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Experiments in Dutch ecodesign Carolien van Hemel For more information about the EcoDesign project contact the project co-ordinator H.E. Bšttcher, Tel +31.20.6207081.
In 1994 the Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and Environment and the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Dutch Government asked the Innovation Centre Network of the Netherlands (ICNN) to work out a plan to increase the interest in EcoDesign of small and medium sized companies. A very ambitious plan was developed by the ICNN: in 1995 some 100 companies were made aware about the necessity and opportunities of EcoDesign for their own businesses, and guided in the process of actually integrating environmental demands in their product development processes. The number of 100 companies proved slightly too ambitious, but the score of 95 interventions at the end of 1995 is still very praiseworthy. Stimulating diffusion of ecodesign in SMEs The unpredictability of consequences of improvement actions is a major threshold for executing EcoDesign, in particular for small and medium-sized companies (SMEs). These companies face questions they cannot answer yet: 'Is EcoDesign relevant for our business? What are the possibilities of EcoDesign, regarding my products? What will be the effects of product changes on the environment, on our organisation, on our market position, in financial terms, on the motivation of our employees? In what direction will international legislation and consumer demands develop? How can we set clear targets and achieve them if we don't know yet what the consequences of EcoDesign for us are?' The best way to resolve this uncertainty is to motivate the companies to take action: learning by doing. Then competence and competition in this field will grow and more companies will follow. In bigger companies, which are already working on EcoDesign, the competition element proves to be one of the main triggers. Environmental aspects are frequently integrated in Dutch consumer tests. If a competitor performs better on environmental aspects than the company itself, this turns out to be a strong impetus towards considering EcoDesign for the own company. The benefits of the 'learning by doing' approach are clearly shown by the dozen "Milion and ECOdesign demonstration projects", executed in Dutch industry in 1992-1993, and co-ordinated by the TNO Product Centre in Delft. The project focused on the application of EcoDesign in bigger companies1. Structure of the ICNN EcoDesign project The new EcoDesign project for SMEs must be seen as a successor of the former demonstration projects. Important characteristics of the ICNN EcoDesign project are the three-phases approach and the short intervention period. 1st phase The goal of the first phase is to create awareness of the subject, by helping the company understand the environmental impact of its business and products, and so to turn the environmental demands from 'threats' - as they are still perceived in many cases - into opportunities. This is achieved by following a specific auditing method, developed especially for this project. This auditing method follows the outlines of the Dutch PROMISE approach for EcoDesign 2. The audits are relatively short and concentrate at the strategic level of EcoDesign decision making. The procedure assists the consultant and the company representative in answering the following three central questions. What must the company do? (mapping the external factors leading to EcoDesign, like legislation, increasing waste costs, increasing consumer demands, new technologies). What does the company want to do? (mapping the internal motivation for EcoDesign, like improving product quality, corporate image, cost reduction). What can the company do? (mapping the environmental profile of the selected product). The result of this first strategic phase is a plan of action, containing many options and actions to improve the environmental aspects of the product. 2nd phase The second, operational phase starts after the company has been audited. For this, the companies can apply for a feasibility study concerning specific aspects of EcoDesign, also partly financed by government too. The aim of this phase is to evaluate which of the options, suggested in the Action Plan, should be realised. The feasibility study is commonly executed by an external consultancy. In some cases the company takes care of it itself, sometimes assisted by a graduate student. 3rd phase The third phase of each EcoDesign project is realisation of the improvement options which prove to be feasible. For this, the company itself is financially responsible, but it will be guided by the IC-consultant. The Ministry of Economical Affairs of the Dutch Government will introduce a financial instrument in April 1996, by which this kind of EcoDesign-investment of companies can be partly financed. Consultants A very important element of any intervention is the expertise that is offered. Training consultants for this specific job proved to be indispensable. The consultants of the Innovation Centres (ICs) of the ICNN were already experienced in advising SMEs in product development and new business development in general. Since EcoDesign was a new topic for them, 23 IC-consultants, some of them specialised in implementing Environmental Management Systems, have received training in executing EcoDesign-oriented company audits. The advisers started auditing the first companies in February 1995. Preliminary results In September 1995, a preliminary environmental evaluation of the project results was carried out by Carolien van Hemel of the Section of Environmental Product Development of the TU Delft. The research was assigned by the responsible Ministries, which wanted to find out whether the preliminary results proved the ICNN EcoDesign project worthy to proceed with another 400 companies in 1996 and 1997. About thirty advisory reports and evaluation forms, written by the specific consultants on project results at each company, have been