Positive Impact Product Engineering (PIPE) Model - The way to net-positive sustainable products

Abstract

Products have multiple impacts on the three pillars of sustainability, which can be assessed using a variety of methods. Existing sustainable design methods aim at reducing these mostly negative impacts. Combined with emerging compensation measures, there are possibilities to leave a net-positive footprint in certain categories, such as CO2-emissions. Positive Impact Product Engineering (PIPE) aims to extend this approach to all categories in all pillars to create an overall net-positive impact on the environment, society and economy. The PIPE model describes a four-phase product development process driven by an iterative sequence of synthesis activities that generate product properties, followed by analysis activities to assess impacts on the sustainability pillars. Through this optimization loop, positive impacts should be maximized, negative impacts should be avoided or reduced as much as possible, and in the final sequence, compensated for. By integrating synthesis and analysis results at the end of each phase, the way to net-positive products can be assured stepwise. The result of the product development process should be a fully analyzed product system that includes the business model, the entire product life cycle and all necessary value chains, so that the resulting impacts can be converted to net-positive using appropriate compensation measures.