@ufpr.br
Design Department
Paraná Federal University
Head of the Design & Sustainability Research Center
Car Mechanic (SENAI, 1986)
Civil Engineer (UFPR, 1992)
MSc on Civil Engineering (UFRGS, 1995)
PhD on Build Environment (SALFORD, 1999)
Pos-doc - Design for Sustainability (POLIMI, 2010)
Design for Sustainability
Scopus Publications
Scholar Citations
Scholar h-index
Scholar i10-index
Jens Hjul-Nielsen, Aguinaldo Santos, David Christensen, and Bruna Andrade
Elsevier BV
Aguinaldo dos Santos, Johan Blomkvist, and Alessandra Caroline Canfield Petrecca
Springer International Publishing
Aguinaldo dos Santos, Carlo Vezzoli, Brenda Garcia Parra, Sandra Molina Mata, Sharmistha Banerjee, Cindy Kohtala, Fabrizio Ceschin, Aine Petrulaityte, Gabriela Garcez Duarte, Isadora Burmeister Dickie,et al.
Springer International Publishing
AbstractThis chapter presents Distributed Economies (DE) as a promising model for locally-based sustainability. DE consist of small-scale value-adding units (e.g. manufacturing, energy generation, food production, water management, software development, knowledge generation) where there is a shift in the control of core activities towards the user/client.
Brenda Garcia Parra, Cindy Kohtala, Tatu Marttila, Aguinaldo dos Santos, Sandra Molina Mata, Fang Zhong, Nan Xia, Xin Liu, Jun Zhang, Sharmistha Banerjee,et al.
Springer International Publishing
AbstractContemporary challenges related to sustainability are shared across the globe. Their materializations, prioritizations and emphases, however, vary from one region to another. This chapter shares the experiences from LeNSin project seminars and pilot courses and discusses the potential of design education as a transdisciplinary matchmaker between various actors and networks.
Emilio Rossi, Massimo Di Nicolantonio, Fabrizio Ceschin, Giuseppe Mincolelli, Aguinaldo Dos Santos, Cindy Kohtala, Edu Jacques, Carla Cipolla, and Ezio Manzini
UNISINOS - Universidade do Vale do Rio Dos Sinos
This is a landmark publication for the field of design. It was catalysed by unprecedented circumstances, as designers around the world had to rapidly deploy their competencies in strategic problem-solving to help humanity in the fight against an invisible enemy during a global pandemic. In alliance with other disciplines, from medicine to mechanical engineering, from computing to anthropology, designers everywhere have addressed the challenges and produced remarkable results through a diversity of initiatives. This Special Issue presents a peer-reviewed sample of these initiatives.
Aguinaldo dos Santos, Emanuela Lima Silveira, and Gabriela Garcez Duarte
UNISINOS - Universidade do Vale do Rio Dos Sinos
The provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for COVID-19 demanded initiatives beyond the sole provision of physical artifacts, urging the development of new services and system innovations in order to produce effective solutions. On this paper the authors report one of such initiatives, where a streetwear brand (ÖUS) and Paraná Federal University have joined efforts to develop a sustainable Product-Service System for mask provision, aiming at the protection of vulnerable school children in the surrounding area of a shoe manufacturing plant in the state of Ceará, one of the epicenters of the pandemic in the country. This consisted of an Action Design Research where, due to the pandemic context, all participants were in social isolation and, therefore, the Design process was carried out remotely. On the article the authors explore in depth the induction of a more distributed economy paradigm on the PSS Design. A distributed approach present itself more aligned with the health requirements during pandemic, with a higher potential to contain locally the flow of people. Furthermore, it also addresses the need for generating income locally, thus merging the health and economic concerns of the pandemic.
