Sustainability in product development: a proposal for classification of approaches

Abstract

The product development is a process that addresses sustainability issues inside companies. Many approaches have been discussed in academy concerning sustainability, as Natural Capitalism, Design for Environment (DfE) and Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), but a question arises: which is indicated for what circumstance? This article aim is the proposition of a classification, based on a literature review, for 15 of these approaches. The criteria were: (i) approach nature, (ii) organization level, (iii) integration level in Product Development Process (PDP), and (iv) approach relevance for sustainability dimensions. Common terms allowed the establishment of connections among the approaches. As a result the researchers concluded that, despite they come from distinct knowledge areas they are not mutually excludent, on the contrary, the approaches may be used in a complementary way by managers. The combined use of complementary approaches is finally suggested in the paper.