Design Is The Problem

Design is the Problem...

Nathan Shedroff2007

Design is a big part of the sustainability problems in the world. Design has been focused on creating meaningless (often), disposable (though not responsibly so), trend-laden fashion items—all design. Graphic design is particularly bad, though paper materials, at least, have a huge potential to fix this problem.

Designer vs. Used Car Saleman

Designers are worse than used-car salesmen (at least used cars are reused).Designers are taught (too much) to make “new” when it isn’t really better or when “old” doesn’t need replacing. We are complacent when our engineering and marketing colleagues suggest or insist on low-quality or longevity, cheap materials, or bad usability (features, process, etc.). No, where’ not the only ones or completely responsible but we’re responsible enough to need to change.

Designers create Ugly

Despite how optimistic, idealistic, and future-oriented most designers are, design has sometimes created big problems in the world. Even where our best intentions have been engaged, our outcomes have often fallen short, even making matters worse, because we didn’t see the whole picture when creating what we envisioned. Where our best intentions haven’t been engaged, design (and marketing and sales and business) has been dismal. We are often responsible for making people feel terribly about themselves, only redeemable by buying this product or that service.

We support--and often create--the entire concept of ugly. Design has been too often focused on creating meaningless, disposable (though not responsibly so), trend-laden fashion items—all of design, every last discipline.

Designers aren’t the only ones

Marketers, Engineers, Politicians, Accountants, Economists,

Educators, Business Leaders...

That engineers and politicians and marketers and accountants and business leaders and educators and everyone else have been equally bad doesn’t absolve us from this reality—or our responsibility.We are complacent when our engineering and marketing colleagues suggest or insist on low-quality over longevity, cheap materials, or bad usability (features, processes, etc.).

...and the Solution

A saying in the Sustainability world goes like this: “You can’t be part of the solution unless you’re part of the problem.”

What is Sustainability?

Use and development that meets today’s needs without preventing those needs from being met by

future generations.


Brundtland Commission, 1987

Don’t do things today thatmake tomorrow worse


A simpler definition...No so controversial, or silly, or dumb, or dangerous. It’s actually more conservative than most “conservatives”In fact, it sounds like common sense. Unfortunately, designers have been very bad about this.


Needs & issues:

• Social• Environmental• Financial

Capital:

• Human• Natural• Financial

How do you measure it?

• A myriad of social issues• Materials and Energy (LCA)• Systems• Actual metrics


A myriad of social issues:• Alcohol• Animal rights• Board transparency

• Biodiversity• Chemical accidents

• Child Labor• Cultural Impact• Death penalty

• Deforestation

What is Sustainability?Sustainable Product Development Fall 2007

This is just the tip of the list. There are more than 50 categories of social issues, each containing from 4 to 50 issues that are important to people. That’s over 500 issues to track, understand, and inform. In addition, everyone has different priorities for these as they reflect our personal values.


Existing frameworks:

• Datschefski’s “Total Beauty”• Cradle to Cradle• Natural Step• Biomimicry• LCAs• Natural Capitalism• Sustainability Helix

Sustainability Frameworks

Datschefski’s “Total Beauty”:

• Cyclic: closed loop, organic, recycled• Solar: only renewable energy, cyclic, safe• Safe: all releases to air, water, land, or space are food for others• Efficient: 90% less materials, energy, and water than 1990• Social: supports basic human rights and natural justice


Cradle to Cradle:(Eco-effictiveness)

• Eliminate hazardous materials• Consider the entire lifecycle• Materials should be upcyclable• Less Bad does not equal Good!

Natural Step™:

• Substances from the Earth’s crust shouldn’t accumulate in the environment• Substances produced by society should not increase in the biosphere• We must preserve the productivity and biodiversity of the ecosystem• Resources should be used fairly and efficiently to meet human needs.


