Companies Need To Design In Sustainability To Products

Forbes magazine has recently published an article where the relevance of design for sustainability is highlighted.

With August 1 marking Earth Overshoot Day, the point during the year that we will have consumed the ecological resources and services that Earth can regenerate in one year, it is clear that something has to change. There is an increasing focus on circular economy models, which seek to reduce waste, ensuring that products and materials are reused, remanufactured or recycled.

The circular economy requires a significant shift in mindset, starting with the design process, which must ensure that goods not only have minimal environmental impact in terms of the use of water, energy and materials, but also that they can easily be repurposed or recycled through a “cradle-to-cradle” approach. It also requires less packaging, higher rates of recycling and, ideally, for consumers to take sustainability into account when they buy.

Many companies are already engaging with a circular economic model to a lesser or greater degree, Hermes says. Many automakers are moving to sending zero waste to landfill from their factories, while companies such as Philips have started offering their products as a service (lighting instead of light bulbs, in Philips’ case), which allow producers to have greater control over products’ lifecycle.

Others are going even further – Fairphone is a Dutch company that produces “the world’s first modular, ethical smartphone”, which is designed so it can be repaired and improved rather than disposed of at the end of its life.

Luggage company Samsonite has introduced its ECO-Nu range made from recycled plastic bottles. “The ECO-Nu has strong potential to succeed because it is essentially like any other well-made, durable, soft-shell case, but has the added attraction of being more environmentally friendly,” Brentman wrote.

It is not always easy for companies to change their production to a more circular model. However, consumer demand and pressure from investors can help to create a tipping point at which a circular model becomes a business advantage. Sustainability is likely to become a commercial imperative for many companies in future, meaning that circular economy principles will have an increasing impact.

The benefits of a circular economy for society, the planet and for businesses themselves are clear, Brentman continued: “Resource productivity is maximised, enabling companies and economies to address emerging resource security and scarcity concerns; the environmental impacts of production and consumption are minimised; and waste, a problem for humanity and the environment, becomes a resource rather than refuse.”

Investors can support the development of a circular economy in several ways, she stressed:

– By engaging with companies on improving resource efficiency, waste reduction and maximising recycling – within their own operations and throughout their supply chains
– By engaging with policymakers and industry bodies to support regulations or incentives which encourage circular production
– By investing in businesses with good return prospects and which demonstrate a clear commitment to the principles underpinning a circular economy

“As with all sustainability issues affecting the global economy, the transition to a circular model will require co-ordinated action from consumers, governments, NGOs and businesses. But investors have a key role to play in creating a sustainable economic future,” she concluded.

Read the full article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikescott/2018/07/30/companies-need-to-design-in-sustainability-to-products-and-investors-need-to-encourage-them/#45801f6f5c6f