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Young
designers
This site is to help you make more informed decisions
and choices-as a student of design and as a consumer.
Introduction
Environmentally
sustainable development (ESD) and design
EcoLogically
sustainable development and the technology curriculum
Applying
this in your learning-ESD and the design process
Section
one
1.1 Design situation
1.2 Design brief
Section
two
2.1 Analysing
2.2 Investigating
Section
three
3.1 Thinking and choosing
3.2 Life cycle analysis
Instructions
Example-folding chair
Design tips!
Section
four
4.1 Assessing and reflecting
Section
five
Eco Design worksheet (printable)
Eco Design compliance certificate (printable)
Life cycle assessment sheet (printable)
Life cycle impact assessment tables (printable)
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Introduction
Have you ever bought a product that …. was
impossible to maintain? ...had a small part you
couldn't replace? …was covered in layers
of unnecessary packaging? ….gave out fumes
that made you sick? you got sick of in the first
ten minutes of using! …you loved so much
you will never throw it away?…you wore and
washed and wore and washed and it always looked
great?
We
are all the happy or unhappy owners and users
of products that resulted from a series of choices
and decisions. These choices and decisions were
all made, in part, by a designer.
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This
site is to help you make more informed choices-as a
student of design and as a consumer. It is about design
that uses an ecologically sustainable development framework
(ESD). This design can come under all sorts of names:
Appropriate
technology
Responsible design
Eco design
Design for the environment
Sustainable design
It
is an approach to design that aims to limit the damage
to ecosystems and human health whilst at the same time
maximizing the product or system functionality and appeal,
(see Sustainability
sheet-Eco design pdf document).
EcoLogically
sustainable development and the technology curriculum
ESD is an essential concept in all technology subjects
at Stages 4,5 and 6 in NSW schools. ESD can be a focus
of a project or a topic of study. ESD can also be considered
through incidental treatment within a broader topic
of study. The Design and Technology Stage 4 course,
requires environmental sustainability to be addressed
in every design project. This site focuses on Stage
4 students with tips on how to address sustainability
in very practical ways.
Environmentally
sustainable development (ESD) and design
Technology is all the things made by people for
people to use. It includes the systems people use
to make these things as well as the 'know-how' to
make the systems and things. Technology is an integral
part of our life and our culture. The making, using
and disposing of all this technology depends completely
on the natural environment. The enjoyment and satisfaction
we might achieve from our interaction with technology
and indeed the natural world relies on our economy
and culture. Economic and social development that
seeks to protect and enhance the natural environment
and social equity is an ecologically sustainable
development framework.
(see Sustainability sheet--EcoLogically
sustainable development pdf
document) |
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Applying
this in your learning-- less a story, more a dance!
This site is divided into sections that follow the steps
in the design process as outlined in the Design and
Technology syllabus (NSW). These steps are not necessarily
a narrative but can be worked through in different ways.
Section
one
1.1
Design situation
The Design and Technology Syllabus sees design as the
developing of solutions to meet identified needs. The
design situation is a background description in which
the need or want is identified. It gives the reason
for designing.
To
incorporate ESD requires heightened awareness of the
environmental and social needs and problems we face
at a local, community and even global level.
Concept-sustainability
indicator
A sustainability indicator provides information how
far a community is from where it wants to be towards
its goal of ecological sustainable development. These
indicators can provide valuable background material
for a new look at the design situation (see Sustainability
sheet-Sustainability indicators)
Applying
this concept to the design situation
Individual-investigate resource usage in the home. For
example by reviewing electricity, gas, water bills.
School-investigate
resource management (energy, materials, waste and water).
For example by writing to the Principal or reviewing
the school's annual report
Community-look
for relevant local community groups. For example the
historical society, bush regeneration, environmental
action group etc.
Council,
state and nation- State of the Environment Reports are
required by law in NSW and aim to provide details on
the current status of the main environmental issues.
The Commonwealth Government is also required to provide
a report. Various agencies are attempting reporting
on global issues and problems. See Resources for full
list.
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1.2
Design brief
The design brief is a short, clear written statement
specifying the requirements of the Design Project.
Students use the Design Brief to develop ideas
and establish the criteria for deciding on the
appropriateness of the Design Product.
