L7. LCSA

Question 1

Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA)

Answer 1

• Similar perspectives and aims
• They are all based on the ISO 14040 (2006) phases
• Same FU
• Importance of reading the results of each technique in combination with the results of the other techniques rather than summing them up

Question 2

Goal and Scope (in LCSA)

Answer 2

• LCA, LCC and S-LCA have different aims and this must be understood clearly
• a common goal and scope are strongly recommended when undertaking a combined LCSA

Question 3

Life Cycle Sustainability Dashboard (LCSD)

Answer 3

• consists of a macro written in MS EXCEL®, which allows for comparison of two or more products based on scores and colours
• indicators are grouped into a limited number of topics
• The adapted tool ranks the totals obtained for each technique and presents the results in dark green for best performance and dark red for worst

Question 4

Strengths and weaknesses of the LCSD

Answer 4

Strengths:
* integrate the different aspects of sustainability for evaluating products and services
* Graphical representation with a chromatic scale
* Supports decision-making
* Original data is not lost

Weaknesses:
* Data have to be numerical
* Social data related to the functional unit are often not available
* use of the tool should be given to expert staff