Total performance design of product life cycle considering future uncertainties

Product life cycle design has gained increasing interest in recent years due to growing concerns about environmental problems. In general, there exist significant uncertainties (e.g., operating conditions, user preference, post-consumer product collection rate, etc.) in the product life cycle, requiring a design method that is robust and tolerant against these uncertainties. To this end, this paper discusses design strategies for products and their life cycle to enhance total performance as a defence measure. Based on the discussion, a robust design method is proposed for maximising environmental and economic performance for the product life cycle. The effectiveness and feasibility of this method are demonstrated through a simple example of laptop computers.