Integrating environmental and economic life cycle analysis in product development: a material selection case study

Purpose Achieving sustainability by rethinking products, services and strategies is an enormous challenge currently laid upon the economic sector, in which materials selection plays a critical role. In this context, the present work describes an environmental and economic life cycle analysis of a structural product, comparing two possible material alternatives. The product chosen is a storage tank, presently manufactured in stainless steel (SST) or in a glass fibre reinforced polymer composite (CST). The overall goal of the study is to identify environmental and economic strong and weak points related to the life cycle of the two material alternatives. The consequential win-win or trade-off situations will be identified via a Life Cycle Assessment/Life Cycle Costing (LCA/LCC) integrated model. Methods The LCA/LCC integrated model used consists in applying the LCA methodology to the product system, incorporating, in parallel, its results into the LCC study, namely those of the Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) and the Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA). Results In both the SST and CST systems the most significant life cycle phase is the raw materials production, in which the most significant environmental burdens correspond to the Fossil fuels and Respiratory inorganics categories. The LCA/LCC integrated analysis shows that the CST has globally a preferable environmental and economic profile, as its impacts are lower than those of the SST in all life cycle stages. Both the internal and external costs are lower, the former resulting mainly from the composite material being significantly less expensive than stainless steel. This therefore represents a full win-win situation. As a consequence, the study clearly indicates that using a thermoset composite material to manufacture storage tanks is environmentally and economically desirable. However, it was also evident that the environmental performance of the CST could be improved by altering its End-of-Life stage. Conclusions The results of the present work provide enlightening insights into the synergies between the environmental and the economic performance of a structural product made with alternative materials. Further, they provide conclusive evidence to support the integration of environmental and economic life cycle analysis in the product development processes of a manufacturing company, or in some cases even in its procurement practices.

The quest for a sustainable product: An environmental study of tyre recyclates

The main objective of the present study is to assess the environmental advantages of substituting aluminium for a polymer composite in the manufacture of a structural product (a frame to be used as a support for solar panels). The composite was made of polypropylene and a recycled tyres’ rubber granulate. Analysis of different composite formulations was performed, to assess the variation of the environmental impact with the percentage of rubber granulate incorporation. The results demonstrate that the decision on which of the two systems (aluminium or composite) has the best life cycle performance is strongly dependent on the End-of Life (EoL) stage of the composite frame. When the EoL is deposition in a landfill, the aluminium frame performs globally better than its composite counterpart. However, when it is incineration with energy recovery or recycling, the composite frame is environmentally preferable. The raw material production stage was found to be responsible for most of the impacts in the two frame systems. In that context, it was shown that various benefits can accrue in several environmental impact categories by recycling rubber tyres and using the resulting materials. This is in a significant part also due to the recycling of the steel in the tyres. The present work illustrates how it is possible to minimize the overall environmental impact of consumer products through the adequate selection of their constitutive materials in the design stage. Additionally it demonstrates how an adequate EoL planning can be an important issue when developing a sustainable product, since it can highly influence its overall life cycle performance.

Postharvest quality of cocona (Solanum sessiliflorum Dunal) stored under ambient condition

Cocona (Solanum sessiliflorum Dunal) is an important genetic resource that has been traditionally used for a variety of purposes, including food, medical and cosmetics applications. The objective of this study was evaluated the quality and the period of postharvest shelf life of cocona 'Mosquet", through the physical, chemical and physiological characterization of fruits stored under the ambient conditions. Physiologically mature fruits were harvested from an orchard, washed with tap water and soaked in a solution of the fungicide Prochloraz (49.5 g/100 L of water) for 5 minutes. After air drying, the fruits were packed in plastic containers and stored at 24 ± 2 ºC and relative humidity 60 ± 5% for 15 days. The fruits developed a respiratory climacteric respiratory patern and remained fit for consumption up to day 6 of storage, that is, without visual symptoms of loss of water and firmness. At this stage, the fruits showed firmness of 117,42 kPa, soluble solids of 6.62º Brix and citric acid of 1.22 %.

