Filed under: Literature Review
Literature Review – Electronic Design for the
Environment
Chan Tsz Man, Jasmine (S3121886)
Introduction
The Electronic devices are becoming part of our daily live. The product
innovations multiply to keep up with our demand, the lifespan of
electronic has become shorter. As there is no way to stop the growing
of electronic product, however, at the same time, people keeping on to
eliminate them. There are 20 million tons of electronic wastes thrown
away each year, which contain hazardous and toxic chemical that can
damage the environment. Designing electronic product in order to
minimize their impact on the environment id becoming increasing
important. Many designers are beginning to recognize this fact and
therefore demanding tools and techniques, which enable them to
design more responsibly. Using Eco-design as an approach to design
of electronic product with consideration for the environment impacts
of the product during its whole lifecycle In this review, it will discuss
about the solution for E-waste through three methodologies, also
three case studies to show how the company apply the method into
their practice.
Methodologies
1/Producer take-back Programs
Producer take-back Program is an approach to Extended producer
responsibility. It is the first physical management, where the producer
bears the responsibility for physically caring for its products, or used
products, or the impacts of the products at the end of their life cycles.
This can be mandated by government, or adopted voluntarily by
producers.
Extended producer responsibility (EPR)
The principle of Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is that the
most effective way to reduce waste and environmental impacts is to
design out the problem before they occur, rather that attempting to
manage waste and control environmental impact after they are
generated. EPR places the intervention focus on changes within
product design, development, delivery and collection systems, rather
that on manufacturing facilities and waste disposal methods. This
encourages firms to design their product for easy disassembly: to use
fewer, lighter, more durable and less toxic material; and to restructure
product delivery and collection systems to more easily recapture endof-
life goods for reuse, remanufacturing and recycling.
2/Product service system
Product Service System (PSS) is a business model that provide
sustainable of consumption and production, which mean the company
sell the services associated with a product, it come together with a
“product-service package”; for example, the maintenance agreements,
product leasing, and product management services. To describe PSS
separately, a product is a tangible commodity manufactured to be
sold. It is capable of falling onto people’s toes and fulfilling user’s
need. A service an activity (work) done for others with an economic
value and often done on a commercial basis. In this ‘service’, it is
include work done by human beings as well as by automated systems.
A system is collection of elements including their relations. A product
system is a set of material products needed to jointly fulfil a user’s
needs. A product Service System (PSS) is a marketable set of products
and services capable of jointly fulfilling a user’s need. The PSS is
provides by either a single company or by an alliance of companies. It
can enclose products (or just one) plus additional services. And
product and service can be equally important for the function
fulfilment. It is necessary to aim determine the level of hierarchy,
system boundaries and the system element’s relations.
3/Design for Assembly (DFA) and Design for Disassembly (DFD)
Design for Assembly (DFA) is a method with became popular during
the 1980’s industry realized that the increased profitability could only
be achieved through increased efficiency. There are many product
nowadays are over designed and as a result were difficult and time
consuming to assemble. Boothroy and Dewhurst showed that if the
product was designed specifically for assembly the manufacturing cost
could fall by 20%-40% and assembly productivity could rise by 100%-
200%. The DFA method given by Boothroy and Dewhurst involves
designs being assessed at an early stage to calculate assembly time
and the theoretical minimum number of parts, this later result in the
design being assigned an assembly cost. The areas of design, which
need to be changed, are clearly highlighted with this method enabling
the replacement and elimination of unnecessary parts. And to force
the designer to think about the function of each part and its
embodiment. The result should be that part are combined or fasteners
eliminated, reducing costs and assembly time.
When designing for disassembly, it is important to remember that the
product needs to be designed not only for ease of disassembly but
also to ensure that the product’s part and material can easily be
recycled. If DFD is not be used in equivalent way to DFA then it is
important that parallels can be drawn between the two methodologies.
Both DFA and DFD are under the label Design for X, it is a wide
collection of specific design guidelines are summarized. Each design
guideline addresses a particular issue that is cause by, or affects the
corresponding methods that may help to generate and apply technical
knowledge in order to control, improve, or even to invent particular
characteristic of a product.
Case Studies
1/Apple and the Environment
In 2008, Apple recycled 30.5 million pounds of electronic waste,
achieving a worldwide recycling rate of over 38% — our best ever. To
calculate this rate, we use a simple measurement proposed by Dell
that assumes a seven year product lifetime. The weight we recycle
each year is compared to the total weight of the products Apple sold
seven years earlier.
Apple maintains a variety of recycling programs which add to our
recycling totals every day, for the customers in US, Apple offer a free
recycling program for old computer and displays with purchase of a
new MAC. A free iPod recycling program conducted through Apple
reail stores offers environmentally friendly disposal and a 10%
discount on the purchase of a new iPod. A free recycling program take
back iPod as well as cell phone, which Apple do not care about the
manufacturer or model. The recycling programs across Europe
handled over 37% of their global recycling weight in 2008, which have
a increase of 35%.
