Welcome to SMLCE

Personalise
Sustainability in manufacturing & life cycle engineering logo

Life Cycle Engineering (LCE) is defined as engineering activities with a life cycle view and thinking that aim to fulfil the needs of both present and future generation without exceeding the boundaries of Earth’s life support system. The methods and tools used in life cycle engineering must support reducing the total environmental impact associated with technology change and volume increase from one product generation to another, in order to ensure that new product technologies stay within their environmental space as derived from the planetary boundaries. Several methods, such as Absolute Environmental Impact Assessment (AEIA), LCA (Life Cycle Assessment), LCC (Life-Cycle Costing), and Eco-design, are applied in order to analyse the data and make decision during the upstream and downstream of the product development. LCE is an iterative process for continuous improvement of the sustainable performance of the product, process, system and the facility involved during the product life cycle towards achieving environmental sustainability targets (e.g., net-zero) as informed by the planetary boundaries.

a group photo with a robot
About us
Explore how UNSW's Life Cycle Engineering & Sustainability research group is shaping a more sustainable future through innovative research and practical solutions
Learn more
Eco house icon
LCE
UNSW news
Discover about UNSW news
See more
Headshot of Prof Sami Kara
Sami Kara
Professor
Sami Kara is a professor of sustainable manufacturing and life cycle engineering at the University of New South Wales.
Have an inquiry
Contact us
Renewable energy eco barrel icon

Our research strengths

  • Eco-design
  • Low carbon manufacturing
  • Energy efficiency evaluation in manufacturing
  • Carbon foot print assessment
  • Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Life Cycle Costing (LCC)
  • Sustainable supply chain management
  • End-of-Life products treatment, including reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling