identify and understand how other functions of the company or institution perceive
and value life cycle information in their specific working situations and decision
contexts. To get a better understanding of these internal users of life cycle information, life cycle experts in four multinational companies (Akzo Nobel, Vattenfall,
Volvo Cars, Volvo Group) have joined forces with researchers in Life Cycle
Management and behavioural science to create a graphical map of how life cycle
information is spread and used in different parts of an organization. The map is
constructed by combining (a) inventories on how quantitative data seeks its way to
internal users through databases, reports and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs),
with (b) qualitative interviews on goal framing and decision weights of e.g. environmental and economic information. As a result, the map illustrates both the
“physical” flows of life cycle information and the “cognitive logics” of this
information for different users (e.g. how values, attitudes and norms influence the
target groups’ likelihood of including life cycle information in their decision processes). Based on the map, each company can identify and discuss who the main
users of life cycle information are and what premises for life cycle thinking these
users have. In what decision-making situation is, or can, life cycle information be
used? How is the information understood? What other sources of information and
rationales for decisions are used in parallel to, or in conflict with, LCA results?
Initial analyses on the usefulness of the map point to a better understanding of how
life cycle experts can tailor information for decisions in different parts of the
company, as well as on its usefulness in illustrating to people outside of the
environmental departments the widespread use of life cycle information that already
exist in the company.
Moreover, LCA results may be used to influence design solution for products,
needing an interaction between LCA experts, products designer and consumers.
This often happens is a context with certain legislative constraints or requirement.
A model for supporting life cycle design of food and packaging has been presented at the LMC conference. Packaging designer cannot give packaging all
functions, because it is impossible to grasp all relations among demands and
functions, and there are trade-off relations among them. An activity model visualizing information flows among stakeholders was constructed to design an environmentally conscious product, having a broad life cycle perspective. This allowed
to optimise design parameters (e.g., packaging material and weight, filling rate) and
functions (e.g., permeability, usability) along the life cycle of food products.
2.2 Tailoring the Presentation of LCA Results
and Promoting Best Practices
Several challenges are faced by industrial sustainability experts and practitioners
when communicating and visualising LCA results in different decision-making
contexts. The project SAMT (Sustainability assessment methods and tools to
support decision-making in the process industries) [6], was focusing on
Improving Interpretation, Presentation and Visualisation of LCA …
339
and value life cycle information in their specific working situations and decision
contexts. To get a better understanding of these internal users of life cycle information, life cycle experts in four multinational companies (Akzo Nobel, Vattenfall,
Volvo Cars, Volvo Group) have joined forces with researchers in Life Cycle
Management and behavioural science to create a graphical map of how life cycle
information is spread and used in different parts of an organization. The map is
constructed by combining (a) inventories on how quantitative data seeks its way to
internal users through databases, reports and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs),
with (b) qualitative interviews on goal framing and decision weights of e.g. environmental and economic information. As a result, the map illustrates both the
“physical” flows of life cycle information and the “cognitive logics” of this
information for different users (e.g. how values, attitudes and norms influence the
target groups’ likelihood of including life cycle information in their decision processes). Based on the map, each company can identify and discuss who the main
users of life cycle information are and what premises for life cycle thinking these
users have. In what decision-making situation is, or can, life cycle information be
used? How is the information understood? What other sources of information and
rationales for decisions are used in parallel to, or in conflict with, LCA results?
Initial analyses on the usefulness of the map point to a better understanding of how
life cycle experts can tailor information for decisions in different parts of the
company, as well as on its usefulness in illustrating to people outside of the
environmental departments the widespread use of life cycle information that already
exist in the company.
Moreover, LCA results may be used to influence design solution for products,
needing an interaction between LCA experts, products designer and consumers.
This often happens is a context with certain legislative constraints or requirement.
A model for supporting life cycle design of food and packaging has been presented at the LMC conference. Packaging designer cannot give packaging all
functions, because it is impossible to grasp all relations among demands and
functions, and there are trade-off relations among them. An activity model visualizing information flows among stakeholders was constructed to design an environmentally conscious product, having a broad life cycle perspective. This allowed
to optimise design parameters (e.g., packaging material and weight, filling rate) and
functions (e.g., permeability, usability) along the life cycle of food products.
2.2 Tailoring the Presentation of LCA Results
and Promoting Best Practices
Several challenges are faced by industrial sustainability experts and practitioners
when communicating and visualising LCA results in different decision-making
contexts. The project SAMT (Sustainability assessment methods and tools to
support decision-making in the process industries) [6], was focusing on
Improving Interpretation, Presentation and Visualisation of LCA …
339