Page 220 - Design for Environment A Guide to Sustainable Product Development

CHAPTER 10

Product Life-Cycle

Management

DFE Principle 1. When considering the
environmental implications of product and
process design, think beyond the cost, technology
and functional performance of the design and
consider the broader consequences at each stage
of the value chain.

Putting It All Together
Product life-cycle management is an integrated business process that
brings together all of the principles, practices, guidelines, metrics,
and methodologies described in previous chapters. Life-cycle think-
ing, as described in Chapter 5, provides a useful conceptual frame-
work for life-cycle management. It is important to note the difference
between life-cycle assessment, the analytical method described in Chap-
ter 9, and life-cycle thinking, which is a paradigm for holistic under-
standing of enterprise sustainability and competitiveness. Life-cycle
thinking does not necessarily require the application of any specific
methods; it merely requires a broad awareness of how business deci-
sions affect stakeholders across the entire value chain, from material
and energy acquisition to the end of the product’s useful life. Life-cycle
thinking must combine an understanding of competitive opportuni-
ties in the marketplace with aspirations for sustainability and, thus,
may give rise to innovative product or service concepts.
Life-cycle management (LCM) can be defined as: Systematic con-
sideration of all life-cycle stages in the evaluation, management, and improve-
ment of an enterprise’s products, services, processes, and assets. Originally,
LCM methods were developed in the defense industry as a means of
understanding and managing the long-term financial implications
of weapons system development, since the life-cycle costs of sys-
tem maintenance and logistical support, such as replenishment of
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