VerdEE - A New Tool for the Adoption of Life Cycle Assessment in Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises

Data and time requirements and complex methodological problems of a detailed Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) are well-known and discussed. Its application has specific difficulties in Italian Small- and Medium- sized Enterprises (SMEs) where environmental information is generally dispersed, a short-term problem-oriented environmental management approach is common and dedicated human resources are usually missing. As a consequence, a new procedure specifically designed for SMEs, VerdEE (Verifica dell'Eco-Efficienza - Verification of Eco-Efficiency), was developed and implemented on an interactive CD-ROM. It is based on the following criteria: relying on a life cycle approach; aimed at evaluating the environmental profile of a product and at identifying improvement opportunities; sufficiently simple to be applied in a limited time; containing as much quantitative information as possible to make it usable by a non-expert user. The VerdEE procedure includes four main steps: Goal and Scope definition; semi-quantitative Inventory; Check-list; visualisation of results in Matrix and Target-plot form. The procedure is supported by an interconnected informative part about advantages of the life cycle approach for SMEs, principles of eco-design and environmental concerns.