Graduate Course

IE 5331: Sustainable Engineering

Chapter 2:Goal Definition and Scoping

Hong C. Zhang
Texas Tech University
Advanced Manufacturing Laboratory
September 4, 2012
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Goal Definition and Scoping

OUTLINE
To define the goal and scope of your
project, you must accomplish the
following 6 tasks:
Define the goals of the project
Determine what type of information
is needed to help decision-making
Determine the required specificity
Determine how the data should be
organized and the results displayed
Define the scope of the study
Determine the ground rules for
performing the work

Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 1: Define the Goals of the Project
support broad environmental assessments
identify data gaps
rank the relative contribution of individual
steps
support public policy or product certification
provide information and direction to decisionmaker
establish baseline information for a process
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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 2: Determine what type of information
is needed to inform the decision-makers
what is the impact to interested parties and
stakeholders?
which product or process causes the least
environmental impacts?
how will changes to the current
product/process affect environment?
which technology causes the least impacts?
how can the process be changed to reduce the
impacts?
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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 3: Determine the required specificity
(What is exactly the objective of your study?)

A completely general study

v.s.
A product-specific in details
Or maybe somewhat in between

Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 3: Determine the required specificity

To specify your goal you also should understand if the

product, or system is only the product produced by one (your)
company or the product/system is a common product
produced by many companies with similar production
processes.

Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 3: Determine the required specificity

Standing in outside of a company, e.g. a government agency.

This issue is the most important. Your results should be
applicable to an industrial sector rather than a single
company, therefore data collection is also based on this
specification.

Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 3: Determine the required specificity

A company may be more interested in examining its own

formulation and assembly operations, whereas an industry
group or government agency may be more interested in
characterizing industry-wide practices.

Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 4: Determine how the data should be
organized and the results displayed
One needs to define how data should be organized in
terms of a functional unit that appropriately describes
the function of the product or process being studied.
Functional unit: must be equivalent, unique, and
comparable.
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Goal Definition and Scoping (2)

Data & Results Displayed Examples-2
Alternative 1

Alternative 2

4x

4x

+
4x

vs.
1/125 x
Lifetime:
125 tours

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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 5: Define the scope of the study
(Boundary Clarification)

Raw
material
acquisition

Manufacturing

Use / Reuse
/
Maintenance

Recycle /
Waste
Management

What is your focus?

Your focus is determined by your study objective
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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 5: Define the scope of the study
3 concerns might help you make decisions:
1. The goal of your study
2. The required accuracy of the results
3. The available time and resources (including manpower
and money)

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Goal Definition and Scoping

Inputs

Raw
Material

Raw Material Acquisition

Tree & crops
All activities required to
Minerals
gather/obtain a raw
Crude oil
material from earth
Gas
Manufacturing
Equipment
Energy & Fuel
Metal & Non-metals
Chemicals & Bio-chemicals

Transforms energy and

raw material into a
product

Energy

Hazardous
Waste stream

Use / Reuse / Maintenance

Equipment operation
All activities conducted
Energy & Fuel
during the operation of
Parts replacement
the treatment technology
Monitoring / Testing
Recycle / Waste Management
Equipment clean / re-conditioning
Final disposition of
Demolition
equipment and material
Biosolids Management
from process
Final Disposition

Outputs
Atmospheric
Emission
Waterborne
Wastes
Solid
Wastes

Coproducts
Neutralized
Waste stream
Other
Releases
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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 5: Define the scope of the study
Each step or process can be viewed as a subsystem of the
total product system. Viewing the steps as subsystems
facilitates data gathering for the inventory of the system as a
whole.

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Goal Definition and Scoping

In setting system boundaries, the analyst must decide where
the analysis will be limited and be very clear about the
reasons for the decision.
Does the analysis need to cover the entire life cycle of the
product?
What will be the basis of use for the product or material? Is
the study intended to compare different product systems?
What ancillary materials or chemicals are used to make or
package the products or run the processes?
In a comparative analysis, are any extra products required
to allow one product to deliver equivalent or similar
performance to another?

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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 5: Define the scope of the study
Meat Packing
Tallow
Rendering

Cattle
Raising

Soap
Manufacturing

Soap
Packaging

Caustic
Manufacture

Paper
production

Salt Mining

Grain
Production

Consumer

Postconsumer
Waste
management

Forestry

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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 5: Define the scope of the study

V.S.
Liquid Soap

Solid Soap

How to Compare?
Equal weight?
Equal volume?
To find reasonable equivalent unit !!!

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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 5: Define the scope of the study

V.S.
(2 in 1)

+
Solid Soap

Lotion

How to Compare?
Equal weight?
Equal volume?
To find reasonable equivalent unit !!!

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Boundary Clarification
Electricity Water Gas

Materials/Parts
/Components

Transportation

Manufacturing
Process

Non-Hazardous Material Outputs

Finished Parts
/Components

Hazardous Material Outputs

Generic Unit Process

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Boundary Clarification
Energy
Conversion

Mfg
Process
Equipment

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Boundary Clarification
Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Aux. Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

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Boundary Clarification
Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Materials
Production

Aux. Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

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Boundary Clarification
Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Materials
Production

Aux. Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Auxiliary
Materials
Production

Energy
Conversion

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Boundary Clarification
Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Materials
Production

Aux. Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Auxiliary
Materials
Production
Environmental
Conditioning
Energy
Conversion

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Boundary Clarification
Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Materials
Purification
Production

Materials
Production

Aux. Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Auxiliary
Materials
Production
Environmental
Conditioning
Energy
Conversion

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Hybrid Input Output Analysis

(transportation, capital equipment, other materials, commercial
buildings)

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Energy
Conversion

Alt.
Materials
Production

Materials
Production

Aux. Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Mfg
Process
Equipment

Auxiliary
Materials
Production

Environmental
Conditioning
Energy
Conversion

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Goal Definition and Scoping

Task 6: Determine the ground rules for performing
the work
1. Documenting Assumptions: Integrity
2. Quality Assurance Procedures: Accuracy
3. Reporting Requirements: Efficiency

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Goal Definition and Scoping

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