Webinar: Extending Product Life – Strategies for longevity and circular value
A main inefficiency of the linear economy are short product lifecycles. Products are often on purpose designed for limited usability, lacking repairability, upgradability or reusability. Value quickly turns to waste.
But when resources, products, and systems are not fully utilized, this causes a value gap to the economy. With resources getting scarce and climate change challenging all sectors to cut down on emissions, extending product lifetime is crucial and promises multiple benefits:
- Environmental Impact: Significantly reduces carbon emissions, water usage, and waste generation by lowering the need for new production.
- Economic Value: Retains the value of materials and labor for longer, creating opportunities for new, service-oriented business models.
- Resource Efficiency: Secures supply chains by reducing the demand for new, virgin resources.
The session will introduce to key concepts for extending product lifetime:
- Repair and Maintenance: Offering repair services, spare parts, and, documentation to fix products instead of replacing them.
- Refurbishment and Remanufacturing: Restoring used products to a like-new condition, extending their functional life.
- Upgradability: Allowing components and software to be replaced or improved throughout product lifecycle rather than replacing the entire unit.
- Secondhand Market & Reuse: Facilitating the resale, redistribution, or sharing of products to ensure they reach their full potential lifespan.
Following an introduction to the content, participants will have the opportunity to hear first-hand experiences from companies that have recently implemented measures to extend product lifetime.
In the final part of the session, you will be able to identify strategic partnerships to develop your project, as well as learn about training and funding opportunities that will help you implement actions related to the circular economy.