Page 191 - Design for Environment A Guide to Sustainable Product Development

170 Cha pte r Ni ne

relative environmental impact of alternative approaches. There are
many variations on this basic technique, including scorecards, rat-
ing schemes, and “traffic light” signal charts. For example, Table 9.2
shows one component of a comprehensive scoring system used by
Norm Thompson Outfitters to rate footwear and clothing designs
[2]. Scoring matrices have many of the same advantages as check-
lists, and they can provide an easy means for evaluating trade-offs
and representing more subtle interactions among design criteria.

Score Examples of Materials Criteria
Sustainably harvested/ • Materials without hazards
collected forest products, across life cycle
sustainable/organic • Natural materials produced in
agricultural products, sustainable manner
(e.g., sustainably sourced
• Biodegradable and/or easily
3 vegetable-tanned leather recyclable
or latex), pied au naturale,
• Recycled content for either
cork
natural materials or
synthetics
• No toxics in raw material
processing
Recycled cotton, recycled • Materials with minor
metal, recycled plastic, hazards in life cycle, but
hemp (natural retting) no carcinogens
recycled polyester • Moderate recycled content
• Biodegradable and/or
2 potentially recyclable
• Sustainably sourced
materials
• Toxics, if used, produced
on-site and consumed or
detoxified on-site; final
product not toxic
Hemp (chemical retting), • Materials with some
linen, common oak hazards in life cycle, but
no carcinogens
1 • Recycled content
• Downcyclable
• Some ecosystem impacts
TABLE 9.2 Sustainability Scorecard for Material Selection: Soft Goods in
Footwear Design