Emilio Rossi, Massimo Di Nicolantonio, Fabrizio Ceschin, Giuseppe Mincolelli, Aguinaldo Dos Santos, Cindy Kohtala, Edu Jacques, Carla Cipolla, and Ezio Manzini
UNISINOS - Universidade do Vale do Rio Dos Sinos
This is a landmark publication for the field of design. It was catalysed by unprecedentedcircumstances, as designers around the world had to rapidly deploy their competencies instrategic problem-solving to help humanity in the fight against an invisible enemy during aglobal pandemic. In alliance with other disciplines, from medicine to mechanical engineering,from computing to anthropology, designers everywhere have addressed the challenges andproduced remarkable results through a diversity of initiatives. This Special Issue presents apeer-reviewed sample of these initiatives.
Emanuela Lima Silveira and Aguinaldo Dos Santos
UNISINOS - Universidade do Vale do Rio Dos Sinos
The creative process of Sustainable Product + Service Systems (PSSs) that involve a variety of social, economic and environmental elements is a very complex process that can be characterized as a wicked problem. The following study highlights that, currently, the tools used in PSS assist in the system design process but often explore the design process intuitively based on the designer’s experience. When dealing with complex problems it is important to use a more structured design approach, which involves multidisciplinary teams to explore systematic design techniques. In this sense, a method recognized to assist in the process of creating complex systems is the heuristic. The use of heuristics is considered a cognitive strategy that not only accelerates the creative process, but also generates solutions, regardless of spontaneous creativity. In this article, an analysis of the creative potential of heuristics was carried out with the blueprint tool. The research method used included an unsystematic theoretical survey, followed by an exploratory case study. Therefore, it is intended to contribute to the detection of emphases and gaps in the literature and demonstrate through practical application, the interaction of designers with heuristic principles in the creation process of PSSs.
M. Murray and A. Dainty
Routledge
The construction process, right through from planning and design to use and demolition, has a major impact on society. Traditionally, concern has been focused on its environmental impact and the quest for sustainability, but this has now extended into the wider remit of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Essentially, this means that businesses must act (voluntarily) in a socially ethical manner by developing a policy that encompasses the core principles enshrined by CSR. A unique presentation on a topic of emerging importance, "Corporate Social Responsibility in the Construction Industry" is essential reading for all built environment undergraduate and post-graduate courses, as well as CEOs and senior managers within construction businesses who may be about to embark on developing a CSR strategy.
Martina Schäfer, Melanie Jaeger-Erben, and Aguinaldo dos Santos
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
In current political and scientific debates on sustainable consumption, the low- and middle-income classes of emerging countries are gaining attention. One common feature of such debates is the idea that these emerging consumer classes could be motivated to “leapfrog” directly to environmentally and socially aware consumption patterns and, thereby, avoid adopting the resource-intensive consumption styles of populations in industrialized countries. To be able to adapt sustainable product development or sustainable communication strategies to the needs of low- and medium-income classes, it is necessary to know more about the basic consumption orientations, current consumption habits, and future consumption aspirations of these societal groups. In order to contribute towards filling that knowledge gap, an exploratory survey was conducted, taking the example of emerging low- and middle-income classes in a Southern Brazilian city. The survey identified five different consumer types: the Home-Centered Traditionals, the Indifferent, the Up-to-date Privileged, the Wanna-be Materialists, and the Quality of Life-Oriented Postmaterialists. The paper outlines some ideas concerning how these types can be addressed with target-group-specific products and services as well as differentiated sustainability communication strategies. We conclude, however, that “leapfrogging” of Brazilian low- and middle-income classes towards sustainable consumption is not a very likely option. There are certain consumption orientations that sustainability strategies can link to, but these trends are not likely to compensate the general tendencies towards a resource-intensive lifestyle following the model of the industrialized countries.
Aguinaldo dos Santos, Claudio Pereira Sampaio, and Carlo Vezzoli
Elsevier BV
Abstract The present article presents the main results of a research project that aimed to establish guidelines on sustainable design for marble and granite products, a non-renewable material. The study was carried out within an association of 13 small and medium companies in Brazil. During the investigation it was identified a significant lack of literature on these materials which could support the design process, particularly regarding the issue of recycling. The study has unveiled the potential of applying in this sector the “cascade approach for recycling” where it is anticipated destinations to all possible wastage for the entire life cycle of a given product.
