Read the Instructions!
When you buy a new product for your home, it typically comes with all kinds of paperwork. Warranty information, warnings, and assembly instructions are just a few examples of the literature that can be involved in such a purchase. What if there was a more useful piece of paper in that stack? One that tells you exactly what your new product is made of, and a diagram showing you what parts are made of what materials. This way, when you are through with the product, you can easily separate the product down into easily recyclable parts.
This idea is based on the concept discussed in the Cradle 2 Cradle reading that we need to keep biological nutrients separate from technical nutrients. Biological nutrients are those that can become food for the earth. This includes biodegradable products. Technical nutrients are those that are valuable in becoming “food” in the technical cycle (or metabolism). Metals, plastics and chemicals are some examples of technical nutrients. When we mix biological and technical nutrients, we make it impossible to use them past a single use of a product. One we combine these materials, we cannot separate them back out and upcycle them into more products or use them as fertilizer for the earth.
Steelcase is a company that has really been incorporating Cradle 2 Cradle in its product development. For example, the Think chair is up to 98% recyclable and made of up to 37% recycled materials according to the Steelcase Think product brochure. In addition to being highly recyclable, Steelcase has designed the Think chair to be very easily dismantled using ordinary tools. This allows for a quick and easy recycling process after a consumer is through using the chair. Another aspect of Cradle 2 Cradle that Steelcase Is implementing is the use of high quality environmentally responsible textile products. They worked with Rhoener, as discussed in the video, to develop a product with a closed-loop life-cycle. This means that the product does not produce waste. It produces more food and nutrients that can be biodegraded and the production process also eliminates hazardous toxic waste as well, leaving water supplies as clean or cleaner than before the processing.
Recycling can be an intimidating procedure for many people. What plastics go where, colored glass is separated from clear glass and certain metals get separated from other metals. All these ”rules” for recycling can be so daunting that people decide to pass up the whole concept and opt to just toss things in the trash. In order to make the recycling process as easy as possible for consumers, easily dismantled products along with a diagram showing the materials make-up of the product will help guide consumers in the process and make them feel as though they know exactly what they are doing when it comes to contributing to the upcycling of their products.
Think Chair Brochure:http://www.steelcase.com/en/products/category/seating/task/think/documents/think_brochure.pdf
Hi, Beth;
ReplyDeleteThis is very cool! I agree, I have, literally, a pile of those manuals and instructions for all these appliances I have purchased! I keep thinking, "oh, I'll need them some day," but the likelihood of that is slim. I love the design for disassembly concept, and think, especially for a plastic item, there must be a way to actually imprint these directions into the product. What do you think? I've also noticed some companies doing away with those directions and simply putting a website link somewhere on the box where you can go and watch a video or pull up a virtual manual.
Dr Armstrong,
DeleteThank you for your input. I hadn't thought about the possibility of imprinting or otherwise integrating the directions into the product. That seems like it would be a good way to ensure that consumers will not lose that information. In addition, making that information available online through manufacturers or maybe a third-party database would allow people to access that information without using/wasting paper or other resources.
Beth I really like your idea, but I agree with Dr. Armstrong about maybe printing these ideas onto the piece because I am really bad about losing papers or just recycling them because I do not think I'll ever need them again. I like how you talked about Steelcase Think and how they work with Rhoener Textiles. Hard to believe that it can produce food and even leave water cleaner, I believe that more company's need to get on board and rethink how they do their business like stated in the Rhoener Textile video.
ReplyDeleteMaegen,
DeleteI absolutely agree that more companies need to follow Steelcase's example of implementing Cradle 2 Cradle principles when designing their products. In the Rhoener video and in the Cradle 2 Cradle reading, it was mentioned how difficult it was to get companies to partner with them in developing these new products and methods of manufacturing. It seems sad to me that so many companies are not yet willing to take the risk to make the changes necessary for a more sustainable future.
Beth, this idea is awesome! I am 100% guilty of being intimidated by all the categories for recycling products. I choose to just throw it away because I do not want to screw up on what bin a put it in. Dr. Armstrong had a great point about putting the directions on the product. Maybe if it was a chair they could put it on the bottom of the seat and tell you exactly what to do with each piece of the chair. I also, like many others keep all of those instructional papers which many people NEVER use again because they would rather just "get a new one" and throw the old one away, like the Cradle-to-Cradle article states. It tells us that durable items, like the Steelcase Think chair, are more likely to be thrown away because people do not want to take the time to fix them. They would rather throw them away and buy a new one. This concept would also help people disassemble their broken or unwanted products and recycle them for their second life. This was one of your best blogs! Wonderful job!
ReplyDeleteThank you Grace!
DeleteAfter seeing the input from you, Dr. Armstrong, Maegen, I definitely agree that it would be important to find a way to make sure that these "directions" for recycling would be easy to keep track of and access when we need them instead of having to hang on to a piece of paper for the entire life of the product. This would allow second-hand owners to have a greater opportunity to use these directions as well, since many people do not pass along those kinds of papers when they sell or donate an item.
Beth, I think this is a genius idea. And I love Dr. Armstrong's expansion on it. I think what makes it so great is that it can be implemented in almost every aspect of our lives. For example, I think a similar tactic could be taken for apparel. Manufacturer's could print recycling instructions on the labels of garments so that consumers know what to do with their garments when they're finished with them. The Rhoener video talks about how it's not about eliminating waste but about eliminating the concept of waste. By being able to instruct consumers on how to get rid of their waste it increases their likelihood of actually being recycled and ultimately turning the life cycle into a circle.
ReplyDelete