Influence of the N/K ratio on the production and quality of cucumber in hydroponic system

The objective of this work was to evaluate the quality of fruits and the nutritional status of cucumber CV. Aodai cultivated in nutrient solutions with different N:K ratios. The hydroponic cultivation was initially performed, during the vegetative growth, in nutrient solution with 1:2.0 mmol L-1 N:K, and, later, during fruit setting, in four different nutrient solutions with N:K (w/w) at the ratios 1:1.4, 1:1.7, 1:2.0 and 1:2.5. An additional treatment with a nutrient solution containing the ratio 1:2.2 (w/w) N:K during the vegetative growth and N:K 1:1.4 (w/w) during fruit setting, both with 10% ammonium (NH4+) was included. The treatments were arranged in a randomized design with six replicates. Irrigation was carried out with deionized water until seed germination, and then with nutrient solution until 30 days after germination, when plants were transplanted. Plants in the hydroponic growing beds were irrigated with the solutions for vegetative growth, and, after 21 days, the solutions were replaced by solutions for fruit setting. At 45 and 60 days after transplanting, the fresh weight, length, diameter, volume and firmness of the fruit were evaluated, and, at 45 days after transplanting, the macronutrient concentrations in the leaves were determined. The use of different N:K ratios during fruit setting influenced the cucumber production. The ratio of 1.0:1.7 N: K (w/w), with 10% of N in the form of ammonia, is recommended for the whole cycle.

The main benefits associated with health and safety management systems certification in Portuguese small and medium enterprises post quality management system certification

The purpose of this study is to characterize how Portuguese Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) view the Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems (OHSMSs) certification process, after receiving the Quality Management System (QMS) certification. References were based on the ISO 9001 standard for a QMS and OHSAS 18001 for OHSMS. The method used to evaluate the implemented systems, was by form of questionnaire. Those questioned had to have a certified quality management system, an implemented OHSMS and be a SME. The questionnaire was sent to 300 SMEs; 46 responses were received and validated. Of them, only 12 SMEs had the OHSMS certificate according to OHSAS 18001. Within those 12 companies that participated: 7 SMEs are from the industrial sector; 3 belong to the electricity/telecommunications sector and 2 SMEs are from the trade/services activity sector. The size of the sample was small, but corresponds to Portuguese reality. Moreover, 34 SMEs did not have the OHSMS certificate. The questionnaire requested the main reasons for SMEs to opt for non-certification and it was related with high costs, while the main reasons to certificate were, among others, needed to eliminate or minimize risks to workers. The main benefits that Portuguese SMEs have gained from the referred certifications have been, improved working conditions, ensuring compliance with legislation and better internal communication about risks and hazards. Also presented are the main difficulties in achieving an OHSMS certification including high certification costs, difficulties motivating personnel, difficulties in changing the company’s culture and increased bureaucracy.

A creative solution for rapid and inexpensive model-making in product design processes

Innovative Developments in Virtual and Physical Prototyping

Lignification of the plant and seed quality of RR soybeans sprayed with herbicide glyphosate

Differences in levels of lignin in the plant between conventional and transgenic cultivars RR has been reported by several authors, however, there are few studies evaluating the influence of spraying of glyphosate on the lignin in the plant and RR soybean seeds. The aim of this study was to evaluate the physiological quality of RR transgenic soybean seeds and the lignin contents of plants sprayed with the herbicide glyphosate. The assays were conducted both in greenhouse and field in the municipality of Lavras, MG, in the agricultural year 2007/08. The experiment was arranged in a splitplot design with four replicates, considering the treatments hand weeding and herbicide glyphosate as plots, and five RR soybean cultivars (BRS 245 RR, BRS 247 RR, Valiosa RR, Silvânia RR and Baliza RR) as splitplots. In the greenhouse, the cultivars tested were BRS 245 RR and Valiosa RR in a randomized block design with four replicates. The sprayings were carried out at stages V3, V7 and early R5 (3L/ha). The 1000 seed weight, mechanical injury, germination and germination velocity index, emergence velocity index, accelerated aging, electrical conductivity and water soaking seed test, lignin content in the seed coat, in the stem and legumes were determined. The spraying of glyphosate herbicide, in greenhouse and field, did not alter the physiological quality of seeds and the lignin contents in the plant.

