Miljųprojekt, 881 – Integration af bortskaffelse i design og konstruktion af elektronikprodukter

Integration of Disposal in the Design and Construction of Electronic Equipment

Summary and Conclusions

The objective of the present project is to develop the existing eco-design guide, "A Designer's Guide to Eco-Conscious Design of Electrical and Electronic Equipment", so that it includes guidelines for incorporation of recycling and disposal into the product design phase.

The project should be seen in the light of the implementation of the new EU Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (the WEEE Directive) and the EU Directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (the RoHS Directive).

In the initial phase of the project, the following two products were selected, to serve as case products for the development of the eco-design guide: a groundwater pump, developed and manufactured by Grundfos Ltd, and an electricity meter, developed and manufactured by Kamstrup Ltd.

The next phase - a demounting analysis of both products - took place in a close cooperation between the two manufacturers and the largest Danish electronic waste recycling company, H.J.Hansen Elektromiljų Ltd. Demounting time, quantities of recovered materials, recycling rate etc. were registered.

Based on the demounting analysis, ways and means to facilitate demounting and to increase the recycling rate were proposed. Then the products were redesigned or other models were selected for comparison. The results of the redesign process for the two products are shown in chapter 4 of the report.

Parallel with this, a number of new modules were added to the eco-design guide, with the purpose of calculating the recycling rate, the material value, the energy consumption as well as recycling and disposal costs for any product.