Assessing and Improving the Feasibility of LCM

A theoretical approach to Life Cycle Management (LCM) is used to develop an operational model helping companies to understand their present level of LCM and implement LCM as management strategy. As part of the development, the model has been tested and evaluated by a number of Danish companies within different branches.

A self-assessment tool for companies to assess their present level of LCM is developed. The assessment is based on a qualitative assessment of the frequency of the integration of life cycle considerations within the decision-making processes of the company. Moreover, a tool for assessing the conditions shaping a company’s ability to do LCM is developed.

The ability is understood as the combination of two aspects: the company’s own capability and the feasibility within the context where the company operates. Four categories of conditions are identified as the most influential for a company’s ability to do LCM. The four categories are: 1) the company’s own capabilities and resources, 2) the type of product(s) in question, 3) the influence of the product chain, and finally 4) the framework conditions given by the market and the society.

The most relevant conditions within each of these categories are described, and a methodology is developed allowing a company to identify and assess the conditions acting as drivers or barriers for the company’s ability to do LCM. This assessment enables the company to identify the critical conditions and to focus on these in the design of a suitable strategy for improving the ability to do LCM.