The increasing global need for environmental preservation calls for new methods to increase the material efficiency of products. One way to do this, is by extending the use cycle of a product, by making the product more repairable. This thesis has studied existing use cycle extension strategies to propose a new smartphone ProductService System that stimulates consumers to choose for repair over replacement. The developed Product-Service System is a smartphone application. This application is provided to the user for free, and helps him to perform failure diagnosis, failure solution and failure prevention of the smartphone. The main objective of this research has been to develop a smartphone ProductService System that stimulates consumers to choose for repair over replacement. I have developed the app based on a literature review, consumer interviews, expert interviews, design iterations, and user tests. Literature review, consumer interviews, and expert interviews have provided insight into a way to assess the repairability of smartphones, as well as existing strategies that increase repairability. Based on the provided insights, I developed several directions for a possible Product-Service System to take shape. Based on consumer input, the most promising direction was chosen, after which the final concept has been developed in two main iterations, including a user test. Finally, I have shown that the app does not only seem to contribute to use cycle extension, but that it also fulfils consumers’ needs and preferences, is economically sustainable, and is feasible for any business to achieve. This thesis has two main contributions. First of all, the developed repairability scoring system can be applied in both academia and businesses to rate a product’s repairability. In this thesis, the framework has only been applied to smartphones, but its theoretical background allows it to be applied to any other electronic product as well. Secondly, I have shown that the developed app poses an interesting business opportunity, and that it can be applied in practice by anyone who is willing to take up the development of the app.

Derako is a company specialized in designing and manufacturing wooden suspended ceilings, wall panels and façade panels. Derako faces the challenge of high production of waste, over 50% of their bought wood ends up as waste, additionally over 6500 kilograms of plastic waste is being produced. In their industry, Derako is not alone. The construction industry is considered a highly polluting industry, responsible for 50% of all raw material usage and 35% of the CO2 generated in the Netherlands. The industry is reacting by slowly adopting ways to improve their sustainable performace. One of the main topics is the Circular Economy. This thesis will provide an answer to the research question at hand, namely, how can Derako become a more sustainable business in the future? It will aim to do so by closely collaborating with Derako employees, to ensure a good fit. In order to fully understand the industry Derako is operating in, a thorough analysis has been conducted. Several stakeholders in their process, such as architects, contractors and installers have been interviewed, alongside several employees of Derako. The sales process of Derako proves to be complex, several of the aforementioned stakeholders influence the decision making, while their interests vary greatly. As the construction industry is developing, several trends are showing. An analysis of these trends has uncovered potentially interesting directions for Derako to pursue. The Circular Economy would be the foundation of this development, as it shows to be a highly relevant and promising topic in the industry, providing many options for product development. Together with Derako, through the means of co-creations session, the trend directions were discussed. The direction of flexible and modular buildings was deemed most relevant to develop into a vision. During this co-creation, participants set out to develop a vision which would be guiding for the strategy and roadmap. During the development of the strategy, the vision would be split in two parts. One part focussing on waste reduction, the other focussing on a circular product line. The waste reduction plan has been developed as a method to provide tangible handles for waste reduction. The current waste streams, mainly wood and plastic waste have been mapped roughly. Tests have been designed to collect more detailed information on those waste streams. The waste reduction plan sets specific goals in three horizons with the final horizon ending in 2030. For the non-renewable waste, a reduction of 50% has been set, as for wood waste a reduction of 90% has been set. In these goals, finding high value applications for the wood waste is also considered a reduction. The circular product roadmap describes the development of a circular product line, in which a standardized product is central. This product minimizes variation on materials, sizes and finished, therefore creating a product that facilitates easy reuse. Alongside the circular product line, a return shipping method has been developed. This has been treated facilitate wasteless shipping of Derako product, drastically reducing the amount of plastic and wood waste. Combined, the waste reduction plan and circular product roadmap provide Derako with practical handles to drastically increase sustainable performance.