Specifying
the activity in clear environmental terms, specifying
ecological production methods and/or materials
or strengthening the ecological context for any
product or system design will ensure ESD is incorporated.
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ESD
design brief examples
1.
Prepare a brief that specifically addresses problems
identified in the Design Situation.
For example:
Food
Analyse organic wastage from the school's food preparation
rooms and design a system to recycle organic matter
for use on the school farm
(from
New environmental education policy under Technology
in the Curriculum support directorate site. http://www.curriculumsupport.nsw.edu.au/technology/)
2.
Prepare a brief that specifically suggests use of
an environmentally friendly fabric
For example
Clothing and accessories
Design a wedding gown that uses a fabric made of recycled
materials such as plastic or metal.
3.
Prepare a brief that projects a situation in the future
suggesting (rather than stating) alienation or deterioration
of the natural world and allow the student to incorporate
ESD as part of the design philosophy and approach.
For example
Health and welfare
It is 2050 and the air quality in Sydney has declined
to such an extent that children are unable to travel
beyond their homes at peak hour. Redesign the school
timetable.
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Section
two
2.1
Analysing
Analysing the design brief gives you a clear
understanding of what you need to achieve. Questioning
is an important tool and so too is the development
of ESD criteria for success. The important thing
is to start thinking differently about the product
at this early stage. This can be formalised
by writing down your criteria for success in
eco design terms.
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Concept-ESD
goal
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The
goal of sustainable design is to develop products
and systems that address our most pressing environmental
and social issues. This requires lowering the
amount of materials and energy we use; minimising
harmful emissions and waste and creating social
environments that support sustainability. Social
environments could create connections to the natural
and historical features of a place or even make
special places more inviting in order to foster
a sense of community since they create places
to meet, visit and just hang out.
A
good product or system in eco design terms will
probably:
Use
renewable natural resources
Minimise the total energy used
Consider impact on human physical and social
health
Look at the total environmental impact
Minimise solid waste
Minimise cost to the consumer
Seek linkages to other products and systems
Look good
Work well
Have a long useful life
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Glossary
Naming and understanding concepts is another way of
expanding thinking. The glossary in the Resources section
may help this process. See also Resources
for other glossaries.
Documenting
and presenting
Most students will keep a diary of their work. Presentation
of work in progress as well as the final design should
also consider ESD. The Graphic Design site
http://www.earthdesign.com.au/enviro/
has very useful ideas for appropriate inks, papers and
methods of recycling.
Some
graphic design tips from the Society for Responsible
Design site (http://www.green.net.au/srd/)
Strive
to create the greatest visual impact with the least
environmental impact
Consider the use of recycled paper stock with a high
Post Consumer Recycled (PCR) content. Clean mill waste
has always been recycled so it is better to keep consumer
paper out of landfill
Consider the use of tree free paper stock such as
sugar cane waste, straw, seaweed, algae and hemp.
Alternative renewable paper sources can reduce the
need for wood pulp from old growth forests
Consider the use of recycled paper stock that has
not been de-inked. De-inking is an energy expensive
process, which still results in toxic waste ink
Consider the use of unbleached or non-chlorine bleached
paper stock. Bleached paper requires the use of toxins
which are harmful to marine and water based life
Consider the use of vegetable based printing inks
such as soy inks. Vegetable based inks are renewable
and emit less toxic Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
Avoid the use of ink colours, which contain high levels
of heavy metals such as copper, chrome, etc. Many
bright colours contain heavy metals, which leach into
ground water when landfilled
Avoid overuse of gloss paper stock, because more exists
than can be de-inked and recycled. In some areas there
is a glut of gloss paper because satin or matt paper
is used less
Avoid overuse of plastic films, foil stampings, metallic
colours and synthetic adhesives. Some synthetics have
a life of 200-500 years after they have been disposed
of in landfills
Avoid over use of perfect bound or spiral bound spines
as they are difficult to recycle. The glues and metals
in such binding impede cost effective recycling
Consider the smallest paper size suitable for each
job, ie A5 instead of A4. Less paper used means less
energy expended and should also be cheaper for client
Use the least amount of ink colours for the job, ie
2 colour output instead of 4 colour. The greater the
number of inks the more cleaning fluids required for
the presses = greater cost
Avoid using too much ink in their designs. More ink
means more difficult de-inking or greater toxic residue
leaching into groundwater
Use computer equipment which has energy saver features
Energy saver equipment shuts down when not in use
saving emissions from fossil fuels
Use the back side of other sheets to proof their work
from inkjet printers. This doubles the life span of
office paper. Be careful with laser printers as toner
can adhere to the drum.
