Promotion of Environmental Sustainability by Applying LCA in Two Common Products: Implications of Material Selection in the Environmental Impact

This study evaluates the feasibility and effectiveness of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) meth-odology. Two widely used products with the same functionality but different designs were se-lected for comparative analysis. SimaPro 9.6.0 software was used for the calculations and LCA of both assemblies and the analysis covered all phases of the life cycle, taking into account factors such as energy, materials and water consumption. The results allowed a comparison of the environ-mental impacts of the two assemblies, identifying the life cycle phases with the highest impact and the most relevant impact categories. Product design and materials used were found to have a significant impact. Applying the LCA methodology to the two mechanical assemblies identified opportunities for improvement in the design and manufacturing processes, with the aim of re-ducing the environmental impact and increasing the competitiveness of the products. By consid-ering the full life cycle of a product from the early design phases, more sustainable design and manufacturing decisions can be made, and by using this analysis, companies can develop more sustainable products and reduce costs.