Economies of Integration
Description
"Where any given resource can be used for more than one purpose, economies of integration can be achieved.
2. The simple example is co-generation. If you are going to create heat to produce electricity, the remaining heat after the steam turns the turbine can be used for another purpose. Two outputs from the same input increase total production.
3. We can think in terms of integrating production and consumption cycles spherically. We can design systems that internally produce what is consumed. Each time you create a production/consumption cycle within the system, it is an energy loop or a feed back loop. The more loops you can design into the system, the more you can save in cash costs. You create "economies of integration"." (http://www.organiclandscapedesign.org/content/integrated-systems-production)