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2.2
Investigating
The investigating stage is where you consider
what other people have done. "It's been done
before' is probably a safe assumption. "Can
you do it better?" is now the question.
Concept-redesign
Students will want to redesign products or processes
to give them higher environmental and social values.
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT)
calls this process EcoReDesign. An integral part
of EcoReDesign is considering the life cycle of
a product. (See also the Sustainability sheet-Life
cycle analysis).
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As
a starting point students can analyse the life cycle
of existing products using this criteria:
History
Similar designs
Economic and social impact
In
each case consider:
Before
use-materials, manufacturing, packaging and distribution
During use-operating and maintaining
After use-recycling or disposal
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History
Look at the history of the development of a product.
This may uncover different pathways that may have
been taken had the technology been available at
the time. Or fashion tastes been different. How
have fashions for styling changed? Has packaging
changed over time? How has society changed? Are
better materials now available? Are support systems
now in place to support recycling? Are those support
systems eg repair services no longer available?
Similar
designs
Look at the good and bad points of previous designs.
Is the design acceptable to all cultures? Has
it been done by other cultures? Why is some packaging
more successful than others? What processes created
this product now and in the past? At what stage
do you guess there will be the greatest environmental
impact? Could other materials be used? Other processes?
Is the product necessary?
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Economic
and social impact
Look at the market for the product. Do we really
need such a product? Does it cost more to produce
the product than the market will pay? What is
the most expensive component-labour, manufacture
or materials? Companies will make more money if
they sell more products. How is this attitude
to be overcome when products should be made to
last? What other industries or lifestyle changes
have this product caused? Do people expect this
product to be single or multiple use?
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Tip!
Museums of technology, science and/or design are a very
useful starting point for your investigation. The Powerhouse
Museum site (phm.gov.au) is expanding its online database.
The Australian Museums Online adult and student site
is a valuable resource. Its Discovernet student site
has a museum locator that can be searched by various
headings including science and industry, the arts, history
and society. Similarly its Study booster may lead to
more product information. Look to Resources for a list
of local and overseas museums.
Section
three
3.1
Thinking and choosing
Thinking and choosing explores options open to you in
terms of ideas, processes and materials. It is here
you can use your Eco design criteria for success to
evaluate your ideas [link to Eco design terms above
in 2.1]. You can also conduct a form of Life Cycle Analysis.
The
next part of the site gives you a form of LCA that allows
comparisons between alternative materials or processes
when designing a product or a system. It is an introduction
to an important design method.
3.2 Life cycle analysis
Introduction
A Life Cycle
Analysis or (assessment) is a technique for assessing
the potential and real extent of the damage during all
stages of its life-from 'cradle' to 'grave'. These stages
are:
Material
extraction, processing and transport
Manufacturing
Distribution and packaging
Product use
End of product life
3.2.1
LCA limitations
Life cycle analysis is an emerging and important field
but is currently limited by these factors:
- Comprehensive
LCA are complex and expensive.
- LCA
still require evaluating the relative importance of
different impacts within the products likely market,
resources and time limitations. The most environmentally
friendly way to make a product may not be the cheapest
or most socially acceptable. Consider these examples:
aluminium is a material with a high impact, however
it is very light and therefore uses less energy in
transportation; a material may be recyclable but a
designer will need to decide whether a consumer is
likely to recycle it.
- Australia
is still developing usable LCA standards.
LCA
is intended to be a tool for the designer not a marketing
technique.
3.2.2
A tool to be used
The process now outlined and Life cycle assessment table
is based on The Eco-indicator 99 Manual for Designers
(second edition April 2000) written by M Goedkoop, S
Effting & M Collignon. (see Resources).
The process is described in these sub sections:
Instructions
Step one--purpose
1.
Describe the product or product component you are
analysing.
