Sustainable Development and Environmental Management (Research Paper Sample)

Sustainable Development and Environmental Management
Student’s name
Institution
Sustainable Development and Environmental Management
Introduction
Production of some products and services has an impact on the environment, and this is becoming a significant concern to environmental conservation. Products and services require raw material, and the only way to get these materials is from the natural environment. The use of non-renewable resources causes global warming and ozone depletion. Over the past few years, well-known names in the manufacturing and service sectors have shown interest in understanding the environmental impact of their products and services and using more environmentally friendly materials and processes (Wiesner, Freitag, Westphal, & Thoben, 2015). Sustainable development includes methods and tools for calculating and comparing human activities' environmental effects on different products.
This report focuses on product life cycle assessment (PLCA) of a domestic washing machine. This assessment is an environmental management and accounting approach which takes into account all forms of resource use and pollution releases associated with an industrial system from the cradle to the grave. The assessment aims to evaluate the effects of the production of domestic washing machines has on the environment.
Definition of goals and scope of PLCA
Figure 1: Life Cycle Assessment Framework
This is the initial step of product life cycle assessment, and the stock of inflows and outflows should be carefully established before beginning (figure 1). The main goal for the product life cycle assessment is to make domestic washing machines more sustainable by reducing its extraction and emission during production, use, and disposal. The raw materials required are rare, and more extraction of these materials will lead to further environmental degradation. During the production cycle, harmful wastes are emitted and, if not correctly disposed of, can cause harm to the environment. The LCA information will be used to define environmental problems where product designers, engineers, and managers within the organization may make product changes, and to compare two different scenarios of disposal (Luglietti, Rosa, Terzi, & Taisch, 2016). The domestic washing machine is looked like a whole from raw materials to disposal to evaluate any extraction or emissions that could have an impact on the environment.
Washing machines were introduced into the market in the 19th century, and their performance is improving with time as new technologies are used. The washing machine is powered by an engine connected to the agitator utilizing a unit called a transmission. The engine and transmission are close to the machine's edge, while the agitator stretches through the center of the machine. The transmission is identical to your car's transmission in that it adjusts the agitator's speed and direction. A material system consists of a washing machine and its upstream and downstream processes. Washing Machine product life cycle involves the manufacture, sale, use, and disposal of the components and materials it’s made up of. Therefore, all transport and power used is included in the product process, not only for the content but also for all elements in the consumer system. Most pieces of a washing machine are made of sheet steel, usually covered with zinc, to increase the resistance to rust. The steel producer provides the metal in a coil so that the material can be cut to size with minimum waste or fed into the shaping system automatically.