iNEMI Calls for ICT Industry to Develop Standardized Methodologies, Databases and Tools to Quantify Product Carbon Footprint

(HERNDON, VIRGINIA — March 1, 2010) — Members of the International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI), an industry-led consortium, believe that the electronics manufacturing industry must work collectively at all levels of the supply chain to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions affecting climate change.  Integral to this effort is development of a product carbon footprint (PCF) methodology that will enable companies to quantify environmental impact of their products and easily assess trade-offs to make improvements.

Twenty-one iNEMI members support the consortium’s call for an industry-standard PCF methodology (see list at the end of this document).

“Lifecycle assessment methodologies have typically been used to try to quantify the carbon footprint of ICT  products,” said Bill Bader, CEO of iNEMI.  “However, existing LCA  tools do not effectively deal with the complexity or short lifecycles of many ICT products. Our members are calling for development of simplified LCA-based tools and industry-wide adoption of a harmonized global PCF methodology, and iNEMI is committed to taking a leadership role in making this happen.”

Bader points out that the potential for ICT technologies to reduce GHG emissions far exceeds the estimated two percent the ICT industry contributes to GHG emissions worldwide. “Power generation and fuel used for transportation are two of the leading sources of man-made GHG emissions, second only to the effects of deforestation. ICT solutions are already addressing these two areas, and there is potential for further improvements.  For example, telecommuting, Web-based conferencing, even virtual trade shows are helping cut travel costs for workers.  Similarly, power consumption is being reduced with smart building and smart power grid systems.”

iNEMI’s position on product carbon footprinting can be downloaded at http://thor.inemi.org/webdownload/projects/ELSC/Position_Statement/iNEMI_PCF_Feb2010.pdf.

iNEMI members supporting this position are:

    Alcatel-Lucent
    ASSET InterTech, Inc.
    Cookson Electronics
    Cisco
    Dell, Inc.
    DYCONEX
    Elite Material Co., Ltd.
    Guangdong Shengyi Sci. Tech Co., Ltd.
    Henkel
    HP
    Intel Corporation
    Integrated Service Technology, Inc. (IST group)
    ITRI (Industrial Technology Research Institute)
    Lenovo
    Micro Systems Engineering, Inc.
    Purdue University
    Quanta Computer, Inc.
    STATS ChipPAC
    TI
    Tyco Electronics
    Universal Instruments

About iNEMI
The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative’s mission is to forecast and accelerate improvements in the electronics manufacturing industry for a sustainable future.  This industry-led consortium is made up of approximately 100 manufacturers, suppliers, industry associations and consortia, government agencies and universities.  iNEMI roadmaps the needs of the electronics industry, identifies gaps in the technology infrastructure, establishes implementation projects to eliminate these gaps (both business and technical), and stimulates standards activities to speed the introduction of new technologies.  The consortium also works with government agencies, universities and other funding agencies to set priorities for future industry needs and R&D initiatives.  iNEMI is based in Herndon, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), with regional offices in Shanghai, China; Limerick, Ireland; and Tokyo, Japan.  For additional information about iNEMI, go to http://www.inemi.org.