Whole Life Cycle Of Product Research Articles

Studies on Broad-Sense Sample Method in Data Mining

With the development of science and technology, people pay more and more attention to the reliability of the products, especially in some special field, such as aerospace, military products, and some products of high reliability and long life. As a part that runs through the whole life cycle of products, reliability test provides an important source of data for the design, batch production and residual life assessment of the product development. For some expensive, new products put into use, they are not quite little in amount, having the characteristics of small sample. In this case, how to use the existing data to predict product life, reliability of calculating the reliability of a product more accurately and other related parameters is particularly important.

Research of Modular Design in Disassembly

Design for disassembly in in the whole life cycle of products focused on product disassembly and as the goal; modular design has to face the module and function analysis for main feature, can pass through the module selection and combination of rapid formation of product series. The detachable design and modular design methods combined, AHP is introduced, put forward to face the removable modular design method and analyzes its design flow. Finally, to large lorry bottom side door of stamping die for example and analysis.

Closed-loop lifecycle management of automotive components: holistic life cycle approach as decision support system

Sustainability of their products and practices provides companies with a competitive set of methods and tools to maintain, improve and expand customer and supplier relationships and to ensure access to strategic markets. Companies pay a lot of attention to produce more sustainable products and contribute to the overall sustainability. Most of the companies manage to use lighter materials or change the material with a recyclable one or try to decrease the energy used for manufacturing. However most of these attempts are related to only one part of the life cycle or one aspect of sustainability. In spite the fact that sustainability is thought to be related with the environmental aspects of the product, it is a broad concept and has economic and social dimensions. This makes the evaluation of sustainability a very complex matter. On top of that, to achieve a certain level of sustainability, it is necessary to take into account the whole life cycle of products (life cycle perspective) from material extraction and manufacturing to use and disposal when a decision has to be made about sustainability performance. Life cycle thinking or life cycle perspective takes into account the whole life cycle of the product. The main feature of life cycle thinking is to avoiding problem shifting. This helps not only to take into account all necessary aspects in evaluation of sustainability but also make a more accurate assessment. In order to evaluate the sustainability performance of the products it is necessary to combine a number of life cycle evaluation methodologies; life cycle assessment (LCA) for environmental aspects, life cycle costing (LCC) for economic aspects, and social life cycle assessment for (S-LCA) for social aspects. It is necessary to attain and process a huge amount of data to evaluate these attributes of a product through its life cycle. Product lifecycle management system help to manage product related information through its life cycle. Closed-Loop Lifecycle Management uses PEIDs and enables to gather and distribute life cycle information through the life cycle of a product more precisely. This information may further be used for evaluation of the products sustainability performance. Closed-loop Lifecycle Management contains four main components, PEIDs’ to collect data, middleware to combine different applications and collect and distribute life cycle data, a decision support system (DSS) to transform the collected data into usable information and a product knowledge and management system (PDKM) to manage the information and knowledge generated through the life cycle of the product. In automotive industry PLM systems are used to manage the life cycle data but these systems are somehow separate from each other. It is needed to develop a middleware to combine the separate PLM systems, a DSS to transform gathered data into necessary information and knowledge for specific applications and a PDKM to manage the information and knowledge. Holistic life cycle approach takes into account the whole life cycle of the product and generates performance characteristics, which might be configured in order to evaluate the sustainability performance of the product. A Closed-Loop Lifecycle Management system containing a DSS configured with the holistic life cycle approach will be an efficient tool to evaluate and improve the sustainability performance of products.