Aguinaldo dos Santos, James Alfred Powell, and Marjan Sarshar
Emerald
In the past 100 years production management has evolved from a set of heuristic ideas to a portfolio of somewhat developed concepts and principles. “Just‐in‐time” and “total quality management” integrate most of the modern concepts and principles in the field. Furthermore, seminal studies carried out within production, such as the Gilbreth/Taylor, Hawthorne and Tavistock studies, have given significant contribution to the evolution of management theory. This paper presents the context of production management evolution and assesses the application of some heuristic production approaches within construction sites of Brazil and England. The study revealed that, although the production management theory evolved significantly, construction practices do not apply the theory in a systemic and comprehensive manner. Clearly, lack of motivation and poor instruments for enabling “learning” are the central cause of this problem.
Aguinaldo Santos, Carlos Torres Formoso, and J.E. Tookey
Emerald
Discusses the effectiveness of construction practices on standardisation based on six case studies developed both in Brazil and in the UK, focusing on the “bricklaying” process. The case studies showed a paradox: construction companies developing written standards but failing to implement and maintaining standard practices. Written standards were extremely ineffective in the case studies due to the lack of teamwork and problem solving activities. It became clear that the abstract meaning of standardisation has far larger possibilities than simply developing descriptions of practice in written documents. Information on standards could be displayed in the packing system or equipment, for instance. Most importantly, information on standard procedures should be available when and where the construction worker needs it, despite the great need for workstation mobility. Hence, concludes that there is an urgent need for promoting a more widespread use of “visual management” approaches in order to enable effective dissemination and use of standard practices within the construction environment.
Aguinaldo Santos and James A. Powell
Emerald
Increase the workforce involvement in continuous improvement activities is one of the main recommendations of the recent report Rethinking Construction, developed by the UK Construction Task Force. In Brazil, this is also a major issue in most government and industry initiatives for the sector, particularly after the opening of the economy in the mid‐1980s. In this context, this research attempts to contribute to policy making by assessing the degree of workforce involvement in continuous improvement in English and Brazilian construction sites. The results show a generalised poor level of workforce involvement in comparison to the reported practices of other industrial sectors. Hence, the results suggest that current strategies for promoting continuous improvement in the construction sector are failing to bring real change at the operational level due to the lack of leadership and appropriate win‐win relationships.
Aguinaldo Santos and James Alfred Powell
Emerald
“Push learning” in construction management happens when learners have little or no power in defining the problem, action or knowledge that is required to improve their own working environment or process. In the “pull learning” situation, people working in construction are in charge of learning for themselves by exploring their actions as they work. This paper presents a case study that investigated the use of these learning strategies in the creation of a “learning mood” within a medium sized contractor towards modern production principles. The results showed clear indications that the creation of an effective “learning mood” in construction is more likely to happen in a supportive environment characterised by “pull learning”. However, “push learning” proved very useful in provoking the initial reflection that triggered “pull learning”. Therefore, a balanced approach between “push” and “pull” learning seems the best way to introduce changes in construction organisations searching for improvement and innovations.
Aguinaldo Santos, James A. Powell, and John Hinks
Emerald
This paper presents a methodological contribution to benchmarking studies of production practices. It presents some of the main findings gathered from a benchmarking study developed between UK and Brazilian construction sites. The study was carried out within six case studies and focused on the use of visual controls in construction sites. The “cross‐case study analysis” approach used a process called “pattern matching” where the researcher looked for direct replications of theoretical propositions. In this pattern‐matching approach, empirical evidence is considered to be a “literal replication” if the observed results match the theoretical predictions. In contrast, when the case study produced contrasting results but for predictable reasons, it is called a “theoretical replication”. The results show that pattern‐matching is a highly useful approach for developing benchmarking studies in production management because it allows direct transfer of results from practice to theory.