University of TennesseeCenter for Clean Products and

Clean Technologies

Maria Leet Socolofsocolofml@utk.edu

www.cleanproducts.com

Suppliers Partnership for the Environment

Design for the Environment

Auto Sector Life Cycle Management Methodology Workshop

Troy, MI

January 21, 2004

UT Center for Clean Products and Clean Technologies

(CCPCT)• Mission

– To develop, evaluate, and promote environmentally friendly products and technologies that minimize pollution at the source and contribute to long-term sustainable development

• Purpose– Assist producers and other stakeholders in

cooperative efforts to design products and processes to reduce life-cycle environmental impacts

CCPCT LCM-related Projects• Industry sectors:

– Automotive

– Electronics

• Project types:

– Life-cycle Assessment (LCA)

– Environmental Management Systems (EMS)

– Supply Chain Management

– Extended Product Responsibility (EPR)

– End-of-Life (EOL) Management

– Cleaner Technologies Substitutes Assessment (CTSA)

– Design For Environment (DFE)

– Printing

– Carpet

Life-Cycle Assessment

• Projects:– Saturn Car

– Partnership for a Generation of New Vehicles (PNGV)

– Computer Display Project

– Lead-Free Solder Project

• Tools:– Evaluate LCA tools

– Develop Life-Cycle Design Toolkit

– Apply other tools (e.g., GaBi)

Life-Cycle Management• Environmental Management Systems (EMS)

– Integrated EMS guidance tool incorporates a risk component with an EMS tool for EPA DfE

• Saturn Supply Chain Management– Identified and assessed methods that OEMs and their

suppliers can employ to promote cleaner production to all members of the supply chain in the automobile industry.

• Extended Product Responsibility (EPR)/EOL– Convened 1st conference on EPR (1994)– Served on PCSD on defining EPR in US – Voluntary initiatives (carpet & electronics industries)– Car recycling in industrialized & developing countries

Design for the Environment

• Cleaner Technologies Substitutes Assessment (CTSA)– Evaluates a set of competing processes or products– Focuses on manufacturing processes and associated

toxicity risks for EPA DfE Program

• Design for Environment (DFE) – Focus on design of product system– Applied in LCA and CTSA projects, examples:

• Molded in color fascia study (car LCA)• Door insert alternatives study (car LCA)• Hot air solder leveling (HASL) process in electronics industry

(CTSA)