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Innovations in Sustainable Engineering and Design

Decent Essays

Introduction One of the newest innovations in sustainable engineering and design is the concept known as Whole System Design. It works with creating a balance between social, economic, and environmental factors in order to generate a design that is in synergy with all factors combined. This research aims to explore its elements, including asking the right questions, designing and optimizing the whole system, and modeling the system. Discussion One of the first elements of Whole System Design is the importance of asking the right types of questions. This helps open up solutions to the most important problems that might have been overlooked in a typical design process. Three major questions are important in this process: "what are the required service, what the optimal service is, and what are the system's operating conditions." Using this approach to sustainable engineering and design can help open up new doors and avenues that allow for more innovation in the design process. Next is the concept of designing and optimizing the whole system. When the right questions are asked, the clear elements of the situation are extrapolated, and thus the system can be optimized for the best performance possible. Here, the research suggests that optimizing "means separate design, but inter-dependence, of technical and social systems including joint optimization of both." Optimizing the design helps enhance its functionality and its capability to serve the targeted community with

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