Life cycle engineering as decision making support in the electronics industry

A Life Cycle Engineering model for technology selection: a case study on plastic injection moulds for low production volumes

“…The integrated analysis is performed through the use of ternary diagrams. A similar approach was already proposed by Betz [8] using 3D-graphics. However, ternary diagrams allow a clear visualisation and easier interpretation of the performance in each dimension as well as the identification of the ''best domains'' of each alternative.…”

“…Betz [8] proposed an LCE model integrating relevant information, regarding economical, environmental and technological dimensions, in a single decision supporting tool. LCC and Activity Based Costing, LCA, and Total Quality Management were the methods used, respectively, to perform the analysis of each dimension.…”

“…The proposed model follows the recent trends of product and process design that foster the application of Life Cycle Engineering (LCE) approaches: LCE integrates in a single decision supporting tool all the relevant information that must be available within the design phase, regarding the technical, economical and environmental dimensions, and considers all the life cycle stages of the product to avoid tradeoffs [7][8][9][10]. So, besides the obvious comparison in terms of moulds manufacturing time and cost, the model includes their economical performance in the following life cycle phases, namely moulds use and dismantling.…”

Life-Cycle Assessment of Semiconductors

“…The following year, researchers involved in the development of the Ganzheitliche Bilanzierung (GaBi) LCA software at University of Stuttgart presented a methodology paper on green design for electronics making the case for LCA as the best tool for the job [10]. The paper described some important aspects of semiconductor and electronics LCA, stating that feedback concerning the environmental consequences of production and use were necessary in the research and development stages in order to influence design, rather than after production ramp-up.…”

“…These studies also do not report data uncertainty or discuss the influence of data uncertainty on results. Several researchers have noted that the lack of LCA data for semiconductor devices is a stumbling block in LCA of electronics, and that there is particular need for more complete or transparent LCA of semiconductors [76,75,62,109,11,104,10]. Academic work related to semiconductor LCA includes a study from Murphy which presents a methodology for parametric semiconductor life cycle inventory (LCI) models based on process specifications [62].…”