Thus, It is imperative for companies to seek early advice on the categorization of their products to ensure that they clearly understand their exposure (liabilities) to the various EG dictums.

How would you design, produce, market and support a product to minimize waste?

• Make it last a long time - doesn't wear out quickly
• Make it easy to upgrade - satisfy extended user benefits
• Make it very useful - people want to keep using it and not throw it away
• Reduce the 'fashion statement' - people want to keep it regardless of fads
• Make it very easy and convenient to repair - quick, simple customer service
• Make it easy to sell and capture imagination - Design is strategic
• Make it easy to disassemble and separate reusable, recyclable, reclaimable and disposable components.
• Design power stingy circuits
• Use commodity (easily produced) components and materials

How would you structure your business to minimize waste during product development?

• Establish corporate strategy to support the above
• Concentrate on the product design methodologies to establish product longevity
• Establish an Environment Czar just (similar to a quality Czar)
• Plan up-front support for all this (with time, resources and money)
• Establish a management system to establish conformity (set up design control and track the process and results; fine tune to improve)
• Consider potential costs such as inventory write-downs