Detta dokument sammanfattar arbetet som utförts under förstudien till forskningsprojektet: Innovationsförmåga för ett hållbart transportsystem – Trafikverkets och samverkande aktörers processer för innovations- och omställningsförmåga. Syftet med forskningsprojektet är att bidra till att Trafikverkets innovationsarbete får genomslag för omställningen av transportsystemet. Genom ökad kunskap om hur egna strukturer och processer för innovation påverkar och påverkas av, exempelvis andra aktörer, specifika marknadsvillkor eller normer, stärker detta projekt arbetet för ett hållbart transportsystem.

Purpose: This study takes an open and explorative approach to investigating the impact, or lack of impact, of life cycle information on behaviours throughout large production companies. Based on cases where life cycle information has been provided, this paper analyses how life cycle information has been interpreted and acted upon—not only by the life cycle assessment (LCA) practitioner conducting the study but also by employees outside the environmental departments. Methods: To understand the impact of life cycle information on everyday actions in organisations and how this impact can be enhanced, this study takes a grounded approach to following flows of life cycle information from the environmental department through other departments of an organisation. From the flows of information, the research team selected rich descriptions of empirical data that reflect action and inaction. Using interviews and documents, we collected barriers and enablers for acting on life cycle information. Barriers and enablers were interpreted and clustered into categories and arranged into concepts. Next, we reviewed the empirical data using theories from social psychology. Results and discussion: The results show that it is difficult for life cycle information to result in subsequent action outside of environmental departments. The barriers to this action were partly due to the life cycle information per se such as gaps between what life cycle information is available and what life cycle information is needed. Barriers and enablers were also found in relation to the context in which life cycle information was applied and new behaviours were adopted, including timing and software structures, reward systems, trade-offs, and personal beliefs about the profession. The results suggest a new role of the life cycle proponent that includes providing the right life cycle information and understanding and influencing the expected agents’ situations. Conclusions: Assisted by theories from social psychology, we found that behaviour can be changed if ‘recommendations’ and ‘contexts’ are considered when providing life cycle information. The paper suggests that the impact of life cycle information could increase if normative arguments about environmental visions, strategies, and overarching goals are aligned with enablers that focus on personal goals, such as meeting a deadline, reducing uncertainty, and reaching the threshold for a bonus. © 2019, The Author(s).

Sverige har ett av världens mest effektiva avfallssystem ur ett miljöperspektiv. Vi har mycket låg grad av deponi och förbränning och hög grad av källsortering. Men det har visat sig svårt att öka andelen sorterat avfall.

Orsaken till bristande sorteringsgrad och nedskräpning sägs ofta vara att brukare inte förstår systemet eller att de medvetet slarvar i hanteringen av sitt avfall och vid sortering vid lokala återvinningsstationer.

Men tänk om det inte stämmer. Tänk om det finns orsaker i designen av själva avfallssystemet som avgör brukarens benägenhet och möjlighet att göra rätt.

I den här utförliga rapporten ges exempel på vad som händer när designmetoder, tjänstedesign, normkritik och stadsutveckling möts för att utmana det nuvarande avfallssystemet.

Many businesses of today now recognize the need for a life cycle perspective, for use not only in accounting but also for innovative purposes. However, while availability of data and understanding of the life cycle concept as such continues to grow, there is still inertia in life cycle information having practical implications on decisions and actions throughout the everyday work in the company.

In a project aimed at a better understanding of company internal uses of life cycle information, the existence and use of life cycle information in four large companies (all having with extensive experience of life cycle thinking) were studied. Data collection was made in case studies with two main purposes; to a) follow and illustrate flows of life cycle information within large companies, and to b) understand the role of life cycle information in decision-making outside of the environmental departments. The case studies covered applications such as development of new product concepts, introduction of new materials, and market introduction of eco designed products and services.

The study reveals other dominant barriers than normally assumed; not having or understanding the life cycle information provided. The barriers found were rather related to other aspects of the decision process: Complementary data important for the decision (such as material availability or economic implications for alternate designs) could be missing, recommendation of the most preferred alternative not being clearly presented, concerns about e.g. increased uncertainties and risk not being met, or guidance on how to handle tradeoffs such as between economic and ecologic goals absent. Sometimes information was also not provided in the timeframe needed to change the particular process, or existing routines and tools did not allow the inclusion of life cycle information in a systematic manner. 

Insights from the study point to the importance of understanding the broader context in which the life cycle information should be used, in order to reach impact as decision support. To assist in this, a short guide has been designed to support life cycle proponents in having a more holistic view of the decision making situation and to highlight common pitfalls hindering life cycle information to influence company practices.

Life cycle thinking is but one perspective - if at all considered -, in everyday business decisions throughout the organization; in the selection of suppliers, in the strategy of new product ranges, and, in what information is chosen to be highlighted to the customers. Tradeoffs are constantly made between e.g. environment, quality, price and other company goals. Before any successful adaptation and visualization of life cycle information, it is important for internal life cycle experts to identify and understand how other functions of the company perceive and value life cycle information in their specific working situations.

To get a better understanding of these internal users of life cycle information, life cycle experts in four multinational companies (Akzo Nobel, Vattenfall, Volvo Cars, Volvo Group) have joined forces with researchers in life cycle management and behavioral science to create a graphical map of how life cycle information is spread and used in different parts of an organization. The aim of the map is to be used as a basis for discussions and recommendations on how to tailor life cycle information in order to support decision making throughout a company.

The map is constructed by combining a) inventories on how quantitative data seeks its way to internal users through databases, reports and KPIs, with b) qualitative interviews on goal framing and decision weights of e.g. environmental and economic information. As a result, the map illustrates both the “physical” flows of life cycle information and the “cognitive logics” of this information for different users (e.g. how values, attitudes and norms influence the target groups’ likelihood of including life cycle information in their decision processes).

Based on the map, each company can identify and discuss who the main users of life cycle information are and what premises for life cycle thinking these users have: In what decision making situation is, or can, life cycle information be used? How is the information understood? What other sources of information and rationales for decisions are used in parallel to, or in conflict with, LCA-results?

Initial analyses on the usefulness of the map point to a better understanding of how life cycle experts can tailor information for decisions in different parts of the company, as well as on its usefulness in illustrating to people outside of the environmental departments the widespread use of life cycle information that already exist in the company. The latter is not least important for creating an understanding in how the organization respond to ongoing external pressure to focus more on a life cycle approach, e.g. new requirements in ISO 14001, new EU Directives on public procurement and current EU work to establish a common LCA methodology.   

This study investigated the short and long term impacts of domestic hot and cold water use and associated energy use when replacing conventional faucets in 100 apartments with energy efficient faucets labeled with energy class A-B according to the Swedish energy labeling system. The study included a behavioural study to increase the understanding of the users’ perception of the faucets and to investigate the underlying reasons for acceptance of the installed products.

The results showed a reduction in domestic hot water use and energy use for domestic hot water of 28 %. No reduction of cold water use could be identified although changes in occupancy of the apartments might have contributed to this result. The savings in hot water use did not diminish over the measurement period.

The acceptance of the energy efficient faucets did not increase over time, which was likely due to the lack of feedback on the assumption that the faucets provided the indicated savings. It was also indicated that the perception of the faucets differed between contexts in the home. The acceptance was also found to be linked to factors that could not be isolated from the faucet and its function.