Over the past few decades, companies and organizations have been focusing on improving the quality and functionality of their product while keeping the costs minimum. These objectives can only be achieved through sustainable designs. Sustainable designing offers an organization to minimize the environmental impacts and costs of a product during its developmental stages. It also stresses on improving productivity and functionality of the product by developing more efficient products with fewer raw materials and services. It not only helps in reducing pollution and wastage but also brings down business costs and enhances profitability. The electronic sector is one of those sectors that have been increasingly extending its focus on sustainable product development.
Electronics consultants are playing a significant role in enhancing the sustainability of the product by choosing the next generational product developmental techniques that are resulting in reduced manufacturing costs. It is also allowing the companies to enhance the service delivery and functionality by utilizing competitive advantage. It also helps in improving the reputation of the company through environmental marketing. With the increasing impact of electronic products on the environment, companies have changed their policy of product development by utilizing environment-friendly materials and design. This has made companies adopt sustainable development practices across their entire supply chains.
Minimizing the use of materials and utilities, the companies have worked on eliminating the use of hazardous materials. It helps in recycling and re-using the product. Companies have improved resource productivity by maximizing the re-use of materials and recycling the materials at the developmental stages while maintaining product quality.
Corporates should docus on their designing specifications to meet the objective of sustainability. Significant attention should be given to the material content by avoiding the materials that are harmful to the environment. A proper checklist should be created to reduce energy consumption, packaging materials, plastic, PCBs, hardware, and batteries. The emissions during the product trial should be lower than the permissible limit.
Electronic manufacturers should have the facility to re-use and recycle the components of the products that have been disposed of in municipal waste collection facilities by customers. There are significant numbers of components that can be reused and recycled by an electronic industry for product development. Electronic companies should ensure that their products should limit the utilization of hazardous material like lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls, etc within the permissible limits.
Electronic components containing harmful materials should be properly treated before re- utilization. Some of these components are:
- Batteries- Batteries can be re-used and recycled by dismantling and putting them in chemical
- Liquid crystal displays can be utilized by companies for re-use in television and computer screens
- Mercury can be removed from the gas discharge lamps and can be further
- Fluorescent coating of the cathode ray tubes can be removed and further
- Polychlorinated biphenyls are present in capacitors and must be
- Components containing flame retardants should also be
Designers should ensure lead-free soldering in the PCB manufacturing and testing process. Brominated flame retardants can be substituted with aluminum trioxide, magnesium hydroxide, zinc borate, zinc stannate, etc. Tin, zinc, nickel, and epoxide can be used in place of the cadmium as an anti-binding agent and anti-corrosive agent. Zinc and nickel-based coatings, copper, and silver can substitute chromium for the purpose of corrosion-resistant materials. Mercury is used in thermostat and tilt switches but is hazardous in nature. Mercury is irreplaceable but companies can surely limit the use of mercury in their product.
Reducing end-of-life costs enhance business opportunities in the consumer market and hence companies should adopt the best end-of-life option. Companies should ensure that the end-of-life option is integrated into the overall marketing strategy of the company. The company should consider that product is intrinsically linked to the end-of-life option. A suitable arrangement should be made for the collection, storage, and transportation of re- usable components.
Sustainable designs have the potential to impact the suppliers, customers, and recyclers during the purchase, marketing, distribution, or manufacturing. It can impact in terms of quality, health, and safety. The companies should ensure that the impacts are identified and addressed during the design process. Also, companies must ensure that the improvement should not alter the quality of the product and the design decisions are taken as per the consultation of all the departments.
Manufacturers focus on minimizing the assembly and manufacturing costs by developing a simple and elegant design. Simple and elegant designs are challenging and require more experience and greater efforts. Simple designs are helpful in decreasing manufacturing costs and failure rates in assembly. A thorough consultation with suppliers, fabricators, and assemblers can reduce the production cost significantly. It is crucial to enable valuable advice regarding design and manufacturing as it can provide cost advantages.
Electronic designers should minimize the use of resources by optimizing the component dimensions by using finite element analysis. They should ensure realistic requirements for strength and durability. Designers should minimize the use of different materials while maintaining quality and cost delivery. Companies can change their manufacturing strategy to promote recycled materials for the benefit of the environment. The design for assembly and disassembly is an essential part to reduce the costs of manufacturing and increasing efficiency. These attachment techniques can alter the assembly cost and performance parameters.
Packaging of the product takes a significant business cost for electronic companies as electronic products are fragile. Product packaging should protect goods, present information, allow distribution, and is also considered as a marketing tool. Inadequate packaging can result in the damage of the product, wastage, and return of the product from the customers. Companies should ensure sustainable packaging by utilizing recycled materials. Companies should eliminate the packaging requirement by optimizing the use of the packaging and establishing reusable transit packaging.
Electronic products should be designed to minimize energy consumption by using low voltage components. The products should be energy-efficient and in compliance with sustainable energy guidelines. Companies should incorporate sustainable product designs for disassembly and product longevity. They must ensure reduced water consumption and resource use during the development of the product.