Understanding Consumer Behaviour to Reduce Environmental Impacts through Sustainable Product Design

The use phase of the lifecycle of electrical products has a significant environmental impact, mainly determined by the consumer’s behaviour. Many consumers do not make the link between their daily consumption behaviour in the household and environmental problems such as climate change. In the 21st century, the residential sector, together with transport and industry, is one of the largest man-made contributors in the UK to climate change. It is argued that technological innovations, current eco-efficient products and consumer education have been ineffective in creating the long term radical behavioural change needed to reduce the impact of product use. Products, as the interface between consumers and consumption activities, have the potential to influence the way in which consumption occurs. In the sustainable design field however, designer responsibility traditionally considers raw material selection and product disposal. There is limited work that addresses the environmental impacts relating directly to use behaviour of the product. This paper illustrates that user behaviour studies can be the preliminary step for designers to improve energy efficiency of products. A single product type, household cold appliance, was chosen as a case to explore the capacity of designer-conducted user study to identify unsustainable aspects of product use. Adopting a user-centred approach, two pilot studies were used to gain an insight into domestic fridge and freezer use in the UK. Qualitative ethnographical research methods were employed to investigate the daily practices and “real” needs of user as well as the connection between the knowledge, attitudes, intention and actual action. The design suggestions drawn from the user behaviour analysis provide examples of how energy impact level of the interaction with the product can be reduced through design. Keywords: User-Centred Research; Sustainable Product Design; Changing Consumer Behaviour; Design Research; Household Energy Consumption; Household Cold Appliance.</p

Changing energy consumption behaviour through sustainable product design

Energy consumption during the use phase of electrical products’ lifecycle has a significant environmental impact, mainly determined by the user behaviour. Product designers are in a position to shape the way in which consumption occurs and to bridge the gap between environmental values and user everyday action. This paper analyzes the barriers to sustainable energy use and by linking the design strategy research with the psychological theories, the breakthrough points that potentially enable design to influence the user behaviour and habits are identified. Employing a user-centred approach, the results of a pilot study are presented that provide an understanding of user perceptions of environmental issues

Using information/inspiration as a sustainable design tool

This paper presents the results of research ongoing to establish useful tools for designers to aid them in the process of sustainable design. The research has developed a greater understanding of the type of criteria required of a sustainable design tool in order to make it more appropriate and useful to designers. One of the deliverables of this project has been a web based sustainable design tool that combines sustainable design information with a selection of inspirational concepts. The research is hoping to educate designers to ensure that environmental problems are addressed at the early stages of product development, resulting in more innovative solutions. In addition the research is providing many examples of projects where sustainable design has been beneficial to companies, and led to improved products. This paper will present the results to date of the research, the current tool and results of its use

Exploring SME perceptions of sustainable product service systems

This paper explores the perception of a group of Colombian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) towards sustainable product service systems (PSS) development. There is currently much interest in the area of PSS; however, studies of sustainable PSS involving SMEs are lacking. The purpose of this research was to identify those organizational aspects that can contribute to develop sustainable PSS in SMEs. Four main areas were explored: sustainable awareness, use of information and communication technologies (ICTs), design process, and business strategy. This study was carried out in cooperation with the Colombian Ministry of ICTs and highlights their desire to find new routes to encourage transformation of companies toward competitive and sustainable industrial sectors. A significant finding is that the integration between design process and ICTs appears to be a key mechanism in developing sustainable PSS in SMEs. Finally, further work in this field of research is discussed and highlighted

Investigation into the drivers and barriers affecting refillable packaging

Over the past 40 years considerable efforts have been made to reduce the environmental impacts of packaging by focusing on issues such as light-weighting and material selection. However, although these redesign approaches are commendable and should be encouraged, they are not having a radical effect on reducing the environmental impact of packaging or addressing the broader issues of sustainability. Refillable packaging systems may provide part of the solution to this problem, however in the past attempts to extend the use of refillables beyond a few traditional areas have met with little success (Darlow, 2003). In recognition of this a collaborative research project - ‘Refillable packaging systems’, between Loughborough University, The Boots Company and DEFRA set out to investigate amongst other things, the barriers and drivers found to influence the adoption and success of refillable packaging. This paper reports on those findings

