Life Cycle Assessment:
Laying the Foundation
for a Transparent
Supply Chain
Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
Dr. Anahita Williamson
Director, NYS Pollution Prevention Institute
Kate Winnebeck
LCACP, Senior EHS Specialist
September 26, 2013
“The problems that exist in the world today cannot be solved
by the level of thinking that created them.” — Albert Einstein
Life Cycle Assessment
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a technique used to quantify the
environmental impact of a product from raw material acquisition through
end of life disposition (cradle-to-grave)
Material
Extraction
Processing
Component
Fabrication
Product
Assembly
Packaging &
Distribution
Use
End of Use
Processing
Reuse
Remanufacture
Recycle
Waste Treatment
LCA Methodology
• A Life Cycle Assessment is carried out in four distinct
phases: (ISO 14040, 14044)
– Step 1: Goal definition and scoping. Identify the LCA's purpose, the
products of the study, and determine the boundaries. (what is and
is not included in the study)
– Step 2: Life-cycle inventory. Quantify the energy and raw material
inputs and environmental releases associated with each life cycle
phase.
– Step 3: Impact analysis. Assess the impacts on human health and
the environment.
– Step 4: Report results. Evaluate opportunities to reduce energy,
material inputs, or environmental impacts at each stage of the
product life-cycle.
LCA Standards
• ISO 14040 & 14044
– Internationally accepted standards for performing LCA
– Includes guidance for inventory collection, performing the impact
assessment, interpreting results, reporting, and peer reviews
– Additional requirements for comparative assessments intended to
be disclosed to the public
• Life cycle assessment certified professional (LCACP)
– US certification program
– Administered by the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment in
accordance with ISO 17024
– For more information, visit www.lcacenter.org
Why use LCA?
• Quantify environmental benefits of products
• Provide credible evidence for marketing claims
• Identify opportunities to improve the environmental
performance of products at various points in their life cycle
• Inform decision-makers in industry, government or nongovernmental organizations
• Select relevant indicators of environmental performance,
including measurement techniques
• Validate product marketing claims
• Instill life cycle thinking within businesses
LCA to Support Product Design &
Marketing at Welch Allyn
Compare the energy and environmental impact of
three disposable blood pressure cuffs used
in a single patient use model, manufactured
by Welch Allyn, in order to:
1.Leverage environmentally friendly designs to increase
revenue and competitiveness
2.Understand the relative contribution of each life cycle
stage to the total environmental impact
3.Understand how product design decisions influence
environmental impact
4.Determine the optimal end of life option for each cuff
LCA Results
Compare high level impact of the 3 cuffs
Understand impact of individual cuff parts
Compare specific points of impact of the 3 cuffs
Understand process contribution to impact
Understand how different EOL management
strategies affect impact
8
Benefits of LCA
•
Results used internally to understand & improve env. impact of the cuffs
– Validate dematerialization and material choices made by product designers
– Understand the influence of Welch Allyn manufacturing operations and finished cuff
packaging on the life cycle
– Identify operations throughout the life cycle that contribute significant impact
which allows the design team to focus on those processes to further reduce the
impact of future designs
•
Results used externally to communicate env. impact of the cuffs
– Validate & support environmental claims made by Welch Allyn
– Educate & assist customers in making more informed purchasing and end of life
management decisions
•
Additional benefits
– Educate internal employees and engage other departments and processes that were
not involved in the LCA
– Through the inventory collection, Welch Allyn realized those suppliers dedicated to
working with them to collect data and those that are not
LCA Recommendations
• Educate and rally team to understand LCA as a tool and reasons
for its use
• Clearly define the goal & scope of the LCA
• Ensure the functional unit is clearly defined
• Build the LCA model with best data physically available
• Complete sensitivity analysis
• Use experienced and trained LCA practitioners
• Follow the ISO 14040 process to validate marketing claims and
bring recognition to the study
• Stay up to date on LCA research, data sources, and modeling
techniques; Understand Challenges
Questions & Discussion
Anahita Williamson, PhD
Director
Email: anahita.williamson@rit.edu
Phone: 585-475-4561
Kate Winnebeck, LCACP
Sr. Environmental Health & Safety Specialist
Email: kate.winnebeck@rit.edu
Phone: 585-475-5390
New York State Pollution Prevention Institute
http://www.nysp2i.rit.edu