Ensure your products are designed for repair, reuse, remanufacturing and, at the end-of-life, for recycling as well as understanding your products real footprint through a proper and action-oriented LCA. Material handling and use contribute to about 70% of greenhouse gas emissions. Product design decisions can determine up to 80% of a product’s environmental footprint. Our experienced team of engineers, product designers, and circular economy experts have disassembled and analyzed everything from laptops to lifts and cars. We understand how design impacts circularity and are ready to provide a fresh perspective on your design.
Working closely with your R&D and product teams, we can help you make informed decisions. As part of the Stena Recycling Group, we also have access to technology and expertise in materials, waste management, and circular solutions. Through our product and value chain analysis, you will gain valuable knowledge on designing your products for recycling and circularity and we can help you adapt your services accordingly. Contact us today to start Design for circularity. See our services below, you can also try out some of our smaller “get started” services such as our recyclability workshop.
At Stena Circular Consulting, we have created five smart introductory services to help you start your journey within circular product design.
From an inspiring workshop within Design for circularity to analyzing recycling rates, screening carbon footprint, identifying alternative materials with lower environmental footprint, and maximizing material recyclability and reuse – our experts are here to guide you every step of the way.
Overview of products’ context - regulations, infrastructure, user behaviour - up to the end-of-life
Quantitative rating of products’ practical recyclability and circularity
Rated qualitative estimation of products’ recyclability and circularity
List of priorities and recommendations for enhanced product and service circularity
Roadmap for developing products, systems, and businesses towards circularity
Our proprietary methodology for product design assessment includes a baseline evaluation of the product’s compatibility with circularity - whether it’s through repair, reuse or remanufacturing. We work with both product design and the systemic context of the product, such as laws and regulations, consumer behaviour, and infrastructure.
The process combines physical product disassembly followed by qualitative and quantitative analysis. As a result, you receive a roadmap of suggested improvements, for example, what adjustments to make to facilitate repair or which materials might improve product durability. Sustainable product design goes hand in hand with new business models that allow for a closer customer relationship and long-term value creation, for example, remanufacturing – an industry projected to reach €70-100 billion in value by 2030.
Leveraging our proprietary methodology, we conduct a comprehensive analysis of the product's recycling potential.
This includes estimating current recyclability and identifying challenges for increasing recycling rates. Our quantitative assessment determines the product’s estimated recycling rate in the EU, while qualitative assessments scrutinize design, business models, and environment to pinpoint vulnerabilities. This way we equip businesses with actionable insights to optimize their products for enhanced recyclability and contribute to a more sustainable future.
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) provides a holistic view of a product’s environmental impacts throughout its life cycle, including raw material extraction, manufacturing, distribution, use, and disposal.
LCA aids decision-making by identifying high-impact areas and suggesting opportunities for improvement. Through the LCA methodology, we help companies prioritize actions to reduce environmental impact and optimize resource use for more sustainable practices. With our deep LCA support (cradle-to-grave) we use actual end-of-life emissions data following ISO 14044. We also offer third-party review, enabling clients to publish results, support claims, or use them in Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and comparative assertions.
Our approach to life cycle assessment (LCA) goes beyond merely calculating greenhouse gas emissions and the simplified "cradle-to-gate” model. We foremost offer “cradle-to-grave” LCA; a comprehensive assessment that analyzes all life cycle stages, including resource extraction (also known as the “cradle”), manufacturing and processing, transportation, usage, and disposal, (referred to as the “grave”). This thorough analysis ensures a complete understanding of your product’s environmental impact.
Our team is equipped to provide LCAs for products and systems of all sizes, whether you are developing a new product or seeking to enhance the sustainability of an existing one.