studied. One third of the related companies has been interviewed to learn what happened more in detail. Since the interventions have been executed very recently the results of it were not yet clearly visible. No environmentally improved product was at that moment launched on the market. Therefore the results were expressed mostly in qualitative terms. Having been audited, two thirds of the companies decided to invest in EcoDesign themselves by proceeding with the second phase of the project, the feasibility study. About the same number of companies said they would implement some of the suggested improvements individually, with no need of external support. Many companies confirmed that they would apply the learned EcoDesign principles in future development processes of other products. Taking into account that the company is not obliged to proceed with the results of the first phase of the EcoDesign project, these numbers are more than satisfying. All interviewed company representatives declared the intervention to be useful for all self-specifying companies. 'A company has to know how to anticipate on these new developments, instead of digging its head in the sand' was an expression one of them used. The evaluative study has resulted in an overview of all improvement options - advised to the companies at the end of the initial strategic phase of the EcoDesign project. It is interesting to see that not only improvement strategies, like selecting less or alternative materials or recycling, were mentioned. Many suggestions for improvement reached further than only 'picking low-hanging fruits'. Even changes at the product retail level, like the shift of selling a product to leasing it, are now being studied in the feasibility phase, before implementation takes place. Two examples of EcoDesign experiences Though the project has recently started out, there are already six companies which have been able to launch their product, environmentally improved after the EcoDesign intervention. Two case studies are briefly described: plate dispenser The doubly heated self-levelling dispenser by Mobile Containing BV consists of two cylinders, in which plates can be piled and heated. A spring system makes it easy to take out the plates. Company canteens, wayside restaurants and nursing homes make use of the self-levelling dispenser. The preheated plates prevent food from getting cold immediately after being served. The life span of the dispenser is twelve to fifteen years. advantages for the environment The old model was designed as one compartment, and it was heated as a whole. This caused temperature differences. The new dispenser heats only the well insulated cylinders, of which the temperature can be controlled separately. If only one pile is needed, no energy is spilled. The bottom is isolated and the covers are made double-walled. The covers are made from a recycled synthetic. The energy efficiency has increased by 30 to 40 per cent, thanks to these adaptations. All components can be replaced, which increases the life span of the dispenser. The trolley consists for 95 per cent out of stainless steel, which can be reused when the dispenser is worn out. advantages for the user The dispenser can heat plates up to 90 degrees centigrade , which makes it possible to serve the food hygienically. The user can choose the preferred temperature. The efficiency improvement gives a financial advantage for the user. The new model will pay for itself within a couple of years. The new dispenser has an expanded life span, because every component can be replaced. advantages for the company Mobile Containing BV meets the rising demand for high temperature plates. The environmentally sound approach stimulates the employees to work at further innovations in product improvement. MC BV expect their sales to rise. Chess clock The Digital Game Timer is a digital chess clock. Qualitatively and environmentally, it is an improvement from traditional models. The DGT is the only electronic chess clock that meets the requirements of World Chess Organisation FIDE. All known methods of timekeeping in chess are programmed in the DGT. advantages for the environment The original design contained four kinds of synthetic material. In the new model, this is reduced to three kinds. This is the result of removing the small synthetic glass sheets that were placed in front of the time screens. The encasement is made from ABS, an easily recyclable synthetic material. The battery holder is made out of polythene. The rubber feet are made out of synthetic material. Furthermore, by adapting the encasement after the removal of the screens, 10 per cent was saved in the use of ABS. advantages for the user The removal of the synthetic plates in front of the time screens, improves the legibility of the clocks. The rest of the environmentally sound adaptions do not give an immediate advantage for the user.
DGT will continue the search for possibilities to improve the clock. The research focuses upon durable packaging, and the preference for environmentally sound synthetics. The company furthermore is considering the possibility to facilitate small repairs at the dealers, in order to save the energy that is used up in transportation to and from the manufacturer. The future Apart from the positive outcomes, it was shown that some elements of the EcoDesign intervention methodology needed improvement. At the moment the ICNN is working hard to optimise the methodology, to be able to meet the 1996 target of implementing the EcoDesign basics in another 400 SMEs. The principle 'learning by doing' turns out to be relevant not only for companies learning to apply EcoDesign, but for co-ordinators and consultants learning how to intervene in new and comprehensive projects . References Riele H. te & Zweers A. (1994) ECO-design: Acht voorbeelden van
milieugerichte produktontwikkeling, NOTA/SDU, Den Haag,
ISBN 90 346 290 31. Brezet H. e.a. (1994 ) PROMISE,
Handleiding voor milieugerichte produktontwikkeling,
NOTA/SDU, Den Haag.
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