EN 16524:2020

Mechanical products - Methodology for reduction of environmental impacts in product design and development

Publication date:   Feb 18, 2021

Scope

This document describes a methodology for reducing the overall environmental impact through product design and development that is tailored to mechanical products as defined in 3.1.
This methodology is particularly well suited to the redesign of an existing product; it can also be applied for the design of a new product provided the necessary assumptions regarding a (virtual) reference product are taken.
It addresses companies which have decided to integrate an ecodesign approach to optimise environmental impacts within the product life cycle, in relation to the other product aspects, such as functionality, quality, costs, etc.
It also helps to meet some requirements of ISO 14001:2015 on the integration of environmental aspects in the design of products.
NOTE 1 This document targets persons who are directly involved in the design and development of mechanical products, as well as managers responsible for defining corporate policies, and decision-makers. The proposed methodology is intended to kick-start ecodesign initiatives within companies as part of a teaching and continuous improvement approach.
This document also includes a template that companies can use as part of the communication on their environmental approach.
This document is neither intended nor suitable to compare products (even similar) of different suppliers.
This document is neither intended nor suitable for product certification purposes.
NOTE 2 An example of implementation of the methodology is given in Annex D; the basic principles for the establishment of this method are given in Annex E.