Biomimicry:

• Not really a framework• An inspirational approach• Be inspired by nature• Learn from natural processes


Natural Capitalism:(Eco-efficiency)

• Natural Capital: materials, energy, stability, diversity• Human Capital: people & society• Manufactured Capital: materials, energy, and IP• Financial Capital: money


Sustainable Product Development Fall 2007

Natural Capitalism:(Eco-efficiency)

• Radical resource productivity• Ecological re-design• Service and flow economy• Investment in Natural Capital

> but it’s still “Cradle to Grave”


• Radical resource productivity – dramatically increase the productivity of natural resources w/ technology that exists now

• Ecological re-design – shift to biologically inspired models like closed-loop systems• Service and flow economy – move to solutions-based business models• Investment in natural capital – to restore, sustain and expand the planet’s ecosystems

Life-Cycle Analysis:

• Materials and Energy throughout the lifecycle• Raw Materials/Acquisition• Manufacturing & Transportation• Use (sometimes)• Disposal (sometimes)• Costly, rare (people)• Difficult for concepts



Materials& Energy

TypicalFocus

Eric Masanet, 2003 + IDEO, 2006

Outputs:ProductsMaterialsEnergy

Materials& Energy

Materials& Energy

Materials& Energy

Materials& Energy


Sustainability Helix:

• Five stages: Exploration, Experimentation, Leadership, Restoration• Six Categories: Governance/Management, Operations/Facilities, HR/Corporate Culture, Design/Process Innovation, Marketing/ Communications, Partnerships/Stakeholders


Sustainability Helix:


Which is better?

What does “better” mean?

There are no “bests”, perfect scores or absolutes. There is only a direction to turn (no location of “great sustainability). > Get Moving!

How about no bag?

Which is better for the environment?

Toyota Prius Hummer H2



Manufacturing

Transportation

Use

Disposal

From a life-cycle analysis perspective, it’s not clear.



200K-300K miles?~100K miles?

Manufacturing

Transportation

Use

Disposal

Lifetime?The point of this example is: How should we calculate it or communicate it? How would anyone know? How is a customer supposed to figure this out?

We don’t know! We don’t have access to the necessary data!


Paper Cup Ceramic Mug


Paper Cup Ceramic Mug

1-69 uses70 uses

71+ uses

This is the value of reuse

paper cup vs. 70 uses ceramic, 36 for glass

Design for Environment (DFE)

Designing to minimize the environmental impacts associated

with a product (or service)


Doesn’t include social issues

While Sustainability is more than just DfE, DfE strategies include:

• Design for Disassemby (DFD)

• Design for Recycling (DFR)

• Modular Design

• Designing Products as Services

• Dematerialization



End-of-Life Strategies

• Reuse

• Service

• Remanufacture

• Recycling with Disassembly

• Recycling without Disassembly

• Disposal

Design Strategies• Robust design

• Modular Architecture

• Design for disassembly (DFD)/ Design for recycling (DFR)

• Designing products as services

• Dematerialization and material selection

• “Timeless Design”



Reduce or speed disassembly by:– Minimizing number of parts– Creating multi-functional parts– Avoiding springs, pulleys, harnesses– Locating un-recyclable parts in one subsystem– Locating valuable parts in an easily accessible place– Designing parts for stability during disassembly

Allow for service, upgrade and reuse by:– Making designs as modular as possible– Designing reusable platforms and modules

Encourage more remanufacturing by– Using remanufactured parts– Specify reusable shipping or consumables containers


Material Selection Guidelines:Simplify the recycling process

Minimize the number of different types of materialsFor attached parts, standardize on the same or a

compatible materialMark the material type on all partsAvoid composite materialsUse low alloy metalsIf same metal can’t be used, fasten parts togetherClearly mark hazardous parts

Encourage more recycling Avoid regulated and restricted materials Use recycled materials

Use materials that can be recycled Wood and Otto



Fastening Guidelines:Make disassembly as efficient as possible by:• Minimizing the number of fasteners

• Minimizing the number of fastener types

• Making fasteners easy to remove

• Making fastening points easy to access

• Using fasteners of material compatible with parts connected (to avoid disassembly)

• Minimizing number and length of interconnections

• Designing connections to be easy to break

Make the product more recyclable by:• Making incompatible parts separable

• Eliminating adhesives

Wood and Otto



Energy Efficiency Guidelines:

