support to research
projects
Jan
Bäck
Anna Karin
Jönbrink
Energy and
Anna Rúna
Kristinsdóttir
Sandra
Environment Roos
at
Elisabeth
Ohlsson
Swerea IVF
Hans Lennart
Norrblom
Christina
Jönsson
Mats
Zackrisson
at your service!
Stefan
Posner
Karin
Wilson
We work on a scientific foundation
to create industrial benefit.
www.swerea.se