v
Pref ace
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a science-based technique to assess resource
consumption and potential environmental impacts associated with a product or service throughout its whole life cycle, from extraction via manufacturing and use to
end-of- life by compiling an inventory of relevant energy, material, water and land
inputs, and releases to the environment.
Life Cycle Management (LCM) is a management concept applied in industrial
and service sectors to improve products and services while enhancing the overall
sustainability performance of business and its value chains. In this regard, Life
Cycle Management is an opportunity to differentiate through sustainability performance on the market place, working with all departments of a company such as
research and development, procurement, and marketing, and enhance the collaboration with stakeholders along a company’s value chain. LCM is used beyond shortterm business success and aims at long-term achievements minimizing environmental
and socioeconomic burden while maximizing economic and social value.
What was our reason to prepare this LCM book? We believe that Life Cycle
Management is a key concept within the life cycle community that allows operationalizing sustainability within organizations by putting life cycle thinking into
business practice. In the LCM context, Life Cycle Assessment is one important
technique among others, hence, the need for providing with this book a space for
further explaining what LCM is about and its relationship to Life Cycle Assessment.
Moreover, there is confusion with different similar terms such as product life
cycle management and application life cycle management, which are not linked to
sustainability, so that we identifi ed a need for clarifi cation. Finally, there is progress
in implementing LCM, and there are challenges in mainstreaming LCM in business
practice and beyond in public policy, which we felt was worth reporting on.
This volume of the LCA Compendium aims to give the reader a thorough insight
into Life Cycle Management presenting its origin, evolution, and the state of practice, including progress made, current challenges, the way forward to its operationalization in more and more organizations, and its linkage to business value creation.
Pref ace
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a science-based technique to assess resource
consumption and potential environmental impacts associated with a product or service throughout its whole life cycle, from extraction via manufacturing and use to
end-of- life by compiling an inventory of relevant energy, material, water and land
inputs, and releases to the environment.
Life Cycle Management (LCM) is a management concept applied in industrial
and service sectors to improve products and services while enhancing the overall
sustainability performance of business and its value chains. In this regard, Life
Cycle Management is an opportunity to differentiate through sustainability performance on the market place, working with all departments of a company such as
research and development, procurement, and marketing, and enhance the collaboration with stakeholders along a company’s value chain. LCM is used beyond shortterm business success and aims at long-term achievements minimizing environmental
and socioeconomic burden while maximizing economic and social value.
What was our reason to prepare this LCM book? We believe that Life Cycle
Management is a key concept within the life cycle community that allows operationalizing sustainability within organizations by putting life cycle thinking into
business practice. In the LCM context, Life Cycle Assessment is one important
technique among others, hence, the need for providing with this book a space for
further explaining what LCM is about and its relationship to Life Cycle Assessment.
Moreover, there is confusion with different similar terms such as product life
cycle management and application life cycle management, which are not linked to
sustainability, so that we identifi ed a need for clarifi cation. Finally, there is progress
in implementing LCM, and there are challenges in mainstreaming LCM in business
practice and beyond in public policy, which we felt was worth reporting on.
This volume of the LCA Compendium aims to give the reader a thorough insight
into Life Cycle Management presenting its origin, evolution, and the state of practice, including progress made, current challenges, the way forward to its operationalization in more and more organizations, and its linkage to business value creation.