Influence of the service life of products in terms of their environmental impact: Establishing an information base and developing policies against 'obsolescence'

The overall objective of the project was the establishment of an information base containing sound data intended for the description and evaluation of the phenomenon of 'obsolescence', and enabling the proficient development of policies addressing obsolescence on the basis of this assessment. This project focused on waste electrical and electronic equipment for use in private households, particularly by pursuing the following objectives: Collection of statistical data and analysis of trends to determine the average service and useful life of electrical and electronic equipment; Systematic representation of the causes for obsolescence in electrical and electronic equipment; Implementation of case studies for three product groups with the aim of enhancing the compilation of data, and of identifying for the product groups selected measures to achieve the longest possible lifetime or at least a reliable one; Providing a comparative life cycle assessment and comparing for the three product groups respectively the life cycle costs of a product with a short lifetime with a product with a long lifetime; Identification of cross-cutting strategies and instruments to address obsolescence and to prolong both the product service life and useful life.