Integrating environmental impact targets in early phases of production planning for lightweight structures

Abstract

Increased utilization of multi-material lightweight structures requires the development of new manufacturing processes for large-volume automotive production. Manufacturing processes based on fiber-reinforced plastics tend to be more energy intensive than current steel-based processing technologies, which reduces the environmental advantages of lightweight design. The risk of shifting environmental impacts from the usage to the production stage increases the relevance of life cycle engineering based production planning. This paper presents an approach for integrating environmental impact targets into early phase production planning for manufacturing systems of lightweight structures. In the approach, impact targets are derived from eco-efficiency measures. An exemplary application is presented within the case of FRP patching.