The global electronics market is moving so rapidly that we often embrace an idea before we really understand what it is. Case in point: design for environment (DfE).
Design for the Environment Program (DfE) is a United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) program, created in 1992, that works to prevent pollution, and the risk pollution presents to humans and the environment. The EPA DfE program provides information regarding safer electronics, safer flame retardants, safer chemical formulations, as well as best environmental practices. DfE employs a variety of design approaches that attempt to reduce the overall human health and environmental impact of a product, process or service, where impacts are considered across its life cycle. Different software tools have been developed to assist designers in finding optimized products (or processes/services).
The three main goals of DfE are:
Promoting green cleaning and recognizing safer consumer and industrial and institutional products through safer product labeling.
Defining Best Practices in areas ranging from auto refinishing to nail salon safety.
Identifying safer chemicals, including life cycle considerations, through Alternatives Assessment.
It is a serviceable definition with a couple of exceptions. First, DfE is now a global imperative. Second, the definition of "safer" flame retardant/chemical formulation is a moving target at best. Wikipedia is spot on when it puts electronics at the head of the list of affected industries, because electronics is squarely in the crosshairs of global environmental directives.
The term "DfE" is used extensively by electronics manufacturers, consultants, watchdog agencies, and, yes, the news media. However, as our colleague Jennifer Baljko astutely pointed out last month, there is precious little data on how electronics companies are achieving DfE. For many companies, DfE is the classic make-versus-buy dilemma. Do you develop a DfE process in-house or hire an outside firm to help? Will the resulting process apply to all your products or just the one you are working on now? Does your process comply with environmental directives such as RoHS, WEEE, and REACH? Most importantly, who decides if your process is DfE?
Three thought leaders in electronics manufacturing and the environment are collaborating on a program that will train and certify individuals and companies in DfE. The longtime manufacturing consulting firm Technology Forecasters Inc.; Graham Adams, the PlesTech founder and president who developed the EcoFly software; and Harvey Stone, an environmental consultant and author, have developed DfE Online, a self-paced certification program in electronics DfE.
The program, released last week, consists of eight modules that can be used individually or together. Each module focuses on a key aspect of DfE, including why DfE is so critical, techniques and methods for the design and disassembly of products, tools for measuring compliance, BOM guidance, ROI, and case studies/recommendations. After each module is completed, users can self-assess by taking a quiz. After all eight modules are completed, a comprehensive test qualifies users for DfE certification.
The program has been in development for a number of years and has been beta tested by electronics engineers, manufacturers, and product designers. Fees are scaled according to the number of users, so that companies of any size will be able to utilize the training. Large companies can pay a flat fee for unlimited users.
"We know a lot of companies out there in the industry are one- or two-person operations, and we didn't want the program to be cost-prohibitive for any potential users," Pamela Gordon, the founder and president of TFI, told us.
Several electronics industry groups have tested the program and are offering it to their members. The program can be customized to reflect a company's industry, products, and staff training strategy. The developers say in their press release that perhaps the most compelling reason for a self-paced program is time management. Adams described the situation this way in the release:
Until today, engineers had to search for DfE methodologies and tools in a piecemeal, time-consuming way. But, with DfEOnline, they have a centralized source of technical and business information about substance impacts, material reduction methods, energy efficiency techniques, end-of-life product strategies and tools for precisely measuring environmental trade-offs and monetary ROI.
@Hospice, i do not think that anyone need to answer the question 'what if you cannot repay your loan'. Don't we all know the harse reality of this democracy that if a student cannot repay loan then he/she will be a bonded labour of the bank and govenment will ensure that bank are bounded by law to limit their torture to keep student alive. And on the other hand if a bank fail to repay loan then government say," oh my friend...which loan...have a cup of tea and please keep the keys of my treasury."
Thanks Barbara for providing the details and link. So, one can finish the certification in one-day work hour (i do not know the intended difficulty levels).
"The moment you graduate;the clock starts ticking on all your Student Loan Payments!"
Thanks for ellaborating. I didn't know about that as most of my university courses was funded through grants and scholarship. What happens if students are not able to pay their loans back?
The moment you graduate;the clock starts ticking on all your Student Loan Payments!
If The company is willing to foot the bill for this expense,I see no problem;Just feel most students are too cash-strapped today to pay for this expense.
"Yes if the company is willing to pay for this education themselves;it is a completely different story."
Some companies might be willing to do that, but we should not count on that. Also, student loan repayment is conditioned upon their future income, right?
True and I feel labour will be the key factor here. if they can get cheap labour which is ideal, they will feel that they have covered basically every aspect.
@Susan: While concern for environment is one key ethical element in the area, there are also other things that can be added to it. This would include things like ethical labor practices and workforce treatment.
Hi himan: yes, the confusion over the type of certification prompted me to put 'PhD' in quotes. Only a university can grant a PhD. To answer your question, the course has 8 modules, all self-paced. You can be certified in 1 module or the entire course. (I think the modules are about an hour each, but they also provide supplementary activities so it may be more than an hour.) The cost is based on the number of users--a single user is in the $1,000-range; for corporations, the cost caps out so they don't pay per user. I think anyone could benefit from the program as it covers design as well as procurement. There are analytical tools in the course that can help determine ROI of a specific activity or design, for instance.
I believe you can see a demo of the program through the link provided in the blog.
So Barbara, its kind of certification and not really a program or standard coursework that is typical of a university program. It sounds like a knowledge of best industry practices to make a design for environment then. I was curious about the duration, cost and who can really benefit from this certification?
EBN Dialogue enables and encourages you to participate in live chats with notable leaders and luminaries. Not only editors and journalists, but the entire EBN community is able to comment and ask questions. Listed below are upcoming and archived chats.
Archived Dialogues
Thailand Stages a Comeback Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Euro-Crisis: What It Means for High-Tech Firms Join EBN Editor in Chief Bolaji Ojo and Contributing Editor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday, July 12, at 10:00 a.m. EDT for a Live Chat on high-tech and Europe's economic difficulties.
Microsoft Surface: Potential Winners & Losers What are the implications for the electronics industry supply chain of Microsoft Corp.'s decision to launch its own tablet PC? Join industry veteran and EE Times' systems and OEM expert Rick Merritt on Tuesday, July 3, at 12:00 pm EDT for a Live Chat on this subject.
Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Peter Drucker famously said "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window." Yet in the razor's-edge world of electronics—with a lean supply chain and just-in-time demands—the need to know the future is vital.
While no one really can accurately predict the future, we can take guidance from another Drucker saying which is the best way to predict the future is to create it.
You've heard the saying "the No. 1 supply chain risk is your people." That hasn't always been the case. But today's complex global supply chain requires a new type of multitalented employee. It's one who understands, finance, marketing, economics, is savvy with technology, graceful with relationships and can think analytically.
Where are these people? Are universities properly preparing the next generation supply chain professionals? How do train your existing workforce for these new, demanding positions?
Brian Fuller, editor-in-chief of EBN, will lead a 60-minute Avnet Velocity panel discussion that will ask and answer these and other questions swirling around today's supply-chain talent challenges.
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