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ENGT5220 Low Impact Manufacturing - De Montfort University

Assignment - The Circular Economy

Learning outcome 1. A systematic understanding of the activities of industrial organisations at all points of the product life-cycle from raw material extraction to disposal and a critical awareness of current approaches to mitigating associated environmental impacts.

Learning outcome 2. A comprehensive understanding of assessment and analysis techniques that can be applied to the student's own research into ways to reduce the environmental impact and energy consumption of industrial organisations.

Learning outcome 3. A conceptual understanding of the energy requirements of the components of common industrial processes such as motors, pumps, heaters and compressors that will allow students to critically evaluate research methodologies and outputs from a range of related academic disciplines.

Learning outcome 4. Originality in tackling the problems of meeting consumer demand for products and associated services in a competitive globalised industrial context while minimising the associated life-cycle energy consumption

Learning outcome 5. The qualities and transferable skills necessary for employment in tomorrow's low- carbon industries, specifically the skills of decision making in unpredictable situations and the ability to research and learn independently, required for CPD.

Tasks to be undertaken:

You are the sustainability manager for a manufacturer of electric golf buggies. At present, all material and energy flows are linear (no reuse or recycling). You have been asked to investigate the application of the ‘Circular Economy' concept to the company and its products. Your role also involves you in the planning of future products and the strategic direction of the business.

Part 1. Describe the different materials used in your product and whether a different design or material choice might improve the suitability of the following components for the circular economy:
• Structural parts (chassis, wheels, suspension, seat assembly, etc.)
• Electrical parts (motors, lights, switches, wires, circuit boards, batteries) and
• Miscellaneous parts (tyres, transmission, bodywork, upholstery, etc.)

Part 2. Describe a future sustainable industrial system in terms of the stages in the product lifecycle from raw material extraction through manufacturing and use to disposal, after the company has made the material flows as ‘circular' as possible.

Part 3. For each of the components described in part 1, describe the strategy that the company should adopt over the next 10 years to build the sustainable system you described in part 2. Where possible, illustrate your points from relevant literature.

Attachment:- Low Impact Manufacturing.rar