Abridged lecture notes for Eco-design principles lecture, Helsinki Summer School, 14.8.09.

1. Eco-design principles: lecture notes
Helsinki Summer School | 140809
Sustainable design principles | Design Factory| 140809

2. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
• People: social aspects and
user needs in design,
PROFIT
manufacturing, use and
recycling PEOPLE
SUSTAIN
• Planet: considering the well- ABILITY
being and continuity of
environment
• Profit: financial sustainability
PLANET
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3. By whom?
• Decisions made during product
development have significant
impact on material flows and
behavioural patterns
• Product development teams
(particularly design-led) have a
capability to synthesise and solve
problems caused by often
conflicting demands
• Solutions require controlling large,
complex problems; cannot be done
alone
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4. Five demands for sustainable products
Cyclic:
and/or
Product uses bio-based materials
materials suitable for recycling. 
Renewable: Manufacturing and use utilize
renewable sources of energy. 
Safe: Products are safe to use and
dispose. Manufacturing and using products/
services does not produce toxic waste or

ecosystem disruption.
Efficient: The efficiency of manufacture and
use are significantly better than goods of
⅞
equivalent utility.
Social:
not cause
Manufacture, use or disposal do
harm to physical, social or 
emotional well- being of people affected
LÄHDE: http://www.biothinking.com/btintro.htm / The Total Beauty of Sustainable Products
Sustainable design principles | Design Factory| 140809

5. Five eco-design strategies
Design for Longevity: Durable, easy to repair, timeless
Design for Disposal: Simple, renewable, fashionable
Reduce: Optimize materials and
energy
Re-use: Increase re-use potential
Re-cycle: Design for disassembly,
remanufac-
ture and material reclaiming
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6. From efficient to effective: Cradle-to-Cradle
Eco-efficient: Minimizing the damages caused by development
Eco-effective: Maximizing the positive effects, including profit
Biological Technological
cycle cycle
Nutrients for Nutrients for
biological technological
cycle cycle
LÄHDE: Cradle to Cradle
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7. Complete
(Covers different processes and all phases of life
cycle)
Qualitative Life Cycle
Matrix LCA Assessment
Pharos
Subjective Objective
(“Guesstimates,” not (Repeatable measurements)
repeatable)
LiDS Ecological
wheel Footprint
MBDC
Total
Beauty
Incomplete
SOURCE: Okala Design Guide 2007 / IDSA
(Lacks impact categories, processes or life cycle
phases)
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8. Why designers don’t do LCA
• Full-blown LCA can take 6 months
• Collecting environmental information
throughout the product life cycle can
be difficult
• Interpreting results is an art
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9. Single-figure LCA rides to rescue
E.g. Eco-99 and Okala account for
• Health hazards
• Ecosystem damages
• Resource depletion
Including:
• Materials usage
• Production processes
• Energy production
• Disposal/recycling
…rolling all these into single figure!
Sustainable design principles | Design Factory| 140809

10. What is light LCA good for?
Light LCA methods intended for early design phases
• Benchmarking
• Concept evaluation
• Rapid testing of assumptions
• Comparing different
products, processes and
industries
Lightweight methods
SHOULD NOT BE USED FOR
• Marketing
• Greenwashing
• Public announcements
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11. Basics of life cycle assessment
1. Define what the LCA is used for: comparing products, components,
different product alternatives...
2. Define life cycle: draw a diagram of product’s life cycle
3. Define materials and processes; make assumptions where necessary
4. Gather information: make best estimates if data isn’t available
5. Interpret the results; REMEMBER THE STRESS TEST!
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12. Example case: life cycle of coffee cup
Detergents Pigments
Logistics Paints Clay
Energy
Water Manufacture
for oven
Use & Packaging &
Electricity
cleaning logistics
Broken cup
Waste water
disposal
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13. System description for coffee cup
Purpose:
• Hold coffee and prevent burns
System includes:
• All products and processes needed
to keep the cup from becoming
mouldy
Assumptions:
• Product lifetime 4 years
• Used once a day
• 30 cups in dishwasher
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14. Complex products
Divide the product to
parts, analyze separately
and add up
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15. If you’re stuck:
• Check whether missing data
significantly affects the results
• Use known, similar indicators
• Calculate from e.g. energy
use
• Get professional help
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16. Dealing with uncertainties
Uncertainties come from
• difference between models
and real life; assumptions
and preferences have an
effect
• errors in data result to
absolute and relative
uncertainties
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17. Dealing with uncertainties (part II)
Products, materials,
manufacturing processes
• Similar = relative error, probably to
same direction, doesn’t have (much)
effect on end results
• Dissimilar = results can be very
uncertain!
Rule of thumb:
• Similar processes: 10-50%
difference in results is likely to be
significant
• Dissimilar processes: aim for at least
100% difference before making firm
conclusions!
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18. RE-DESIGN EXERCISE!
Items: coffee maker and sofa
• You’ll compete against the other team
• The objective: suggest improvements to
ecological and economical efficiency
• Prepare a 5-minute presentation
Some guidelines
• Start with LCA analysis
• Use Okala impact factors provided
• Make rough assumptions if needed
• Identify “low-hanging fruit”
• You can improve the product, but you can
also improve the business model, service
or some other factors
• Search for additional information where
necessary
• Don’t waste anything, especially time!
Sustainable design principles | Design Factory| 140809