Zinc supplementation, production and quality of coffee beans

Besides its importance in the coffee tree nutrition, there is almost no information relating zinc nutrition and bean quality. This work evaluated the effect of zinc on the coffee yield and bean quality. The experiment was conducted with Coffea arabica L. in "Zona da Mata" region, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Twelve plots were established at random with 4 competitive plants each. Treatments included plants supplemented with zinc (eight plots) and control without zinc supplementation (four plots). Plants were subjected to two treatments: zinc supplementation and control. Yield, number of defective beans, beans attacked by berry borers, bean size, cup quality, beans zinc concentration, potassium leaching, electrical conductivity, color index, total tritable acidity, pH, chlorogenic acids contents and ferric-reducing antioxidant activity of beans were evaluated. Zinc positively affected quality of coffee beans, which presented lower percentage of medium and small beans, lower berry borer incidence, lower potassium leaching and electrical conductivity, higher contents of zinc and chlorogenic acids and higher antioxidant activity in comparison with control beans.

A creative solution for rapid and inexpensive model-making in product design processes

Rapid prototyping (RP) is an approach for automatically building a physical object through solid freeform fabrication. Nowadays, RP has become a vital aspect of most product development processes, due to the significant competitive advantages it offers compared to traditional manual model making. Even in academic environments, it is important to be able to quickly create accurate physical representations of concept solutions. Some of these can be used for simple visual validation, while others can be employed for ergonomic assessment by potential users or even for physical testing. However, the cost of traditional RP methods prevents their use in most academic environments on a regular basis, and even for very preliminary prototypes in many small companies. That results in delaying the first physical prototypes to later stages, or creating very rough mock-ups which are not as useful as they could be. In this paper we propose an approach for rapid and inexpensive model-making, which was developed in an academic context, and which can be employed for a variety of objects.

Qualifound – a modular tool developed for quality improvement in foundries

Purpose – Castings defects are usually easy to characterize, but to eradicate them can be a difficult task. In many cases, defects are caused by the combined effect of different factors, whose identification is often difficult. Besides, the real non-quality costs are usually unknown, and even neglected. This paper aims to describe the development of a modular tool for quality improvement in foundries, and its main objective is to present the application potential and the foundry process areas that are covered and taken into account. Design/methodology/approach – The integrated model was conceived as an expert system, designated Qualifound, which performs both qualitative and quantitative analyses. For the qualitative analyses mode, the nomenclature and the description of defects are based on the classification suggested by the International Committee of the Foundry Technical Association. Thus, a database of defects was established, enabling one to associate the defects with the relevant process operations and the identification of their possible causes. The quantitative analysis mode deals with the number of produced and rejected castings and includes the calculation of the non-quality costs. Findings – The validation of Qualifound was carried out in a Portuguese foundry, whose quality system had been certified according to the ISO 9000 standards. Qualifound was used in every management area and it was concluded that the application had the required technological requisites to provide the necessary information for the foundry management to improve process quality. Originality/value – The paper presents a successful application of an informatics tool on quality improvement in foundries.

Certification and integration of environment with quality and safety – a path to sustained success

According to Wright [1] certification of products and processes began during the 1960’s in the manufacturing industry, as a tool to control and assure the quality/conformity of products and services provided by suppliers to customers/consumers. Thus, the series of ISO 9000 was published first time, in 1987 and it was been created with a flexible character, to be reviewed periodically. Later, were published others normative references, which highlight the ISO 14001 in 1996 and OHSAS 18001 in 1999. This was also, the natural sequence of the certification processes in the organizations, i.e., began with the certification of quality management systems (QMS) followed by the environmental management systems (EMS) and after for the Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS). Hence, a high percentage of organizations with an EMS, in accordance with the ISO 14001, had also implemented, a certified QMS, in accordance with ISO 9001. At first the implementation of a QMS was particularly relevant in high demanding activity sectors, like the automotive and aeronautical industries, but it has rapidly extended to every activity sector, becoming a common requisite of any company worldwide and a factor of competitiveness and survival. Due to the increasingly demanding environmental legislation in developed countries, companies nowadays are required to seriously take into consideration not only environmental aspects associated to the production chain itself, but also to the life cycle of their products.

