Design, dirt and disposal: influences on the maintenance of vacuum cleaners
- Submitting institution
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Nottingham Trent University
- Unit of assessment
- 32 - Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory
- Output identifier
- 20 - 1070928
- Type
- D - Journal article
- DOI
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10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.04.101
- Title of journal
- Journal of Cleaner Production
- Article number
- S0959652619311783
- First page
- 1176
- Volume
- 228
- Issue
- -
- ISSN
- 0959-6526
- Open access status
- Compliant
- Month of publication
- April
- Year of publication
- 2019
- 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
-
4
- Research group(s)
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D - Product Innovation Centre
- Proposed double-weighted
- No
- Reserve for an output with double weighting
- No
- Additional information
- One aspect of sustainable consumption that has attracted little research is how owners maintain products. This paper addressed this problem through the case of vacuum cleaners, the short life of which is a significant concern: in addition to the waste generated, they account for the second highest embodied greenhouse gas emissions of electrical goods in the UK, largely because of high sales volumes. In addressing maintenance behaviour the paper pays particular attention to issues relating to people's feelings about household cleaning and contact with dirt, and how this influenced their use of vacuum cleaners.
The paper was based on findings from a two-year action research project undertaken for the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs led by Tim Cooper. Methods used included interviews with 114 users and 6 companies, two surveys (each with around 500 respondents), a focus group, product teardowns and a co-creation session with 30 participants. This mixed methods approach allowed for triangulation of qualitative and quantitative data.
Respondents reported that improving ease of maintenance would be the most effective way to help owners to increase their vacuum cleaner’s longevity. The study built upon past research by clustering owners into four cleaner types: Spartan, Minimal, Caring and Manic. It revealed that Caring and Manic cleaners spent the most on vacuum cleaners, were more likely to undertake maintenance and the most likely to replace their machines after a short period. Consequently, the paper proposed that design interventions to increase longevity should be targeted toward these cleaner types and identified key design recommendations.
The research is among a series of NTU projects aiming at improved understanding of the longevity of electrical and electronic goods. It increased understanding of Electronics Waste and the Circular Economy, currently the subject of an inquiry by the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee.
- Author contribution statement
- -
- Non-English
- No
- English abstract
- -