A Simplified TRIZ Approach Involving Technology Transfer for Reducing Product Energy Consumption

Abstract

The literature is full of attempts to integrate eco-improvement and problem solving methods. Practically, no generalist problem solving method is born with a specific green purpose; also, for this reason, every time we apply a method to improve a product, the solution found could not be more sustainable than the previous one. Among the most effective methods for problem solving, there is TRIZ, which, differently from others, has in its fundamentals, several concepts in line with environmental sustainability: It pushes to find solutions that optimize the use of existing resources without adding new ones and suggests to simplify the systems towards their “essential” structure (TRIZnicks would say “ideal”). This article is a further testimony of TRIZ’s potential also in the world of eco-design. It proposes a simplified TRIZ approach, to produce sustainable solutions, based on a few key points of the TRIZ methodology that are easy to implement even for a non-expert in the field. These fundamentals are integrated with a documental research module designed for the transfer of knowledge between different technological areas. The goal of the tech transfer module is to find in the early stages of the problem those who have already solved similar problems in different sectors and from here start building their own solution model. In our case, it has been applied to reduce the energy consumption in the use phase of an industrial dishwashing machine developed by Elframo company. The solution, which is currently under patent pending, has saved more than 90% of the energy.