@article{JRC114329,
	number = {KJ-NA-29487-EN-N (online)},
	address = {Luxembourg (Luxembourg)},
	issn = {1831-9424 (online)},
	year = {2018},
	author = {Alfieri F and Cordella M and Stamminger R and Alexander B},
	isbn = {978-92-79-98136-4 (online)},
	publisher = {Publications Office of the European Union},
	abstract = {Designing more durable products is a key strategy of the Circular Economy to save materials and reduce the amount of waste to handle at the End of Life of the product. However, the design of more durable products needs to be supported by methods for assessing and verifying durability aspects. Although internal protocols are typically implemented by manufacturers, also depending on their business strategy, there is a lack of standardised methods allowing the comparison of products on the market. 
		The overall objective of this study is to improve the technical background related to the assessment and verification of the durability of products. General principles for the technical assessment of the durability of products have been developed and applied in this study to the analysis of household washing machines (referred to as washing machines):
		1. Durability aspects associated to the use of washing machines and existing testing methods are reviewed;
		2. A testing procedure for assessing and verifying the durability of washing machines is further developed; 
		3. The procedure is applied to two models of washing machines on the market, and the results analysed;
		4. Lesson learnt and recommendations are provided for further improvement and application of assessment guidance and testing procedure.
		The methodological steps applied in this study successfully allowed: 
		• Understanding the durability needs of the product, and identify technical problems which can disrupt the delivery of key functions;
		• Analysing stress conditions, design aspects and misuses that could produce failures of key parts and loss of function(s)/sub-function(s) during the operation of the product;
		• Identifying key aspects and/or correction measures to avoid / delay possible failures during the lifetime of the product and thus increasing its longevity;
		• Developing further knowledge about how to assess and verify the durability of the product.
		The approach could be tailored and applied to other products for which a durability assessment has to be carried out, for regulatory or research purposes. Moreover, this can also serve as input for the work carried out by CEN/CENELEC JTC10 under Mandate 543 and aimed at the development of general standard methods on material efficiency aspects of Energy-related Products under Ecodesign.
		The output of the analysis of washing machines was in particular oriented to the improvement of a procedure for testing the durability of the product. As lesson learnt it was recognised that the testing procedure should:
		• Focus on the testing of the entire product under conditions closer to real life operations (the use of a fixed unbalance is avoided; stresses due to washing and rinsing cycles are integrated);
		• Reduce the length of the testing (by applying Accelerating Life Testing);
		• Cover mechanical stresses, as main cause of damages, as well as functionality aspects as loss of performance (washing performance parameters are monitored).
		Moreover, a balance has to be sought between the desirable lifetime target for the testing procedure (e.g. the average lifetime of the product) and a practical length that can be applicable for verification purposes. 
		This complex task resulted in a series of test cycles which impose realistic thermal and mechanical stresses to washing machines and which are executed many times mimicking a specific lifetime period of the device in a shorter period of time. The procedure was executed in a trial with two washing machines for a simulated usage period of two years. The coverage of the first two years of use of washing machines ca