Eco-innovation: Sustainable innovations – assessing and improving the sustainability of products and processes

Project duration: 1.10.2017 to 31.3.2018

Based on factors such as climate change, scarcity of resources, population growth and a globalised market economy, the topic of sustainability in all its dimensions - and environmental sustainability in particular - is attracting worldwide attention.

This has resulted in political decisions, changes in environmental legislation and heightened consumer awareness and attention. These developments and changed framework conditions are now exerting significant pressure on companies to innovate. The seminar therefore aims to support SMEs, which form the backbone of the Austrian economy, in utilising the pressure to innovate as an opportunity to design and market innovative, successful and, above all, ecologically sustainable products and processes.

The seminar offers a low-threshold and application-orientated approach to the topic of "Assessing and improving the sustainability of products and processes".
The objectives include knowing and understanding the motivations and basics, applying the methods of sustainability assessment, identifying sustainability requirements, deriving measures for product and process design as well as promoting the measures and communication within the company. The objectives are addressed in three consecutive modules:

• Fundamentals of sustainability,
• Methods of sustainability assessment
• Sustainable product and process design.

This makes it possible to acquire basic knowledge as well as methodological and implementation expertise. Networked knowledge and application expertise take centre stage.

ADAMAH Biohof; G. Zoubek Vertriebs KG

BEA Institute for Bioenergy GmbH

Daniela Piererfellner - promotional items & compostable packaging

Wiener Schneckenmanufaktur e.U

project:culture Unternehmensberatung GmbH & Co KG

Sojarei Wholefoods Ges.m.b.H

VCM Ges.m.b.H

Association INNOVATION 4.X, promotion of innovative processes

Sustainability and Packaging Research

Since 1 August 2020, five interdisciplinary research areas have replaced existing research fields.