Influence of Environmental European Product Policies on Product Design-current Status and Future Developments

Great environmental impacts along the life cycle of products might be avoided in the early steps of design. Thus several EU regulations encourage manufacturers to create products considering the whole life cycle of products. European Product Policies aim at boosting the EU market to be progressively more sustainable by setting product's specific thresholds. With this purpose, several policies that are product-related coexist under the scope of different EU regulations, for example: Ecodesign Directive, Labelling Directive, Green Public Procurement or EU Ecolabel. There are relevant aspects of these policies instruments which need to be considered towards an efficient, future oriented and more sustainable design of products. The objective of this paper is to assess how these product policies currently affect the design of products. An initial analysis presents the main technical relevant criteria for designers of such mandatory and voluntary policies. To anticipate to future environmental requirements leads business to competitive advantages. The analysis shows that the four EU product policies are dynamic and potentially synergetic although several aspects need to be further explored such as the scope extension of product groups, the non-energy aspects or the product systems’ link.

An Exploratory Study for Designing Business Services Based on Sensor Networks

As manufacturers tried to change into a small quantity batch production system, the enterprise resource planning system has been introduced. In production sites, however, there is discontinuity of information flow between an enterprise management system and a production system because data is still managed manually, so that models have been developed to enable gathering of on-the-spot context information in real time and exchanging information and collaboration for the whole lifecycle of products by exploiting sensor network technologies. However, because sensor network technologies have not reached a commercialization and diffusion stage yet due to various specialties and are primarily limited to creation of new application models, it is time to induce companies to participate in active utilization of sensor networks through user-oriented support.Accordingly, in this study, to enhance companies' understanding of sensor networks and increase their utilization, an exploratory study was carried out to design business services based on sensor networks. In detail, it investigated and analyzed companies' awareness levels for sensor networks market, technologies and their advantages and disadvantages, correlations between sensor networks and business, and requirements for introduction of sensor network technologies. Also, The problems of applying the sensor network based business services and the improvement methods were classified into the technological levels, security, marketability and standardization to carry out.

ECOSYSTEM SERVICES AND THE PROTECTION, RESTORATION, AND MANAGEMENT OF ECOSYSTEMS EXPOSED TO CHEMICAL STRESSORS

Ecosystem services-the benefits people obtain from ecosystem structures and processes-are essential for human survival and well-being. Chemicals are also an essential component of modern life; however, they may cause adverse ecological effects and reduce ecosystem service provision. Environmental policy makers are increasingly adopting the ecosystem services concept, but applying this approach to the protection, restoration, and management of ecosystems requires the development of new understanding, tools, and frameworks. There is an urgent need to understand and predict the effect of single and multiple stressors on ecosystem service delivery across different spatial scales (local to global), to develop indicators that can be used to quantify and map services and identify synergies and trade-offs between them, to establish protection goals and restoration targets defined in terms of the types and levels of service delivery required, and to develop approaches for the assessment and management of chemical risk to ecosystem services that consider the whole life cycle of products and processes. These are major research challenges for the environmental science community in general and for ecotoxicologists and risk assessors in particular.

Sustainability of Printing Techniques: Potentials and Incomparable Aspects

CEWE uses digital printing and photographic techniques to produce photos, CEWE PHOTOBOOKS and further highly valued photo products. Whereas advantages in quality, efficiency and minimum cost of ownership are well communicated, the full picture on the sustainability aspects of a printing technology is learned during operation. Only recently have sustainability aspects been addressed more prominently by printing technology providers, often for the purpose of gaining competitive advantage.This paper concentrates on sustainability aspects of printing techniques from the point of view of a print service provider (PSP) and displays data measured by CEWE. Each printing technique we regard offers potentials to improve. The complexity of the evaluation is further increased by the product properties, which puts certain sustainability aspects into perspective. So for instance recyclability plays a more important role for an advertising mail than for a personalized photo book.Thus, sustainability is not seen as an absolute measure but means to assume responsibility for the whole life cycle of products overcoming the boundaries of companies and the limitations to single aspects like carbon footprint or water footprint.Open and transparent communication of sustainability aspects is the silver bullet for continuous improvement. Eager competitiveness and advertising of single advantages by ignoring the whole picture is obstructive and does not help to continuously improve sustainability of printed products.

