Life-cycle design (LCD), the application of life-cycle concepts to the design phase of product development, is emerging as a valuable tool for incorporating environmental impacts and trade-offs as a criterion in product/process design. An examination of LCD practices at three firms—IBM, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, and Armstrong World Industries—provides insight into how these methods evolve, as well as a glimpse into the dynamics of organizational innovation in relation to corporate environmental management.

Originally published in Corporate Environmental Strategy 6, no. 1 (Winter 1999): 15-23, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1066793800800032.

Numerous firms have begun incorporating environmental effects as a criterion in product/process design. However, because life-cycle design (LCD) is used as an internal decision-making tool, its strengths, successes, and limitations remain largely undocumented. This report uses case studies from three companies—(1) IBM, (2) Bristol-Myers Squibb, and (3) Armstrong World Industries—to understand how LCD is finding its way into business decision processes.

This report examines toxics release inventory (TRI) data for two industries sectors--SIC 27, Printing and Publishing; and SIC 28, Chemicals and Allied Products, using both quantitative and qualitative measures.