2/Xerox International – Photocopy re-manufacturing
Xerox Corporation is shifting from making products to providing result
services. Xerox has adopted a Product service system (PSS). The
company offers integrated services across the document cycle:
document outsourcing, document production assessment, network
(software and hardware) redesign, and training. All of these services
are associated with the implementation or use of Xerox photocopiers.
Xerox is a product-based PSS, Xerox offers maintenance services for
its photocopiers. Within these agreements, Xerox is liable for the
repair cost, including labor and parts. The company now has an
increased incentive to improve the quality and reliability of its
photocopiers. This results in the reduction of total parts replaced,
which contributes to an increase in eco-efficiency.
3/ Electric Switch
Using the Boothroyd and Dewhurst method, an existing electric switch
is analyzed and later redesigned. Changes in the number of parts as
well as the design efficiency are calculated. Existing design. The
existing design for the Switch contains a total of 14 separate parts and
operations. The total assembly time is 183.11 seconds ad the
corresponding design efficiency is calculated as 15%. This Switch
assembly is a good candidate for the application of design for
assembly tools to obtain a more efficient design. Proposed redesign.
The goal of redesigning the Switch is to minimize the number of arts,
while maintaining the functionality of the original design. Basic
guidelines of design for assembly analysis are applied for each part.
The assembly efficiency of the redesign is calculated as 42%. This is an
increase from the original assembly efficiency of 15%. While these
changes lead to a more efficient assembly and lower assembly time,
the overall cost of production may not be reduced. This is due to
modifications made to decrease the part count. New tooling and
fabrication processes would have to be developed to create the
required specialized combination parts. A design engineer would,
therefore, have to calculate tooling and manufacturing charges to
determine if using the redesign would compromise the product cost.
Review
Environmental concerns are becoming a key component in
management of existing and new product development in the
electronic industry. Designing environmental benefits, as well as ‘End
of Life Management issues are moving onto the agenda. As to
Extended producer responsibility and the Product Take-Back program
is needed by all the manufacturer to join, as the increasing number of
nation, state and communities are facing a shortage of landfill space,
this force the waste management authorities to find alternative
methods to dispose of waste. Also, the waste stream has become
increasing more toxic. As technology grows importance, pencil and
paper have given away to computers and fax machines and the
product, these product often contain lead, cadmium and other toxic
compounds that generate significant risk to the environment and
human health. Finally the increasing lack of landfill space and
complexity of managing the toxicity in the waste stream has mad
waste management much more expensive. At the same time when
budgets of local government are stretched thin, officials are asking
why they should bear the problem that is not of their own making.
This is the reason of the important of EPR and product take-back.
As a result, Product service system could be one of the method that
could minimized the production of product, by just offering the
service of the product, providing the needs to the user in a minimal
way, so as to use the electronic product in a maximum level till the
end-of-life. When the electronic product reach to it end-of –life cycle,
as the product have designed for assembly and disassembly, the
management will come across a lot more easier to disassemble, and
thus back to component as raw material again. This will end up a close
loop of recycling.
Conclusion
The electronics have become part of our daily lives in the past two
decades. Televisions, computers, mobile phones and MP3 players are
just some of the electronics that we rely on. As product innovations
multiply to keep up with our demands, the lifespan of electronics has
becoming shorter. Discarded electronic equipment is growing three
times faster than any other waste category. And the main component
of e-waste often hazardous and toxic chemicals that can damage the
environment if people do not take a correct action. The manufacturer
should take the most efficient practice in a way to design to serve
human needs without depleting natural and manmade resources,
without restricting the option available to present and future
generation.
Bibliography
Morey, E. (2003). Product Service Systems: Exploring the potential for
economic and environmental efficiency
Mark J, Cees J.G, Harry R.M. and Peter J. M. (1999). Product Service
System, Ecological and Economic Basics
Parlikad. A.k, Dr. Duncan. M. Recovering Value from “End-of-Life”
Equipment
Fiksel J., (1993) Design for the Environment: An integrated systems
approach, IEEE International Symposium on Electronics and the
Environment, Virginia, IEEE
Elizabeth.G., Ed.(2006).High Tech Trash. Cove, London, Island Press
The EcoDesign Special Interest Group (SIG)
http://www.ecodesignsociety.org
The Environmental Design Research Association
http://www.edra.org
Apple and the Environment
http://www.apple.com/environment/recycling
Filed under: Literature Review
In the end of the video, is showing the solution of E-waste
which is
returning the unwanted computer to the manufacture
let the useful component back to the raw material