DEVELOPMENT OF A MECHATRONIC SYSTEM FOR BEDRIDDEN PEOPLE SUPPORT

This work is developed in the context of Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) and has, as main purpose, the development of a mechatronic system that allows caring of bedridden patients with ongoing medical care terminal (MCT), by a single person. This system allows higher autonomy in domiciliary care, safety, comfort and hygiene of bedridden patients. It contributes to a large increase in their quality of life as well as the ease of monitoring by providers of continuous care, which, in many cases, may be the family itself. The product includes an embedded processing interface for acquiring physiological data to support online monitoring. The development of this project was focused on improving the quality of life, autonomy, participation in social life and reducing healthcare costs in the area AAL. The developed societies currently face severe demographic changes: the world is aging at an unprecedented rate. In 2000, about 420 million people, or about 7 percent of the world population were over 65 years old. In 2050, that number will be near 1500 million people, about 16 percent of the world population. This demographic trend will be accompanied by the increase of people with physical limitations. This will impose new challenges for traditional health systems, not only for Portugal but also for all European countries. There is an urgent need to find solutions to improve the lives of people in their preferred environment by increasing their autonomy, self-confidence and mobility. Therefore, in the case of household scenarios, the provision of effective health services is of fundamental importance to the welfare and economic development of each country. This ongoing project aims to develop a mechatronic system to meet the diverse needs, namely: improving life, health care, safety, comfort, and remote monitoring of bedridden person.

A generic model for integration of Quality, Environment and Safety Management Systems

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a generic model of Integrated Management System of Quality, Environment and Safety (IMS-QES) that can be adapted and progressively to assimilate various Management Systems, of which highlights: ISO 9001 for Quality; ISO 14001 for Environment; OHSAS 18001 for Occupational Health and Safety. Design/methodology/approach – The model was designed in the real environment of a Portuguese Organization and 160 employees were surveyed. The rate response was equal to 86 percent. The conceived model was implemented in a first phase for the integration of Quality, Environment and Safety Management Systems. Findings – Among the main findings of the survey the paper highlights: the elimination of conflicts between individual systems with resources optimization; creation of added value to the business by eliminating several types of wastes; the integrated management of sustainability components in a global market; the improvement of partnerships with suppliers of goods and services; reducing the number of internal and external audits. Originality/value – This case study is one of the first Portuguese empirical researches about IMS-QES and the paper believes that it can be useful in the creation of a Portuguese guideline for integration, namely the Quality Management Systems; Environmental Management Systems and Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems among others.

Conceptual design of a conveyer system for supporting basic quality of life of bedridden elderly people

With the increasing number of aged people, especially in developed countries, Ambient Assisted Living solutions have become an important subject to be explored and developed. Currently, as specialized Institutions in geriatric care cannot cope with the increasing requests for support of quality of life, patients have to remain at their homes having as caregiver the other member of the couple or a member of close family. A solution for supporting the caregiver, during assisting the bedridden person with some basic tasks as eating, taking a bath and/or hygiene care is of utmost importance. This paper presents an approach for supporting the caregiver in moving and repositioning the bedridden elderly people (BEP) with the assistance of a mechanical system conveyer. The conceptual design of the mechanical system must be devoted to assist the caregiver in the handling and repositioning of the BEP. The proposed mechatronic system must, ideally, minimize the system's handling complexity, reduce the number of caregivers and the amount of spended and needed effort.

Conceptual design of a mechatronic system for supporting basic quality of life of bedridden elderly people

Ambient Assisted Living is an important subject to be explored and developed, especially in developed countries, due to the increasing number of aged people. In this context the development of mechatronic support systems for bedridden elderly people (BEP) living in their homes is essential in order to support independence, autonomy and improve their quality of life. Some basic tasks as eating, taking a bath and/or hygiene cares become difficult to execute, regarding that often the main caregiver is the other element of the aged couple (husband or wife). This paper presents the conceptual design of a mechanical system especially devoted to assist the caregiver in the handling and repositioning of the BEP. Issues as reducing the number of caregivers, to only one, and reducing the system's handling complexity (because most of the time it will be used by an aged person) are considered. The expertise obtained from the visits to rehabilitation centers and hospitals, and from working meetings, are considered in the development of the proposed mechatronic system.