Integrating ontology into PLM-tools to improve sustainable product development

Abstract Sustainability aspects are predominantly considered outside engineering departments by designated organizational units. Some PLM-vendors have already integrated application modules to assess, primarily environmental, sustainability within design environments by giving feedback to engineers but only on predefined options. This paper describes how to combine engineering tools with ontology to enable the identification of multiple viable options covering the functional dimension and all three sustainability dimensions. The approach reduces time consuming trial and error assessment processes and opens up alternative options for sustainable solutions. The proposed solution is demonstrated based on material decisions occurring during the engineering process of a pedelec.