From Assessment of Alternatives to Sustainable Innovation

Description

Training session to overview approaches for implementing SSbD-guided research and innovation (R&I) in several different industrial sectors for replacing substances of concern (SoC). Starting from the ECHA’s assessment of alternatives (AoA) approach the session, at first, put emphasis on the scoping phase during which the requirements for replacement are identified, and the limitations for the changes possible and trade-offs acceptable for the company, in agreement with relevant stakeholders to be further involved in AoA scoping, e.g., for setting the trade-off levels. This also includes listing the SSbD-relevant aspects in the different categories (i.e. functional performance, health, environment, social, and economic sustainability) in a customised manner, followed by weighting them in relation to their expected impact on the intended SSbD-guided multi-objective optimisation procedure. An additional dimension is provided as to how to deal with uncertainties, e.g., data gaps or compromises in data quality, or which assessment methods and tools to employ. Notably, it represents the company’s own decision to herewith set the requirements and goals for replacement, and this can be done at different levels, such as the material or chemical itself, changes in the production processes, or within the entire system of a product’s life cycle spanning across its entire value chain(s), which can be documented employing the use maps concept.

Period	17 Jun 2024
Event title	Materials Week Conference 2024: Strategic R&I for the Value Chains of the Future
Event type	Conference
Location	Limassol, CyprusShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International