4. Conclusions and outlook

Unlike conventional design methods, an eco-design approach considers all phases of a product's life cycle, from the extraction of raw materials to end-of-life. The aim is to assess, right from the design stage, the environmental impact of products not only during use, but also in the manufacturing and end-of-life phases. One of the most effective eco-design tools is Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), now considered the benchmark for assessing a product's potential impacts throughout its entire life cycle. LCA quantifies resources, air/soil/water emissions, waste production and energy consumption. The evaluation methods used involve multiple environmental criteria, thus avoiding pollution transfers. IT tools combine databases quantifying the environmental footprints of numerous materials and processes, with calculation methods; aggregated and standardized criteria have been defined by these methods,...