Research on Assembly Quality Evaluation for Aircraft Product Based on Monte-Carlo Simulation

In the process of aircraft manufacturing, assembly quality is crucial for the flight performance; assembly workload occupies a large proportion in the total workload of manufacturing. However, conventional quality views are concerned on the assembly process and the using process is ignored, which do not comprehensively evaluate the assembly quality. In view of these facts, this paper presents a new quality view oriented to the whole life cycle of product. The effects of assembly on using process are included. In this paper, some assembly evaluation indexes are introduced. And based on Monte-Carlo simulation, the indexes can be efficiently obtained. Finally, a typical assembly is taken as an example to prove effectiveness and feasibility of this view.

Application of Genetic Algorithm into Multicriteria Batch Manufacturing Scheduling

Technical innovations in the area of manufacturing logistics are introduced partially and thus fail to realize their full potential. In order to optimise the efficiency of turning manufacturing processes, the production planning and scheduling, cutting tools and material flow process, manufacturing capacities have been analysed. All data from production operations, quantities and the, duration of operations are now kept in the ERP system. It provided the necessary condition for the establishment of a robust planning model, which includes stock control of material and cutting tools. An update was required for the whole lifecycle of products and means of work. The article presents information and an algorithm for a dynamic scheduling model, based on a genetic algorithm. The orders on the machines are scheduled on the basis of a genetic algorithm, according to the target function criteria. The algorithm provides a satisfactory, almost ideal solution, which is good enough for implementation in practice. With the GA the machine utilization increased, throughput time was reduced and costs and delivery delays improved. The presented model of GA also allows further optimisation of manufacturing plans and the machines layout.

Climate Labelling and the WTO: The 2010 EU Ecolabelling Programme as a Test Case Under WTO Law

Environmental labelling is increasingly used as an instrument of climate protection. This is underlined, for example, by the EU climate change programme, in which various labelling schemes are employed. Cases in point are the EU’s oft-discussed voluntary ecolabelling scheme, which takes a life-cycle approach, and its mandatory labelling scheme for cars. After the dubious outcome of the multilateral 2009 Copenhagen Climate Conference, the importance of instruments of this type may augment even further. Both mandatory and voluntary labelling schemes risk contravening WTO law: while mandatory labels restrict market access for non-complying products, labels that are granted under a voluntary scheme are meant to improve the perceived attractiveness of products that are awarded the label; hence, such labels may negatively affect the competitive conditions of other products, possibly disadvantaging imported products. Labelling schemes according to which information on a product’s environmental impacts over its life-cycle is included in a pertinent label fall into the category of process-based labels. It is well-known to WTO experts that such labelling schemes – in particular those based on ‘non-product-related processes and production methods’ – raise a considerable number of issues under WTO law. This contribution examines the EU’s voluntary eco-labelling scheme which was revised in 2000 and 2010. Due to its life-cycle approach, which since the scheme’s inception has taken into account e.g. energy consumption during production and use (besides further environmental impacts), this scheme has been intensely debated in trade and academic circles since its first version was introduced in 1992. The new 2010 EU scheme similarly considers the whole life cycle of products, including ‘the most significant environmental impacts, in particular the impact on climate change’. Therefore, and in view of the broad range of issues raised by it, this scheme presents a model test case under WTO law also for other climate-related labelling schemes and ecolabelling schemes more generally.

