Problem 1: Based upon the readings, texts, additional literature search and discussions in class identify and elaborate on three advantages of performing life cycle analysis as a part of technological product design process. Then, contrast the advantages by listing and discussing three major disadvantages or challenges to performing life cycle analysis. Try and use literature to support your argument.
Solution1 :
Life cycle assessment of a product is a systematic technique that assesses various stages of the life cycle of the product. It takes into account all the operations that product needs to undergo before it is manufactured and then when it is used and finally disposed. LCA tries to do the evaluation in terms of the impact each process will have on the environment. LCA is a systematic and detailed approach considering all the inventory of the material that goes in making a product, it then evaluates the environmental impacts of all the material inputs in terms of releases and thereby helps the decision makers in making an informed decision.
Advantages:
LCA as a tool for Management & Policy Makers:
LCA helps the decision makers to evaluate the various alternatives available for a processes and products and thereby regulate the policies based on the documented study and metrics available through LCA. By having a quantification of impacts of various alternatives in terms of hazardous releases in air, land and water at various stages of life cycle a comparison can be made between two alternative products or rival products or processes. Since LCA is a detailed analysis, all the aspects of an impact of a process can be evaluated. For example if we are comparing two products, the amount of solid waste by one may be more than the ot...
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...he development of sustainable technologies in other regions or how these can be tied up in the various channels. There are developments in the cleaner and greener energy generation techniques like low-carbon energy generation, biofuels and other recent developments in the energy sector and how these may affect the motivations for cleaner and greener technologies may be included in the study of today’s day.
REFERENCES
http://www.eebguide.eu/?p=925 http://www.solidworks.com/sw/docs/SW2014_Datasheet_Sustainability_ENU.pdf http://www.stonecourses.net/environment/benelca.html http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/analytics/life-cycle.htm http://www.quantis-intl.com/life_cycle_assessment.php http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF02978456?no-access=true https://engineering.purdue.edu/cdesign/wp/?p=308
http://www.mel.nist.gov/msid/conferences/talks/kramani.pdf
The purpose of this memorandum is to review the cost-benefit analysis process and the pros and cons that are involved with the procedures, within the Clean Air Act. The cost-benefit analysis and how it is utilized to make regulatory decisions will be covered, as well as the results of the Clean Air Act cost-benefit analysis. The EPA conducted the research, so this will talk about the steps the EPA took to analyze it. Lastly, this memo will tell you if there are any areas of the analysis that could be overestimated or underestimated.
For instance The Gorgon Project in Australia shows how energy development and the environment coexist. The project involves development of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) and domestic gas. Barrow Island is a class “A” nature reserve and Chevron has been operating there for more than 45 years while reducing their footprint. Natural gas is the cleanest burning fossil fuel and the plant is equipped wit...
Our energy needs have significantly changed since the first Industrial Revolution that took place in the period from about 1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840. Before this time period, our energy needs were modest. For heat, people relied on the energy of the sun, but when it failed them, they burned wood, straw and dried dung. For transportation horses and the power of the wind was used in sails. For agricultural work animals were used to do the jobs that could not be done with man labor. By harnessing the power of steam and wind simple machines could be run to grind our grain and pump our water. The Second Industrial Revolution, also called the Technological Revolution is considered to have begun around the time of the introduction of the Bessemer steel in the 1860s. This technological Revolution is considered as the second phase of the Industrial Revolution that resulted in factory electrification, mass production, the creation of production lines and the development of machine tools. With the appearance of the low cost automobile and the wide spread of electricity our society's energy needs have changed forever. Since the modest beginning of the oil industry in the mid 19th century, petroleum has risen to global dominance leading to mass consumption as the primary fuel to generate electricity, heat, to power our homes, cars and to support economic growth. Unfortunately, as a consequence of industrialization, atmospheric CO2 levels started to rise in proportion to the usage of fossil fuels. This trend raises some concerns about the well being of our environment, and researchers around the world started to look for alternative, cle...
Chapter 6 covers the “product life cycle”. Product life cycle is series of stages a product goes through from the time it is launched into the market until the time it is removed from the market. Cactus Rose is currently in the stage of growth. Since, Cactus Rose has been around the town of Wilton for just a couple of years, it is considered as one of the best fine dining area around town. The restaurant can still can be enhanced and promoted and gaining the people around town’s full support. Eventually, it will reach its full marketing potential in the near
for a product over a period of time. It shows the revenue by a product. from its introduction to its eventual decline. There are four stages to the product life cycle: Introduction, growth, maturity and decline. Research and development is the first stage of the product life cycle.
Cost-benefit analysis is an economic approach decision making that compares the strengths and weaknesses of each choice in order to determine which option will provide the most amount of benefits and the least amount of costs. This method is often applied to decisions that concern the environment as an attempt to determine the value of the environment before following through with decisions to preserve or utilize the environment for resources. Although many economists believe that cost-benefit analysis is an efficient way to make most decisions, some philosophers suggest that certain things, including the environment, have innumerable values, therefore, cost-benefit analysis may not be a reliable method to make decisions regarding these things.
From this case study the analyses are made on the following questions asked. The Questions that are asked are following:
Sustainability has extended to our field; people have begun to understand the importance and necessity to introduce this practice into their life. All of this not
How are we going to use them to attract new customers or increase the number of products that existing customers buy? What are our Threats? How are we going to minimise them so that they do not affect sales of our products? Here are the advantages and disadvantages of using a SWOT analysis. Advantages Identified strengths (value for money).
...ination, hydrogen fuel and solar energy (World Economic Forum 2014). These are technologies that closely related to environmental and recourse preservation, which help the society switch to use renewable energy.
Participation by the public, amongst other things, is crucial to the success of the EIA process.
Environmental analysis is a strategic tool. It is a process of identifying all the external and internal elements, which can affect the organization’s performance. The analysis entails assessing the level of threat or opportunity the factors might present. These evaluations are later translated into the decision-making process. The analysis helps align strategies with the firm’s environment.
...g the Energy Revolution." Foreign Affairs. Nov/Dec 2010: 111. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Nov 2011.
Policy is needed to regulate which course of action should be taken and how it should be implemented. Because of this, many plans and policies revolving around the management of solid waste have been put in place. Sometimes however, a particular policy can have its shortfalls, potentially resulting in its negative aspects outweighing the positive ones. According to the Conference Board of Canada Report, “Canadians dispose of more municipal solid waste per capita than any other country” (2013). Solid waste management in particular, involves many aspects, ranging from packaging waste, food waste, etc. (White & Franke 1999), hence, the following analysis revolves around household and commercial waste – referred to as Municipal Solid Waste (White & Franke. 1999) – in the Greater Vancouver Regional District. Municipal waste is a major health and environmental concern as it contributes to numerous problems like habitat destruction, surface groundwater pollution, and other forms of air, soil, and water contamination. Waste disposal methods like incineration create toxic substances, and landfills emit methane, which contributes to global warming. According to the Zero Waste Objective Report, “The impact of climate change and the increasing awareness of the role of “waste” and “wasting” in the production of greenhouse gas emissions is a constant environmental pressure… (2009). This leads to an increasing limitation of government to prevent and control the volume and toxicity of products in the waste stream and a growing need to shift responsibility to the product manufacturer.
Currently there is an urgent need to make products and processes sustainable, and beneficial to everyone and everything. This is because the true facts are that if we do not act now, our resources will run out and we wont be able to do anything about it. We must now design for the future and not our currents needs, and everything should be compatible with nature to correspond with sustainability. The question designers should be asking themselves now is ‘is this design choice moving us in the right direction?’