A new design methodology for manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment

The European directive for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment directive (WEEE) is currently expected to be translated in to UK law in early 2006. A key aim of this legislation is to reduce the amount of e-waste going to landfill, by requiring companies who manufacture or import electrical and electronic equipment to take responsibility for it at the end of its life. Despite this approaching deadline, research indicates that many companies are still unclear about the implications this legislation will have on the design of their products. Although the Department of Trade and Industry are working at raising general awareness there are currently few practical tools to guide product design decisions so that the financial implications of the legislation are minimised. This paper introduces an on-going project which aims to create a strategic web based tool to help design teams meet the requirements of the WEEE directive. SortED, which is being developed with input from a wide range of stakeholders throughout the supply chain, is being designed to help companies quickly identify the implications of the new legislation on their products and explore the options available to them. Created to be ‘designer friendly’, the tool guides the development team through the types of questions that they should be asking to ensure that they meet the requirements of the WEEE directive, whilst minimising costs and maximising any potential revenue

Sustainable product service systems in small and medium enterprises (SMEs): opportunities in the leather manufacturing industry

This paper presents an approach to identify opportunities to develop sustainable Product Service Systems (PSS) involving Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The purpose of the research is to build understanding of how the integration of product and service design and the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) can contribute to identify opportunities to develop sustainable PSS involving SMEs. In order to develop the approach, research with 16 Colombian Manufacturing SMEs was carried out. A reference model and four generic types of PSS according to the relationships between product and service design and ICT are used to analyse the data. Finally, the possibility of extending the approach into a general framework to work with other industries is discussed

Refillable packaging systems: design considerations

For a number of years it has been widely recognised by governments and industry that current human activities degrade the environment and cause serious negative consequences for human population’s [Brundtland, 1987] and as such we need to identify more sustainable patterns of development. A reduction of the environmental impact of human activities by “factor 10” is now recognised as a key target [Simon, 1997]. Considerable research has been carried out to understand how socially and environmentally responsible behaviours can be integrated into the product development process. During the early 1990’s ‘green design’ was the main focus for improvements of this nature, i.e. design which focuses on single issues, such as the use of recycled materials. As understanding progressed green design was superseded by ‘ecodesign’, recognised as being a more holistic approach which tackles environmental issues at all stages of a product’s life cycle and encourages designers to think about new ways of doing things. Sustainable Design goes beyond the consideration of environmental issues and also recognises the importance of social and ethical issues in design. Literature in this field indicates that considerable and progressive body of research concerning the integration of sustainable design principles into product development exists [Fussler and James, 1996; Stevels, 1996], however there is very little evidence to indicate similar work existing in the field of packaging

Improving energy efficiency of product use: an exploration of environmental impacts of household cold appliance usage patterns

This report presents the findings from a qualitative study investigating how product design can be used to change consumer behaviour to reduce the household energy consumption. A fundamental aspect of this aim is to fill the gap in existing research by understanding the product use behaviour and its impacts on the environment. Household cold appliances were chosen as a case to explore the capacity of designer-conducted user studies to identify unsustainable aspects of product use. Usercentred research techniques [1, 2] including questionnaires, semi-structured interview and Product-in- Use observations were used to collect information about the “actual” and “assumed” needs, the diversity in use context, the unsustainable and sustainable use patterns and the hidden factors behind the usage. Eighteen British families were involved in this qualitative study. This paper presents the methods and process for extracting design oriented information from the behaviour study in the early phases of energy efficient products development. It concludes that usage patterns study can offer resources to assist manufacturers and designers minimise environmental impacts product use. Also it discusses the implications for the future design of household cold appliances

Positioning service design as transformational approach in education for sustainable development (ESD).

Through the review of literature, as part of a PhD research undertaken at Loughborough University, a relationship between Service Design and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) has been identified. It positions Service Design and its participatory design methodology as an integral change agent within this context. A lack of literature defining such theoretical positioning means that service designers do not have a defined space to operate within nor do they have a view of a broad impact that their action can have. This paper presents findings from the literature review that positions Service Design as a transformative change approach in the context of ESD