Siegfried Schaper

Data collection format for life cycle assessment of the german association of the automotive industry (VDA)

Abstract. The subcommittee for Life Cycle Assessment of the German Association of the Automotive Industry (Verband der Automobilindustrie-VDA) developed a Data Collection Format for Life Cycle Assessment which has been adopted by the VDA Environmental Management Committee, representing not only the German automobile manufacturers, but also their development partners, the suppliers, and manufacturers of trailers, body superstructures and containers.This paper introduces the background and some main aspects of the VDA LCA data collection format. All documents including a manual, a checklist and the data collection format as such can be downloaded from the VDA website (http://wvyw.vda.de/ en/vda/intern/organisation/abteilungen/umwelt_04.html).

Sustainability-Optimised Material Selection and Product Design at Audi

If a strategy to improve environmental compatibility is really to be effective, it has to meet holistic standards. By maximising efficient use of non-renewable resources and by minimising emissions of pollutants, the environmental effects have to be minimised for the entire life-cycle of the product, starting with material extraction and product manufacture, then product usage and finally to recycling for the next cycle – and/or disposal in as environmentally friendly a way as possible, cf. fig. 22-1.