Wood and Otto

Guideline Reason

Specify best-in-class energy efficiency component

Reduces energy usage and societal fossil fuel consumption

Have subsystems power down when not in use Ditto

Permit users to turn off systems in part or whole

Ditto

Make parts whose movement is powered as light as possible

Less mass to move requires less energy

Insulate heated systems Less heat loss requires less energy

Solar powered electronics are better Does not create harmful by-products

Choose the least harmful source of energy Reduce harmful by-products

Avoid non-rechargeable batteries Reduce waste streams

Encourage use of clean energy sources Reduce harmful by-products


Modular DesignSustainable Product Development Fall 2007

Eric Masanet, 2003

NaturalResourceExtraction

Raw Materials

Production

ProductManufacturing Use

End ofLife

FRIA Refrigerator

Can be built into wall with external exposure to utilize cool outdoor air

Modular compartment design allows for selective, “as needed” cooling

Convex shape minimizes surface-to-volume ratio to minimize housing losses (up to 80% in current refrigerators)

Advanced, non-CFC containing insulation is used to maximize insulating ability

Reduced compressor loads lead to long product life (up to the lifetime of house)

Up to 50% more energy efficient than current refrigerators

Fact: Refrigerators consume 10-15% of all household energy in the United States [DOE]


Eric Masanet, 2003


Raw Materials

Production


End ofLife

Whirlpool Front Load Washer

Front-loading design uses up to 40% less water per cycle than top-loading designs

Polymer-based barrel and reduced water requirements led to improved energy efficiency and longer component – and hence product - lifetimes

Fact: The average American household consumes more than 500 gallons of water per day! [Pacific Northwest National Lab]


Eric Masanet, 2003


Raw Materials

Production


End ofLife

Patagonia Synchilla Jacket

Use of 100% recycled plastics reduces demand on virgin polymers and diverts plastic waste from landfills and incinerators

Seamlessly met existing customer needs and market demands using a green approach to ensure economic viability (e.g., not a green technology “push”)

Fact: 333,500 tons of plastic soft drink bottles are landfilled each year in the United States [American Plastics Council]

Reduce

Reduce

Dematerialization:

• Weight and mass of materials• Detoxification of materials• Energy of production• Energy of transportation

Reduce

Dematerialization:

Apple iPod

Substitution:

Less expensive and more sustainable:

• Raw materials• Components• Energy sources

Reduce

Eco-efficiency:

Leveraging technological and process changes generate solutions with more value and greater efficiency.

Reduce

(efficiency now)

Eco-efficiency:

Reduce

Herman Miller Mirra Chair

Localization:

• Reduce transportation energy and emissions

Reduce

Localization may not always be better (it depends on the resources and abilities of different locales)

Transmaterialization:

• Transform products into services• Whole system solution to needs• More meaningful offerings

Reduce


Reduce

Interface Carpets


Fact: 2.5 million tons of carpet are landfilled each year in the United States! [Minnesota EPA]

Though it’s been a failed approach, Interface, after detoxifying its production process, tried to sell carpet as a service, rather than merely a process. Their proposal was to sell floor covering and its upkeep, rather than the product itself. They would service the carpeting, keeping it in good condition for the term of the service contract. When the carpet (or parts of it) needed replacing, they would replace the portion and recycle it.


Reduce

Apple iTunes Music Store

Reuse

Extending product life:

• Higher quality/longer lasting• Servicable• Upgradable• Component service• Rental system (components and/or offering)

Reuse

City Car Share

Extending product life:

Reuse

Design for Reuse:

Reuse of:• Materials• Energy• Components• Function

Reuse

Design for Reuse:

Artecnica Bottles

Recycle

Recycle

Design for Disassembly:

• Product redesign• Labeled components• Uni-material components

RecycleSustainable Product Development Fall 2007

Eric Masanet, 2003

Computer Plastics Recycling Process

Incoming Batch

DisassemblePlastics

Sort Recycle


Eric Masanet, 2003

ManualDisassembly

MechanicalDisassembly

Processing Technology Options:

