Donut Diet: Agricultural transition towards a circular, collective, and regenerative future

There is an imbalance in the nitrogen cycle, mainly caused by an increasingly intensive agricultural sector. This leads to the degradation of nature and the loss of biodiversity. Measures have been taken at European level to reduce the amount of nitrogen emitted by the agricultural sector, but this has caused a backlash as farmers in many...

Product-service system business models in the building sector: barriers and solutions for companies

The construction sector's reliance on raw materials and the generation of waste necessitate a shift from the unsustainable linear economy to a circular economy (CE). Adopting Product-Service System (PSS) business models is crucial for achieving this transition. However, contractor companies in the building sector face barriers to implementing...

Product Journey Mapping: a design method to shift towards the circular economy

The Product Journey Map was developed through an iterative process, preceded by research on design methodologies and existing mapping methodologies such as the Customer Journey Map and Service Blueprint. By synthesising the research on design- and existing mapping methodologies, a vision of the Product Journey Map was developed and explored...

Chance to Change the Chain: Imagining a More Circular and Inclusive Food Supply Chain

Food. It is grown, processed, distributed, sold, eaten and then oftentimes<br/>carelessly discarded. In the European Union, 88 million tonnes<br/>of food waste is produced each year, while the Netherlands stands<br/>out as the EU’s largest producer. Food waste causes soil degradation,<br/>emits significant amounts of greenhouse gasses and can...

Design for repurposing of composite products

With the emerging demand for energy-efficient products, the composite material has become a point of attraction for many product manufacturers. Furthermore, with its high strength to weight ratio, long life span, low maintenance and design flexibility, composite materials offer tailored properties by choosing an appropriate combination of...

The transition of construction project organisations towards a Circular Economy, by implementing Product-Service Systems: Restructure the stakeholder network of a construction project organisations to increase value towards a circular economy

The built environment has a huge contribution to the total CO2 and waste production, due to their linear approach of “take, make &amp; dispose”. A shift in construction is needed towards the circular economy to close material loops, decrease and eventually stop the depletion of the earth’s resources. The construction project organisation could...

Circular Economy Impact Analysis Model for Image Guided Therapy Devices

The healthcare sector contributes significantly to humanity’s environmental impact on our planet. The circular economy (CE) has been heralded as a solution addressing its economic and environmental challenges by promoting more efficient use of materials. Stakeholders throughout the entire industry need to adapt their...

Blockchain as a Solution to Collective Servitization: A case study on Bundles washing machines and the Circular Service platform

The circular economy is an economic system that aims to replace the linear economy and the accompanying take-make-dispose mindset. It is an economic system that decouples economic growth from finite resource consumption. The Sustainable Finance Lab (SFL) identified two requirements for a high state of circularity. 1) Products are serviced...

Enhancing Consumer Product Repairability: A case study on vacuum cleaners

The European Commission pointed out in 2015, with “An EU action plan for the Circular Economy”, the importance of energy and resource preservation, by respecting Earth’s resilience and renewability (European Commission, 2015). A transition towards Circular Economy is necessary in this sense to create new sustainable advantages, protecting...

Design as a product care enabler: Increasing consumers’ motivation to care more of their products

The relevance of persuasion for product care. Aiming at increasing users’ interest in sustainable consumption, different lines of research and initiatives ranging from frameworks for design to community-based approaches, have presented routes to support a transition from a linear economy to a circular economy. These models intend to extend the...

Feasibility study of product-service system model for cradle-to-cradle products

This thesis report helps to identify which business strategies can make product-service systems a feasible business model for cradle-to-cradle certified products. Cradle-to-cradle is a product certification that highlights the material re-utilization and material health of any products. Product-service systems are the business models that...

Designing a washing machine for the service economy

Product Service Systems (PSSs) are considered to be a promising approach towards a sustainable, resource efficient economy (Tukker, A., 2015) (defined as ‘a mix of tangible products and intangible services designed and combined so that they are jointly capable of fulfilling final customer needs’ (Tukker, A. &amp; Tischner, 2006)), because they...

PD lab: The development of a biobased cladding system

The building industry consumes a lot of energy, uses a lot of materials and generates a lot of waste. In order to achieve sustainable development, it has to change its focus from merely the use phase to the complete life cycle of buildings. The PD lab is an experimental platform that does so, by setting its aim to develop a modular and...

Reflections on Product Lifetime Extension: Validating and Expanding the 'Products That Last' Framework

The book 'Products That Last: Product Design for Circular Business Models' was published as the result of a research project from the faculty of Industrial Design Engineering of Delft University of Technology to shed more light upon how to build businesses that are able to profit from longer product lifetimes and on how to design products that...