銚子産キャベツの「カーボンフットプリント」を用いた環境教育プログラムの効果

Objective. This study developed a new environmental education program calculating the Carbon Footprint (CFP) of cabbage grown in Choshi city, Chiba prefecture. CFP is expected to be an environmental communication tool used to visualize the amount of CO2 emission by human activities. CFP can assists consumers in achieving sustainable consumption if they are provided information on the amount of CO2 emitted through the whole life cycle of products. While is important to establish a low carbon society, it is difficult to comprehend how our daily life is linked to global environmental problems through CO2 emission. This disconnected situation is called the “missing link”. The presented educational program aimed to recover the “missing links”.Method. This program was applied to 33 junior high school students in Choshi city. This program consists of a forty minute lecture, a sixty minute cooking experiment, and a fifty minute group work presentation and discussion. The lecture is a brief overview of the cabbage life cycle and the calculation method of CFP. The life cycle of cabbage is defined as the following eight stages, cultivation, yield, storage, transportation, selling, refrigeration, cooking and disposal stages. CFP was calculated by the addition of the amount of CO2 emission in each life cycle stage. The students choose from a standard set of transportation, refrigeration, cooking and disposal stages scenarios, and consider ways of improving their scenarios. In the cooking experiment, students measure the amount of CO2 emission for various cooking methods, e.g. LPG range, induction heater, electric heater and microwave. The calculated results of CFP are presented and discussed along with CFP reduction methods. The effects of this program are evaluated by a questionnaire and an analysis of student’s descriptions.Results and Discussion. The results of the group discussion and presentation showed that the students became more conscious of the CO2 emission from their daily life, and realized the connection between the CO2 emissions and the global environmental problems. Analyses on the data from the questionnaires indicated that this program was effective in making students recognize the “link” between their daily life and CO2 emissions. An analysis of students’ descriptions showed that an awareness of “perceived effectiveness” and “a sense of responsibility” resulted in enhancing behavioral intension of environmental action.Conclusions. The use of CFP in environmental education programs was considered effective in addressing the recovery of the “missing link” between global environmental problems based on CO2 emissions and our daily life, as well as modifying environmental action. It was important for students to be “facilitators” in promoting discussions appropriately. Adjusting system boundaries appropriately, this program could be highly effective for various education levels from elementary school to college.

The Revised Directive on Waste: Resolving Legislative Tensions in Waste Management?

The revised Directive on waste (Directive 2008/98/EC) entered into force on 12 December 2008. The purpose of the revised Directive is to simplify the existing legislative framework for waste in order to encourage the divergence of waste away from landfills, to strengthen legal certainty and minimise burdens on businesses, regulators and stakeholders. This article explores the main features of the revised Directive and assesses them against the European Commissions' intentions in introducing the Directive. In addition, the paper considers the extent to which the revised Directive promotes successfully (i) reduction of natural resource use, (ii) prevention of environmental impacts of waste generation, (iii) life-cycle thinking and; (iv) securing waste prevention. The paper concludes that there is still room for further clarification, particularly in relation to the criteria for by-products and the new waste management terms end of waste and preparing for re-use . Whilst the revised Directive has weaknesses and limitations it should be considered within the context of decision-making. In this way it represents a multi-party, multi-institutional and multi-national compromise which should be considered as a progressive step towards improving the whole life-cycle of products and resources. Undoubtedly, the revised Directive sets the tone for future legislative developments and bolsters the importance of extended producer responsibility in future waste management measures.

Integrated Modeling Towards Collaborative Product Development

In today’s highly volatile global market, design activities become more and more important in the whole lifecycle of product. The process of different developments should adopt appropriate modeling approaches at each stage. Different modeling technologies exert a great impact on different design stages. Therefore, modeling design is crucial to achieve success in the process of product development. This paper presents an integrated modeling of design process for product development. Its objective is to realize concurrent design towards ever-growing demands of market that has already integrated design process and production activities. It can manage to develop product towards early design activities. Different design stage model relations and activities are presented for product development. At first, the characteristics of different development stages are analyzed. The performances and attributes of product are established through considering component, constraints and environment. Second, the process of product modeling is described in detail for early design, and the time interval between the two activities is evaluated for concurrent engineering during the design modeling. Third, a promising framework is given to describe the process of design. Finally, an application example and knowledge are presented to illustrate the process of product development.