2. Are you analysing one product or comparing one
or more products? For example you may be comparing
your idea with an existing product.
Step
two-define the life cycle
Draw a schematic overview of the life cycle (called
a process tree) including:
Basic
materials-
Extraction,
transport
and processing |
Distribution
to customers |
Step three-quantify materials and processes
In this step you must combine the life of the product
with its performance and use. This is called a functional
unit. For example, the purpose of a torch is to
illuminate the objects within its own range and the
person's view. Therefore all the products and processes
needed to provide this light over a certain period (say
two years) has to be specified. This might be using
the torch twice a week for 10 minutes each use, over
24 months. The number of globes and batteries (if relevant)
must be considered as part of this assessment.
Step
four-do the maths
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Note the materials and processes on the Life
cycle assessment sheet and enter your estimates.
- Find
the relevant value on the Life cycle impact assessment
table.
- Calculate
the scores by multiplying the amounts of by the indicator
value and adding all the results.
- If
a value is missing substitute a known indicator for
an unknown indicator.
Note:
If there are too many unknowns simplify your calculation
by using the very simplified LCA on the Impact
assessment matrix.
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Step
five-evaluate
Evaluate the environmental impact of your proposal
and make changes. This will involve analyzing
which stage in the life cycle has the highest
and lowest impact. For example it is likely that
the use of batteries in the torch example may
have the highest impact. You may like to change
your design based on this information and repeat
steps one to four.
Setting
A design team is designing a lightweight folding
chair for domestic use and decides to analyse
an existing product to see where there may be
scope to lessen the environmental impact over
the life of the chair.
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This
example of Life Cycle Assessment uses a folding
chair made for domestic market to illustrate
application of the Eco-indicator. The steps
listed above are followed here.
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Step
1 - establish the purpose of the LCA
The aim of doing the LCA is to see where there is most
opportunity to improve the environmental performance
of the chair to be designed.
Step
2 - define the life cycle
The process flowchart is illustrated below. Inspection
of the chair reveals that the main components are made
from two materials: polypropylene which has been injection
moulded and an alloy steel which has been rolled into
strip. Two other components are the metal pins which
allow the movements needed to fold the chair, and small
nylon feet which snap into holes in the bottom steel
strip. These components are small compared with the
main components and will be not be included in the assessment.
Similarly the finishing, machining, bending, assembly,
and packaging operations are much less energy intensive
than the main production processes and will not be included
in the assessment (except for the cardboard package
material-see italics in the process tree).
Transport for the chair includes trucking from the factory
to the port, sea freight to Sydney, and trucking from
the docks to the warehouse/store. In use, allowance
is made for delivery by van to the home but amounts
of water, electricity, and cleaner consumed in cleaning
and maintenance are likely to be negligible.
Step
3 - quantify materials and processes
Dismantling the chair allows the components to be weighed
separately and amounts of each material to be estimated.
Empty cartons can be weighed and an estimate made of
the cardboard packaging around the chair. Estimates
of transport distances can be based on typical distances
from industrial areas to ports if the actual sites of
these are not known.
Complete recycling of the cardboard packaging, steel
strip, and polypropylene components through municipal
waste recycling operations is assumed although this
may be an optimistic assumption as a proportion of these
chairs could end in landfill or illegal rubbish dumps.
Step
4 - complete the form
Using the form provided the amounts of each component
and process are entered and then multiplied by the relevant
points taken from the list of Ecoindicator point values
given. For materials or processes which are not in this
list it may be possible to find an equivalent material
or process which is, or to use an average of two similar
materials or processes. An example of a completed form
for the folding chair is shown below.
