Topic 3 Design strategies

Ecodesign is can all around us – in sustainable buildings, green energy heating systems, eco-friendly packaging and even recyclable products.

There are key strategies that implement principles of eco-design:

• DEMATERIALIZATION: finding solutions to deliver utility using the minimum amount of material possible (e.g., virtualize the offering or create durable packaging like reusable containers instead of single-use)
• MODULARITY: designing for upgradability and easy repair (e.g., Fairphone: https://www.fairphone.com/en/)
• RECYCLABILITY: capability of being reusable at the end of its useful life to minimize waste, pollution, and resource use
• REMANUFACTURE: rebuilding of a product to specifications of the original manufactured product using a combination of reused, repaired and new parts (e.g., Econyl – regenerated nylon: https://www.econyl.com/)

Good business case examples can be found here: https://www.ecodesignthinking.com/business-cases/