eDAM: Lifecycle Engineering Framework for Ecodesign AM Components in Transport Vehicles

The environmental and economic sustainability of Additive Manufac-turing (AM) is an aspect that deserves attention. Proper design frameworks must guide design engineers in conceiving sustainable AM products during the con-ceptual design phase. Previous scientific studies are not grounded on the lifecycle engineering (LCE) approach since they consider only specific product lifecycle phases (e.g., manufacturing or end-of-life) or are based on the general design for AM guidelines, not considering sustainability drivers (cost and environment). This paper presents an innovative ecodesign for AM framework called eDAM. First, it allows designers to evaluate if and when AM is sustainable from a LCE perspective. Secondly, it enables design engineers to maximize product lifecycle performance by optimizing the adoption of the unique benefits of AM. The eDAM framework was used to re-design a passenger aircraft’s interior panels and spacers. Using a bio-inspired shape, designers achieved a 15% weight reduction on the part and 0.2% on the overall aircraft.