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Facilitation of Circular Supply Chains with Digital Technologies
Published in Ifeyinwa Juliet Orji, Frank Ojadi, The Circular Supply Chain, 2023
Ifeyinwa Juliet Orji, Frank Ojadi
Technological infrastructure such as sensors and RFIDs are increasingly being employed with electronics equipment that may enable a product to be traced for recycling. Also, the effective utilization of new technologies can support remanufacturing, recycling and reuse of parts or components at the end of the product's life. By integrating technological infrastructure, enhancing management capabilities to trace real-time material in the product life cycle and integrating personal skills, several benefits can be generated in terms of material reuse – improving material efficiency and circularity of product design (reduction of waste from the production process and reuse of the material), among other sustainability-related benefits. Big data capability can improve tangible and intangible organizational productivity. For instance, big data capability can assist organizations in aligning resources with long-term and short-term strategies; this is because big data analytics is acknowledged as an essential enabler of the circular economy. The effective utilization of big data analytics is important for the enhancement of the circulation of resources – increasing the effectiveness of the material and thereby increasing the effectiveness of business operations. Big data analytics capabilities enable firms to successfully utilize infrastructure and manage personal expertise to develop processes and products compatible with reuse and recycling.
Sustainable Building Design and Systems Integration
Published in Steffen Lehmann, Robert Crocker, Designing for Zero Waste, 2013
Material efficiency is the ability to use fewer materials, preferably local materials with less embodied energy, so that, as a consequence, the usage of raw materials, construction methods and physical processes are carried out in a manner that consumes, incorporates or wastes less of a given material (compared with previous measures). For instance, making a usable item out of thinner stock than a prior version increases the material efficiency of the manufacturing process.
Assessing the sustainability of architectural reclamation processes: an evaluation procedure for the early design phase
Published in Building Research & Information, 2023
Elisa Zatta, Massimiliano Condotta
With regard to the implementation of circular strategies, the European construction focus is on material efficiency. Although accomplishing the 2008/98/EC targets (European Parliament, 2008), the CDW management following a demolition usually opts for recycling, recovery, or as the last resort, landfill (Eurostat, 2018). These processes reveal a limited ability to preserve the resources’ value (Reike et al., 2018), as well as a little potential for dealing with an expanding material economy (Parrique et al., 2019). On the contrary, by preserving building elements in their entirety, reuse processes foster a higher value retention since the reclaimed components are still able to fulfil an architectural function, also avoiding material downcycling patterns. The circular economy inner loops (Stahel, 2013), comprising remanufacturing, refurbishment and reuse, extend the life of the products already circulating. Their implementation could deeply affect the supply dynamics, developing a growing demand for services such as repair and substitution: resource efficient businesses, and a means to create local job opportunities (Ghisellini et al., 2016) in labour and knowledge-intensive sectors (Stahel, 2019). Reuse activities in construction involve both skilled and unskilled labour in deconstruction activities, and in the preparation for reuse operations. In such a perspective, the inner loops circular economy considers the natural, human, cultural and manufactured stocks, while improving also the social dimensions of sustainability (Stahel, 2019).
Application of environmentally conscious manufacturing strategies for an automotive component
Published in International Journal of Sustainable Engineering, 2019
RM. Thirupathi, S. Vinodh, R. Ben Ruben, Jiju Antony
Material efficiency is defined as reducing the consumption of primary materials without affecting the level of human activities qualitatively (Worrell et al. 1997). It is also defined as the ratio of output of manufactured products to input of raw materials (EEA 2006). Environmental impact differs with different materials. So, it is important to choose a material that has minimal environmental impacts. The usage of recyclable and recycled materials must also be encouraged to achieve product sustainability. In this study, eco-design approach is being followed to reduce the material usage and to provide an optimised component design for the existing automotive component. The strategies for achieving eco-design are discussed below.
Thermal and sound insulation of lightweight steel-framed façade walls
Published in Science and Technology for the Built Environment, 2019
Eduardo Roque, Paulo Santos, Andreia Carvalho Pereira
According to Gervásio et al. (2010), one major factor that contributes to the sustainability in the building sector is material efficiency. Often, more thermal/acoustic insulation is applied to reduce the operational energy consumption and improve sound insulation, leading to a trade-off between embodied and operational energy. Nowadays, in the buildings sector, it is no longer acceptable to increase the thermal/acoustic insulation rates just considering the operational stage and/or disregarding the cost-optimal balance.