Environmental Impact Tool

  • Level: Medium
  • Do It Together: 4 hours
  • Do It Yourself: 1 Hour
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Quick and easy insight into the environmental impact of products?
That’s possible with the new tool based on life cycle analyses. This tool helps companies make better and more substantiated decisions within their sustainable innovation process.

Who is this tool for?
Companies that want to know if circular design choices lead to a reduction in environmental impact and want to compare different product concepts based on their environmental impact.
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Environmental Impact Tool

As an alternative to time-consuming life cycle assessments, the Environmental Impact Tool gives you quick insights into a product’s environmental impact. The tool is designed so you can easily work with it yourself. Want to explore the design tool on your own or review it with a colleague? That’s simple and fast with the Do-It-Yourself version online!

Looking for support, deeper insights, or inspiration from experts, fellow entrepreneurs, or designers? For example, to get even more out of the tool or to collaborate with other companies in your supply chain? Then choose the Do-It-Together version (workshop).
  • Do It Together

Physical workshop with a group of companies

  • Do It Yourself
     For independent use
Quick basic screening of the environmental impact of your own product
Guidance by an experienced trainer: including support with data collection and interpretation of results
Sharing experiences with peer companies
Inspiration from experts in the field
Direct feedback on developed solutions
Part of the circular design community
Number of participants

Maximum 15

N/A

Duration

4 hours

1 hour

Preparing (optional)

Data collection about own product

          Data collection about own product

After finishing the workshop

Ask detailed questions via email to the trainer / regional partner

N/A


Want to deepen your understanding before getting started with the design tool? Watch this brief introduction and discover if the tool can help you further!

Meet the trainers!

Arthur ten Wolde
International expert in circular economy and sought-after speaker.
Jeannette Levels-Vermeer
Works on the development and implementation of strategic projects for industry associations, industrial companies, and government agencies.
Ellen Sillekens
Focuses on innovation and sustainability within the textile supply chain.
Tom Evers
Supports companies with product innovations using his expertise in product design, sustainability, design, manufacturing, materials, and recycling.
Marien Korthorst
Experienced industrial designer specializing in project management and the design of products for professional use.
Jorien Nijmeijer
Helps startups develop circular products and supports SMEs in making their product portfolios more sustainable through circular design strategies.
Bernd Teule
Experienced industrial designer specializing in project management and the design of products for professional use.
Ronald Lewerissa
Develops products that make a difference for people, planet, and profit, and helps organizations with their innovation funnel.

Life cycle analysis as a base for sustainable product strategies

Sustainability is a topic of conversation at many companies. To become more sustainable, it is essential to understand the environmental impact of organizations and products. Life cycle assessments provide a solution for this, but they are specialized, costly, and time-consuming. This often creates a barrier for companies to start measuring and improving their environmental impact.

TNO, CIRCO, and LBP | Sight combined their knowledge and experience in this new tool. It makes it easy for manufacturing companies, logistics service providers, and repair companies to gain insight into their environmental impact. Companies can use the tool to quickly and easily perform a basic screening of their products and services. The tool is freely available to everyone. The knowledge partners, supported by the Circular Manufacturing Implementation Program (UPCM), aim to get organizations moving toward sustainability and circularity.
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“By understanding the environmental impact your products have throughout their entire life cycle, you can also discover how to improve it. In the tool, you can easily experiment with material choices and interventions to develop new, more sustainable product strategies.”
JEANNETTE LEVELS-VERMEER, CIRCONNECT EXPERTTEAM

Product & Service tools

Below you can find all the Product & Service tools. Want to work on a different topic? Discover here which tools are available to make progress with your Business Model or Value System.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the tool for?

The tool is intended for companies that want to gain insight into the environmental impact of their products.

Sectors: Manufacturing industry, Construction, Consumer goods, Plastics
(Note: there are also tailored versions available for specific product groups—see the workshop offerings.)


Types of users:

  • SMEs and designers: who want to quickly and easily measure the environmental impact of their products and weigh different design choices.

  • Clients and purchasers: for assessing the environmental impact of a project and steering towards MKI (Environmental Cost Indicator) reduction.

  • Supply chain collaborations: to gain insight into the potential and effect of supply chain cooperation on environmental impact.


In which context do I use the tool and for which questions?

In the implementation phase of the circular journey, it is essential to understand how the environmental impact of organizations and products is composed. As an alternative to time-consuming life cycle analyses, the Environmental Impact Tool provides you with quick insights into the environmental impact of a product.


For example, it shows whether the impact arises mainly from the materials, production process, usage, or end-of-life phase—enabling you to make well-founded design decisions regarding sustainability.

The tool allows you to compare different scenarios. For instance, you can map out the impact of extending the product’s lifespan or clarify the difference between two material choices (e.g., recycled versus bio-based).

The tool is suitable for:

  • Gaining insight into environmental impact

  • Understanding the effects of circular strategies

  • Supporting circular design decisions


When or for which questions is the tool not suitable?
The tool is not suitable for inclusion of environmental declarations in the National Environmental Database, nor for preparing EPDs (category 3 environmental declarations).
What are the specific characteristics of the tool and what does it take from me as a user? 
As a user of the tool, you need to have an overview of the materialization of the product under consideration. This includes the materials used, the applied processes, and the transport distance and method from the production location to the construction site. If a specific reuse or recycling scenario applies at the end-of-life phase of the product, it can be incorporated accordingly.
How should I prepare for this tool and how long does it take to use the tool?
The time required to complete the tool depends entirely on the availability of data and the complexity of the product. In many cases, a quick analysis can be done within a few minutes.
Are there periodic updates for this tool?
Our ambition is to continuously better tailor the Circonnect design tools to meet the needs of companies and designers at each stage. Therefore, these tools are updated periodically. When developing new versions, we use the most current knowledge and enrich the tool with experiences from companies and designers.