Sustainable new product development based on innovative product opportunity gap for a waste to energy system: pistachio packaging

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to perform innovation analysis for a product based on market, design and process dimensions. This integrated approach provides sustainability for product design and development. Design/methodology/approach A significant aspect of innovation is investigated to provide energy from the wastes collected in the reverse chain. First, the indicators related to the product opportunity gap were collected and ranked by the structural equation modeling (SEM) method. Indicators with a factor loading above 0.6 are selected and inserted into the proposed mathematical model. The proposed mathematical model was implemented in GAMS 28.2.0 to maximize energy production from waste and minimize the cost of product innovation. A case study on pistachio new packaging process innovation is investigated. Findings The results showed that in today’s competitive world where sustainability and the environment are important, the index of converting waste into energy is one of the main indicators of innovation. Consequently, flammability is extracted from the mathematical model as one of the most significant indicators leading to higher energy production with the lowest innovation cost. Originality/value New product development (NPD) is significant to sustain market share and satisfy customer needs. Different approaches are proposed to handle NPD, mostly focusing on the customer and design requirements.