Incoming Batch

Manual

Disassembly

Mechanical

Sort Recycle


Eric Masanet, 2003

ManualDisassembly


ManualSorting

AutomaticSorting


Incoming Batch

Manual

Disassembly

Mechanical

Sorting

Manual

AutomaticShip

Shred Recycle


Eric Masanet, 2003

ManualDisassembly


ManualSorting

AutomaticSorting


Incoming Batch

Manual

Disassembly

Mechanical

Sorting

Manual

AutomaticShip

Shred

Ship

Shred

Disposition

Recycle

Incinerateor Landfill

Scrap Purchase

Specifications

Acceptable Polymer(s)

Acceptable Grade(s)

Acceptable Color(s)

Minimum Purity %

Maximum % Paints

Maximum % Metals

Purchase Price/kg

Purity = MTM

MTM + MNTM

100


Eric Masanet, 2003

• Use materials identification labels

• Avoid permanently attached, dissimilar materials

• Design for ease of disassembly (snap fits vs. screws)

• Use only one polymer type per product

• Use only one polymer-color combination per product

• If necessary, use compatible combinations of polymers

• Avoid paints and lacquers

• Avoid labels or use compatible labels

• Choose high-value plastics

• Avoid density overlaps between different polymers

Recycle

Closed-loop Systems:

• Process redesign• Take-back programs• Eco-industrial parks/ industrial estates

Recycle

Eco-effectiveness:

• Cradle-to-Cradle• Upcycling• Packaging

Cradle to Cradle

Reusability and Recyclability doesn’t matter, actually reusing and recycling does.

Therefore, even solutions don’t matter unless they is, at least, a system to make that solution happen, including a service ecology, education, awareness, and examples. > Cradle to Cradle book

• User-centric (design and user research)• Strategic/whole-systems perspective• Integrating frameworks into the process• Innovation• Iterative/prototyping (experience, paper, working, etc.)

Sustainable DevelopmentProcess

Sustainable DevelopmentProcess

What business should we be in?What should we make/offer?

How should we make it best?


Sustainable Product Development Fall 2007Sustainable Product Development Fall 2007

BreadthProductService

BrandName(s)

Channel/Environment (Space)

PromotionPrice

IntensityReflexHabitEngagement

DurationInitiation

ImmersionConclusion

Continuation

TriggersSenses:SightSoundSmellTasteTouchCognitive:ConceptsSymbols

InteractionPassiveActiveInteractive

SignificanceMeaningStatus/IdentityEmotion/LifestylePriceFunction

makingmeaning.org

More Meaningful Offerings

Do people who buy more meaningful offerings (products, services, experiences, etc.) tend to buy fewer things?

Measuring Results

• Testing• Labeling and Rating Systems• Molecular-based LCA• Tools• Regulation (a tool)

Measuring Results

Reveal Rating System

Others in the works: Taoit, Alonovo.com, BetterWorldShopper.com, Ethiscore.org, Wiser Business, SBAR (Natural Logic), Cradle-to-Cradle Certification.

NGO ratings: corporatecrritic.org, buyblue.org, responsibleshopper.org, Hrc.org

Measuring Results

www.revealinfo.com

In the future, consumers may have access to this information in a variety of places--but not for awhile.

Declaring Results

• Green washing• Does your brand reflect these values?• Does your company reflect these values?• Don’t spend more declaring your results than the results themselves are worth• It may be easier to “sell” efficiency or health than sustainability

Less (Material)More (Meaning)

LocalNo PVC

SlowHealthy

Basic check list:

ResourcesNatural Capitalism, Hawken, Lovins, LovinsDesign + Environment, Gertsakis, et alCradle To Cradle, McDonough, BraungartThe Total Beauty of Sustainable Products, DatschefskiDesign for the Real World, PapanekWorldchanging, SteffenDesign for Environment, Fikselwww.sustainabilitydictionary.comwww.mcdonough.comwww.biothinking.comwww.soka.ch/lca.htmwww.o2.orgwww.ce.cmu.edu/GreenDesigncgdm.berkeley.eduwww.engineeringpathway.com

Design Is The Problem

Business

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