Step
four-do the maths
Product
or component
Imported folding chair |
Project |
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Date |
Student name
Group/Class |
Notes
and conclusions
The production phase has the greatest impact
on the environment with the polypropylene
granulate and injection moulding process making
the largest contributions. |
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Production
Materials, treatment, transport and extra
energy |
| Material
or process |
amount |
indicator |
result |
| PP
granulate |
5kg |
330/kg |
1650 |
| Injection
moulding |
5kg |
21/kg |
105 |
| Steel |
3
kg |
86
kg |
258 |
| Cold
rolling |
3
kg |
20
kg |
60 |
| Cardboard
|
2
kg |
69
kg |
138 |
| Truck
x2 |
10
kg.100 km x2 |
22/km
tonne |
44 |
| Sea
freight |
10
kg.100 km x2 |
1/km.tonne |
100 |
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Use
Transport, energy and other materials |
| process |
amount |
indicator |
result |
| Delivery |
10
kg.20 km |
140/km.
tonne |
28 |
| Cleaning |
negligible
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Disposal
disposal processes for each material type |
| Material
or process |
amount |
indicator |
result |
| Cardboard
recycle |
2
kg |
-8/kg |
-16 |
| Steel
recycle |
3
kg |
-70/kg |
-210 |
| PP
recycle |
5
kg |
-240/kg |
-1200 |
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Step 5 - interpret the results
For this chair, the production phase has the greatest
impact on the environment with the polypropylene granulate
and injection moulding process making the largest contributions.
An alternative which may have less environmental impact
could be to make some of the components (eg the seat)
from locally grown plantation timber. Full recycling
of the materials in the main components offers significant
reduction of impacts so any alternative design should
be kept simple to facilitate recycling of materials.
Another avenue to explore is reuse of components, that
is, return of the chair to the manufacturer or distributor
for reuse of the undamaged components in a new chair
assembly.
Tips!
A useful life
A cheap product is easily discarded and replaced. Its
low cost means there is low incentive to repair and
reuse it. This is especially the case with a single
use product such as a paper cup. If a short useful life
is the aim it is probably best to consider making energy
and material savings in the production process and to
minimize amount and toxicity of landfill.
Extend a useful life by:
- Repairing
- Patching
- Maintaining
- Cleaning
- Donating
for reuse or recycling
However
expensive products do not necessarily mean a longer
life. This longer life must be considered at the design
stage. For example:
- Modular
components can be upgraded and repaired individually
- Make
it easy to clean and maintain
- People
should love and want to cherish this product, service
or system. Make it appealing in terms of cost, look
and use.
Tips
on the tip!
- More
materials in a product mean more energy and labour
needed to separate and recycle it
- The
infrastructure to recycle will develop when there
is a market for the recycled product or material
- Products
made from a single material generally requires less
energy, labour and money to recycle
- Organic
material quickly decomposes under the right conditions
in a compost pile. In a landfill organic material
(such as newspapers) can take decades to decompose
Tips
adapted from The Life Cycle of Everyday Stuff (see Resources)
See also Resources for links to Extender Producer Responsibility
sites
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4.1
Assessing and reflecting
So, you think you have attained the goal of sustainable
design and want to prove it to the world, (or
at least your teacher and friends)? The Eco Design
compliance certificate is a checklist to help
you assess, evaluate and review your work. It
can be used during your design phase to compare
products but also at the end of the process to
attach to your product and/or include in your
eco friendly portfolio. It summarises the guidelines
for sustainable design.
Congratulations
for considering ESD in your design practice.
Conclusion
Designing with ESD in mind is not a formula-it
is an approach. This site gives you guidelines
to follow but ultimately each product or system
lives withing its own product cycle and its own
market-read offs and decisions will need to be
made. Here are some of the choices--
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Production
Materials, treatments, transports and extra energy
Made from renewable materials
Made from easily sourced materials
Easy to put together
Safe for people to make
Uses a small variety of materials
Small amount of energy used to extract and refine raw
material
Made from recycled materials
Small number of components
Minimises emissions to the air
Minimises emissions to water
Small amount of energy or 'green power' in production
Use
Transport, energy and other materials
Light weight
Durable
Easy to understand and use
Minimises or stores operational energy including stand
by power
Easy to repair or refurbish
Minimises emissions to the air
Minimises emissions to water
Safe for people to handle
Works without additional purchases
Attractive
Inexpensive
Uses 'green' power
Encourages cooperation or sense of community
Disposal
Disposal processes for each material type
Degradable
Easy to recycle all of it or its parts
Easy to reuse
Minimises landfill
Section
five
Impact assessment
matrix (printable pdf)
Eco Design
compliance certificate (printable
pdf)
Life cycle
assessment sheet (printable pdf)
Life
cycle impact assessment tables (printable
pdf)
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