In the face of European Union's Energy Using Product (EuP) directive coming and to understand how products may affect our environment through the resources used in their manufacture, use, and end-of-life phases, ASUS initiated a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) program, which is sponsored by the Taiwan Government. ASUS provides the first Life Cycle Inventory Questionnaire Form in Taiwan and would like to drive other Taiwanese industries to implement and set up a Taiwanese Eco-profile database together. We research and execute lifecycle inventory and assessment cooperatively.

In accordance with the ISO 14040:2006 (Lifecycle Cycle Assessment Principle and Framework) and ISO 14044:2006 (Life Cycle Assessment Requirements and Guidelines), we have established the structure and standard processes of our Life Cycle Inventories (LCI) work. Furthermore, ASUS undertakes LCI surveys and issues Eco-profiles, so-called technical documents, as the basis for evaluating our compliance with the EuP directive.

ASUS ¡§customizes¡¨ mechanical parts for its products during the design phase, our R&D department cooperates with our strategic partners to better, jointly, assess the LCA impact of these mechanical parts. Therefore, one phase of the LCI focuses on products' mechanical components. In this phase, ASUS collects information regarding the manufacturing process' environmental and energy inputs and outputs. This data is entered into our Eco-profile database to compile and measure the overall LCA impacts of manufacturing mechanical parts.

With this data available in our Eco-profile databases for each distinct component manufacturing process, designers can better understand the potential environmental impacts of each process. At the same time, TEEMA Association (Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association) and ASUS cooperate to establish LCI tables and Eco-profile databases for mechanical parts manufactured by Taiwanese industries. Data is being gathered from a standardized LCI survey form from all industries in Taiwan.

Standardized LCI Survey Form

Future LCI Actions
ASUS aims to also phase in the below LCI action items in the future.
(1) Conduct the Life Cycle Assessment according to ISO 14044:2006's evaluation analysis procedures. The company and Taiwan market will demonstrate the Life Cycle Assessment's model standards; and
(2) Demonstrate products that meet the EuP's requirements in the Eco-profile technical document, by referencing the mechanical parts of the Life Cycle Assessment table and ensuring the manufacture of mechanical parts meeting the criteria specified in the Eco-profile database.
(3) To drive the Taiwan system of business organization/TEEMA (Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association) EuP SIG and the strength of committee members, discussing Life Cycle Assessment table and the possibility of a data platform, all the while establishing the Life Cycle Assessment database for the Taiwan Region mechanical parts.