Life Cycle-Based Product Sustainability Assessment Employing Quality and Cost

Abstract

Current issues in sustainable development concern research on comprehensiveness, coherence and practicality. Therefore, the objective was to develop and test a novelty approach to product sustainability assessment based on life cycle, quality, and costs. This approach extends the iterative design thinking process (DT), including overcoming the limitations of existing LCSA methods. We present a systematic process for obtaining and processing customer requirements with a survey and Pareto–Lorenz analysis. Then, using an algorithm developed in Matlab R2021a program, we generated product prototypes considering the key criteria presented in various dimensions of current and modified states. Next, we propose the modeling of prospective LCA for all prototypes in the OpenLCA program with Ecoinvent database. Finally, we aggregated the results considering the cost of prototypes in environmental–cost analysis to determine the direction of product sustainability. We tested this approach in detail with the example of vacuum cleaners for domestic and commercial use. After a literature review and survey research in customers, we developed 54 prototypes, where the modified key quality criteria were as follows: vacuum in the suction pipe, engine power, operating range, and length of the power cable. Using this approach, it was possible to select six prototypes that best meet customer requirements, are environmentally friendly, and cost-effective. Finally, we discuss contributions to DT and LCSA methodologies, and propose future directions for development within the application of artificial intelligence (AI). This approach can be a practical application in SMEs already in the early stages of product development (conceptualization), where access to detailed data is limited.