Circular product design. A multiple loops life cycle design approach for the circular economy
- Submitting institution
-
Nottingham Trent University
- Unit of assessment
- 32 - Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory
- Output identifier
- 5R - 698026
- Type
- D - Journal article
- DOI
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10.1080/14606925.2017.1352686
- Title of journal
- Design Journal
- Article number
- -
- First page
- S1620
- Volume
- 20
- Issue
- sup 1
- ISSN
- 1460-6925
- Open access status
- Compliant
- Month of publication
- September
- Year of publication
- 2017
- URL
-
-
- Supplementary information
-
-
- Request cross-referral to
- -
- Output has been delayed by COVID-19
- No
- COVID-19 affected output statement
- -
- Forensic science
- No
- Criminology
- No
- Interdisciplinary
- No
- Number of additional authors
-
1
- Research group(s)
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D - Product Innovation Centre
- Proposed double-weighted
- No
- Reserve for an output with double weighting
- Yes
- Additional information
- The circular economy has emerged as an important subject in political and academic discourse concerning sustainable development. Practical approaches to the circular economy in disciplines such as design need to be developed and, in response, this paper proposes a conceptual framework for circular product design. The paper was first presented as a peer-reviewed session at the European Academy of Design conference in Rome in April 2017 and later as an invited presentation at the Global Research Forum on Sustainable Production and Consumption held at the University of Sussex.
The proposed conceptual framework is based on four ‘multiple loops’ strategies in which production systems are based on principles of the circular economy in order to promote the efficient use of material resources: (i) design to slow the loops, (ii) design to close the loops, (iii) design for bio-inspired loops, and (iv) design for bio-based loops. These four strategies, in turn, optimise product lifetimes, maximise recycling, use design principles that learn from nature, and utilise renewable materials.
Drawing upon literature on life cycle design strategies, the circular economy conceptual model and the European Commission’s Action Plan for the Circular Economy, four product design cases, illustrating each of the proposed strategies, are presented. The paper argues that different ‘circular’ approaches centred upon the life cycle design phases can provide practical guiding strategies during the design process and thus promote sustainable design solutions for the circular economy.
Drawing upon his previous research on sustainable design, co-author Tim Cooper made a significant contribution to the conception and design of the research and critically reviewed and revised the draft paper.
- Author contribution statement
- -
- Non-English
- No
- English abstract
- -