Decision Making Approach for Industrial Ecology: Layout and Commercialization of an Industrial Park

Abstract

One of the industrial ecology fulfillments is the concept of eco-industrial park (EIP). This cooperative approach leads to a more resources-efficient production system at the park scale, namely a more sustainable industrial system. Eco-industrial parks are generally growing on existing industrial area. Existing methodological and technical tools could support such development in this context but this work aims to support initiative for the preliminary design and layout of industrial ecosystem in a new area. If the management of area allows to fulfill the technical and economic factors for many eco-industrial synergies, this is unsatisfactory concerning the relationships issues. The study of the life cycle of the park underlines importance of the layout and commercialization phases. It makes it possible to select the best technical and economical compromise for synergies and to plan and ease future information exchange, collaborative context and trust.
The experimental field is a 200ha park in Occitanie region namely “Les Portes du Tarn”, 20 km far from Toulouse (south of France). SPLA81 urban planning agency started the ecosystem development process in 2012 and needs for a formal methodology and a toolbox for layout and commercialization process and its related decisions. The scientific proposal targets the development of a simple and operational group-based decision-making methodology for industrial ecology, especially to prospect and approve a company to join the park and its territory, to identify the “optimal” synergies and to select the appropriate slot within the park area. The first applicant, a wine production industrial unit, applies this approach to join the industrial park.