Product Disassembly and Material Breakdown 

After the eyeglasses were disassembled, data was able to be collected, the following data chart showcases the data inputs into the LCA. 

The data gathered for this study came from a variety of sources, both Warby Parker, outside sources, and LCA, as referenced in the table. An important note is that for the polycarbonate and titanium, we looked for the largest production facilities in China and made an educated guess that they were sourced from there. 

After the data was collected, a flow chart could be created to show foreground processes to be modeled, flows coming into/out from background system, and the inputs/emissions from/to the environment.

The flow chart highlights the life cycle of eyeglasses according to our LCA Model. In this process, Eyeglasses are produced using Polycarbonate, Vinyl Acetate, and Titanium using inputs such as transport, water, and electricity. Then, packaging for the eyeglasses is incorporated into the lifecycle as cardboard is received from suppliers and inputs such as transport and electricity are added for the finishing of the packaging. The eyeglasses are then used, with cleaning not being included in this specific LCA. Finally, the glasses are disposed of due to either breakage or expired prescriptions. Finally, when the eyeglasses are disposed they are sent to the landfill as there was little to no recycling in the process. 

After the flow chart was created, the LCA Model was produced and input and output charts were created. 

Four process units were created, these include Eyeglasses Disposal, Eyeglasses Production, Eyeglasses Use, and Packaging Production. The following charts highlight the inputs and outputs for each process:

Eyeglasses Production

• Inputs:

  • Vinyl Acetate (substitute for Cellulose Acetate)

  • Titanium (screws and fasteners)

  • Polycarbonate (lenses)

  • Water (used in polishing)

  • Electricity (general and lens-specific)

  • Transportation (Italy, China → USA by sea & freight)

• Outputs:

  • Assembled eyeglasses

The data for this process came from research into the Warby Parker production process and the disassembly lab. Polycarbonate, Titanium, and Vinyl Acetate are the materials used in the production of eyeglasses according to the Warby Parker website. However, Warby Parker states that the product typically is made with cellulose acetate however the OpenLCA platform did not have cellulose acetate as an input therefore vinyl acetate was used as an alternative material in the LCA model created. Polycarbonate’s provider was market for the rest of the world, whereas Vinyl Acetate and Titanium were market for global seeing as the rest of the world was not an available provider. Transport by container ship and lorry were included as Warby Parker has suppliers all over the world. Transportation needed to move product to/from ports and to/from the manufacturing facilities was considered through transport lorry. Additionally, the transport for Vinyl Acetate from Italy accounted for 6,497 km, the transport for Titanium and Polycarbonate from China accounted for 24,113 km each. The transport by sea used market for global as its provider, whereas the transport by land used market for rest of world as its provider. Electricity was also included as two inputs, one specifically for the manufacturing of the lenses, and the other for the general production and assembly of the eyeglasses. General energy input data for manufacturing was found on a site describing the energy needed to produce a pair of Warby Parker glasses. The provider for the low voltage electricity is the Northeast Region of the US. Finally, water was included as it is important in the manufacturing process, this data was found on a research paper describing the average amount of water needed for the Eyeglass polishing and manufacturing. The provider for the water is market for rest of world.

Packaging Production

• Inputs:

  • 0.25 kg Folding Boxboard (used instead of 100% recycled cardboard)

  • 7 kWh Low-voltage electricity

  • Transport by freight (1,013 km from NY to TN)

• Output:

  • Finished packaging

The data for the packaging production includes the input flows of 7kWh of low voltage electricity, 0.25 kg of folding cardboard for one unit, and 253.25kg*km of transport, freight, and lorry. The provider for the low voltage electricity is the Northeast Region of the US, and the cardboard and transport providers are the rest of the world. The transportation takes into account the 1,013 km travel distance from the Warby Parker factory in Sloatsburg, NY to Eastman in Kingsport, Tennessee. The output of the packaging production flow is just the packaging.

Eyeglasses Use

• Inputs:

  • One pair of eyeglasses

  • One unit of packaging

• Output:

  • Broken eyeglasses at end-of-life

The data for the eyeglass use includes the inputs of the eyeglasses and the packaging of the eyeglasses. The provider is the culmination of the eyeglasses production and the packaging production flows. The output is the broken eyeglasses in the case that the glasses break.

Eyeglasses Disposal

• Input:

  • One broken pair of eyeglasses

• Outputs:

  • Inert waste (0.0197 kg per pair)

  • Assumed landfill treatment based on global average

All transportation was included using:

• Sea freight: Vinyl acetate (6,497 km), Polycarbonate & Titanium (24,113 km)

• Land freight: Local U.S. transportation and packaging distances

The data for this process came from the fact that eyeglasses are disposed of either because they are broken or because the prescription has expired. Therefore, the input for this process is the broken eye glasses, 1 item, and the outputs are the disposed eyeglasses, 1 item, and inert waste, 0.0197 kg, which is the weight of 1 item. The provider picked was for treatment of waste based on rest of world.