EFFRA Innovation Portal

Environmental sustainability

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Material efficiency is a description or metric which expresses the degree in which raw materials are consumed, incorporated, or wasted, as compared to previous measures in construction / manufacturing projects or physical processes. Making a usable item out of thinner stock than a prior version increases the material efficiency of the manufacturing process. (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Material_efficiency)

Reduction of material consumption (in %)

Waste minimisation Description

Waste minimisation is a set of processes and practices intended to reduce the amount of waste produced. By reducing or eliminating the generation of harmful and persistent wastes, waste minimisation supports efforts to promote a more sustainable society. Waste minimisation involves redesigning products and processes and/or changing societal patterns of consumption and production. (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waste_minimisation)

Reduction of waste (in %)

Circular economy

Co-evolution of products-processes-production systems (‘industrial symbiosis’) Description

Co-evolution of products-processes-production systems or ‘industrial symbiosis’ with minimum need of new resources

Product life extension Description

Product life extension aims at increasing the value from invested resources, providing a useful life that is as long as possible, and maximizing profitability over the life cycle of assets. It includes activities such as repair, upgrade, and remanufacture as well as Innovative re-use of equipment

Innovative re-use of equipment

The 'R's of Circular Economy

Reuse Description

Reuse is the action or practice of using an item, whether for its original purpose (conventional reuse) or to fulfill a different function (creative reuse or repurposing). It should be distinguished from recycling, which is the breaking down of used items to make raw materials for the manufacture of new products. (From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuse)

Repair Description

The activity intended to restore a functional unit in or to a specified state in which the unit can perform its required functions. (Derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maintenance_(technical), Federal Standard 1037C and from MIL-STD-188 and from the Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms)

Remanufacture - upgrade Description

The rebuilding of a product to specifications of the original manufactured product using a combination of reused, repaired and new parts. (From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remanufacturing, Johnson, M. R. & McCarthy I. P. (2014) Product Recovery Decisions within the Context of Extended Producer Responsibility. Journal of Engineering and Technology Management 34, 9-28)

Recycle Description

Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. The recovery of energy from waste materials is often included in this concept. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability to reacquire the properties it had in its original state. (From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recycling)

Intra-sector circularity vss cross-sectoral circularity

Intra-sectoral circularity Description

Circular approaches where the flows stay within the same sector (for instance, batteries from the electric vehicle sector being reused within that sector, opposed to being reused in the renewable energy generation sector)

Cross-sectoral circularity Description

Circular approaches where the flows go beyond the original sector (for instance, batteries from the electric vehicle sector being reused in the renewable energy generation sector)[1]

Maturity of circular value chain

New circular value chain at the time of the development

Already existing circular value chain at the time of the development

Reducing emissions in manufacturing processes

Reduction of CO2 emissions (in %)

Reducing the consumption of energy, while increasing the usage of renewable energy Description

Efficient energy use, sometimes simply called energy efficiency, is the goal to reduce the amount of energy required to provide products and services. (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efficient_energy_use)

Reduction of energy consumption (in %)

Reducing the consumption of water and other process resources. Description

Reduction of water consumption (in %)