Page 257 - Design for Environment A Guide to Sustainable Product Development

Electr onic Equipment Industries 233

centers throughout the United States. The program is also open to all
makes of consumer electronics products, recycling any non-Sony
product at market prices. Sony and WM Recycle America are also
working toward having enough drop-off locations so there is a re -
cycling center within 20 miles of 95% of the U.S. population. The
company’s overall goals are to make recycling of Sony products as
easy and convenient as purchasing them and to recycle one pound
of old consumer electronics equipment for every pound of new
products sold.
Life-Cycle Innovation
Sony is taking a holistic approach to enhancing products and services
to minimize environmental impacts. For example, Sony has been
instrumental in using post-consumer resources including plastics in
new products, thus supporting the recycling of materials. This initia-
tive has led to the annual consumption of more than 15 million
pounds of otherwise waste plastic. Innovations are not only improv-
ing production but also reducing environmental impacts in the prod-
uct use phase. This has led to the development of a number of
technologies that help reduce the environmental impact attributed to
consumer behavior during product use, service, and disposal.
Life-cycle assessment points out that the major ecological burden
of electronic products is due to the energy consumed in the use-
phase of the product life. For example, European home consumer
electronics consume 36 TWh (Terawatt-hour) annually and are fore-
casted to grow to 62 TWh by 2010. Sony’s SDM-N50 liquid crystal
display incorporates a unique set of user features that directly
re duces the energy consumption of the product. The 12mm, 3kg
display features an energy saving infra-red “user sensor” and an
ambient light sensor. The user sensor automatically switches the
screen to sleep mode (utilizing less than 3 watts) if no one is sitting
in front of the screen. The light sensor adjusts the brightness (and
therefore energy consumption) of the display according to natural
“ambient” light conditions of the room.
Sony is also developing technologies and services that contribute
to the extension of product lifetime. For example, the ProGlobe tele-
vision is a European prototype design aimed at establishing tech-
nologies for improved serviceability. The prototype technologies
being developed include a unique chassis design that allows service
engineers to access the internal core of the TV at the consumer’s
home (potentially reducing the travel burden and cost of TV service);
and a one-click, “eco-mode” function, giving the user the option of
reducing the operational energy consumption of the TV by 25 watts
(by adjusting the picture brightness). In addition, the ProGlobe’s
new power circuit layout provides a remarkable level of 0.5 watt
standby power consumption.