Sustainable life cycle engineering of an integrated desktop PC; a small to medium enterprise perspective

This paper describes the life cycle engineering of an integrated desktop computer system from the perspective of a small to medium enterprise (SME). Using a novel approach which considers the motivations of actors at various stages during the life cycle of the PC it attempts to engineer the lifecycle through design features which have been chosen to influence these critical decision points leading to more desirable pathways from an environmental perspective. Using these motivations it extracts design principles and ultimately design and service features to (1) promote long lifetime with the original user (2) facilitate refurbishment and reuse (3) be easy to disassemble and (4) contain minimal valueless fractions at end of life. This has been achieved largely through two specific design features and supported by post-sale services to the consumer. The first of these features is a high quality finish using a solid hardwood chassis to create an emotionally durable product that is easy to refurbish and eliminates negative value plastic fractions at end of life. The second feature is a strong focus on ease of disassembly to facilitate upgrade, refurbishment and deep disassembly at end of life. The service offering is also crucial and upgrade services and buy back are available.