Every successful innovation begins with a clear definition of its functional requirements. Before assessing sustainability, you must establish the baseline technical performance your product needs to achieve. This includes properties like thermal transmittance, mechanical strength, and fire resistance. The SURPASS digital infrastructure provides detailed examples of technical specifications from our three case studies to guide you.
Your design should be guided by the eight core principles for Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD), as defined by the European Commission's JRC framework. Use these principles as a checklist to steer your innovation:
Material efficiency: Minimise waste and raw material use.
Minimise the use of hazardous chemicals/materials: Preserve functionality while avoiding hazardous substances where possible.
Design for energy efficiency: Reduce the overall energy used throughout the supply chain.
Use renewable sources: Favour renewable or secondary materials and energy sources.
Prevent and avoid hazardous emissions: use materials ans apply technologies to avoid exposure and release at all life cycle stages.
Reduce exposure to hazardous substances: Use the best available technology to avoid exposure at all life cycle stages.
Design for end-of-life: Ensure materials can be safely reused, recycled, or broken down without harming the environment or humans.
Consider the whole life cycle: Apply these principles from the supply chain to the final product's end-of-life.
Setting clear, measurable Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) is essential for tracking progress. Your targets should be ambitious yet achievable, aiming for significant improvements over existing solutions. For example, SURPASS project KPI included substitution of more than 60% of existing multilayer films, thus saving 1.2 Mt/year of materials from landfill and incineration OR 60% reduction of the C-Footprint vs current solutions for food packaging films.
Navigating the complex web of regulations is critical for market access and compliance. The SURPASS platform provides a comprehensive overview of the current EU regulatory landscape, including key frameworks like REACH, the EU Waste Framework Directive, and the CLP Regulation. We also cover sector-specific and national policies to help you ensure your innovation meets all legal requirements from the outset.
Access the Regulatory Landscape database
True sustainability extends beyond environmental metrics to include social impact. This involves considering the entire value chain, from fair labour practices to community engagement and consumer health. To guide you in this area, we refer to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Guidelines for Social Life Cycle Assessment of Products and Organisations, which provide a robust framework for assessing social impacts.
Economic viability is a cornerstone of sustainable innovation. A product that is too expensive will not achieve widespread adoption, limiting its positive impact. We recommend applying the principles of Life-Cycle Costing (LCC) early in your design process. The international standard ISO 15686-5:2017 provides a detailed methodology for this, helping you to assess all costs incurred during a product's lifetime.