Research on the knowledge management architecture of LCED based ontologies and multi-agent system

Life cycle engineering design (LCED) is the key and comprehensive technology to realize manufacturing industries’ sustainable development. Its main objective is to support design teams to create products considering the entire product life-cycle from conception through manufacturing and assembly to disassembly, recycling, disposal, and lifecycle assessment. So LCED should be collaboratively implemented among the different departments. This paper puts forward knowledge management architecture of LCED based ontologies and multi-agent system. The definition of the domain-specific ontology, the multi-agent architecture are described. Based on the two concepts, this paper discusses the detailed construction of CAD agents, LCED evaluation agents and knowledge maintenance agents and the system implementation. It can fulfill the concurrent collaborative developing of a product under distributed environments and also meet the requirement of knowledge sharing, interoperability, reusing among the whole lifecycle of product.

Collaborative life cycle management between suppliers and OEM

Collaboration between suppliers and OEM customers should not be restricted to selling finished components on order. Collaboration should rather go into strategic partnership, covering the whole life cycle of products (see below). The basis for tight collaboration is the agreement on processes, communication and exchange of valuable product information. Within its Industrial IT initiative ABB is creating valuable product information throughout the whole company in a standardized manner. In order to qualify product information, ABB has installed a certification process, which enables products to carry the quality label “Industrial IT certified”. Further on ABB has installed the communication and data exchange mechanisms to exchange such product information throughout the whole life cycle of products with the customer. What is needed now for successful implementation is an industry wide agreement on common business processes as an envelope around product life cycle data.

Investigation on end-of-life electric and electronic equipment recycling and disposal system in China: legislation, education and dissemination

The Chinese obsolete electric and electronic equipments (EEE) recycling and disposal system on the point of view of legislation, education and dissemination were discussed, because of the highly increasing volume of electric and electronic products and that of its obsoletes today in China. The legislations and responsibilities of government, industry and consumer were discussed based on the balance of benefit and responsibility depending on the realization of their benefits in the whole life cycle of products and its status in the whole value chain. Not only the legislation and establishment of the so called “compulsory discarding system” will be a possible and effective solution to the difficulty of the obsolete collection and recycling for obsolete electric and electronic reclaiming industry, but also the education and dissemination. Education and dissemination were discussed as an important role which will emphasize the adjusting of policy and law on the development of electric and electronic industry production and its reclaiming. The education of stockholders’ environmental responsibility and the advocating of responsibility sharing should be implement for industry and consumer. Chinese EEE industry should emphasize the control of natural source, and should implement the environmental benign design in their production, such as design for dismantling, no dismantling, thermal treatment and green design. The perspectives for the way to advocate a harmonic society for Chinese people were described.

기업간 제품환경성정보 교환 포맷 개발

This study is focused on exchange format of product environmental information in the supply chain. We analyzed questionnaires related to Green Procurement from the business consumers of an electronics supplier in Korea. The followings are major attributes included in the product environmental information. First, most of the environmental information requested was related to the hazardous substances regulated under the RoHS and to some extent under the WEEE directives. Second, information for material declaration of a product was one of the frequently asked questions. Third, no life cycle thinking was imbedded in the product environmental information requested. Based on the analytical results, desirable environmental information recommended to exchange in the future should include; not only information about the hazardous substances but also various material information covers whole life-cycle of product. Considering the upper recommendation, finally the environmental product data format has been suggested.

설계자용 전과정평가 프로그램

The completion of quantitative environmental analysis is a prerequisite to environmentally conscious design of products. Life cycle assessment is one of the most important tools for environmentally conscious design of products because of its ability for quantitative analysis through whole life cycle of products. Generally, life cycle assessment requires much more time and cost than other tools to be applied to product design. Especially, the worst problem in that Life cycle assessment much time to apply to product design. For tide over a defect of life cycle assessment, using the simple tool is necessary for a designer to assess his designing products or parts in designing step existing life cycle assessment results. We made SPEED for our companys designer, which is easy to use for the first LCA Tool of designer in KOREA. Also we will develop SPEED as a general supporting tool for design, which can assess products environmental implications.