What's the point?
The ecological effects of products from the extraction of materials to their disposal are increasingly coming into the focus of consumers and government regulation. 80% of the environmental impacts that products cause along their life cycle are already established when the product is designed. Therefore, knowledge of these impacts and their consideration during product definition and product development is critical for the development of sustainable products. This requires the assessment of the environmental impacts of existing products throughout their life cycle and the implementation of measures at the product design stage. The implementation of Product Life Cycle Management requires the cooperation of all internal corporate areas with product development and also with among each other. The ISO 14001:2015 standard increasingly reflects this approach in corporate environmental management, which calls for a life cycle perspective in the assessment of relevant environmental aspects.
Key issues
- Product development / ecodesign
- Life cycle assessment
- Product-related implementation of sustainability strategies (sufficiency / consistency / efficiency)
Our mission
The department sees itself as an exchange platform on the subject of Product Life Cycle Management with regard to the integration of the aforementioned subject areas into environmental and sustainability management, among other aspects.
The exchange takes place in the form of various event formats, such as webinars, workshops with introductory presentations and other formats within the framework of other VNU offerings, such as the Annual Forum or the EMAS Clubs.
What can you expect?
The work in the "Product Life Cycle Management" department focuses on the following areas:
- Knowledge transfer on opportunities and challenges associated with the implementation of a Product Life Cycle Management for companies (including small and medium-sized enterprises)
- Exchange of information on current studies, national and international requirements and projects related to Product Life Cycle Management
- Knowledge transfer and exchange of information on the integration of sustainability strategies (sufficiency / consistency / efficiency) in product strategy and product development
- Knowledge transfer and exchange on how to address the requirements of the various stakeholders along the product life cycle and resulting conflicts of objectives
- Knowledge transfer and exchange on the integration of social requirements
- Presentation of methods, instruments and underlying standards that are helpful in implementation, such as life cycle assessment, environmentally friendly product design, use of environmental product declarations, production-integrated environmental protection. Exchange on implementation examples, such as
- the redesign and improvement of product service systems
- an ecologically advantageous choice of materials
- the measurement of changes in useful life and intensity
- closing cycles (Circular Economy)
- energy and resource efficiency
The focus of these activities is on practical relevance and feasibility for companies, especially SMEs. In addition, the department also wants to provide food for thought that goes beyond day-to-day business and establishes links to topics dealt with in the other VNU departments, such as corporate social responsibility and sustainability reporting. Representatives from medium-sized companies will be invited to the events to report on their practical experiences and to initiate an exchange of experiences between the participants.
Contact partners:
Dr. Nikolas Marbach, head of department and your contact person in VNU realting the topic product life cycle management.
Martina Prox is the corresponding member of the VNU board for this department.