For the life of a product or its packaging to become a lifecycle, consideration needs to be made of how to prevent the product going to landfill at the end of its life. Methods to consider could be:
- Reuse - If the product is still fully working then can it be used elsewhere, maybe in a secondary market? This can be achieved through repair and service, upgrade and even remanufacturing to extend the life of a product.
- Recycle - Can the product or packaging be designed so that as much of it as possible can be recycled at its end of life? Can you design your product so that materials are easily separated to aid recycling? Can you regain the value in the product by taking it back and recycling it yourself?
- Landfill - If it is unavoidable for some of your product or packaging to go to landfill, can this be reduced as much as possible? Hazardous substances should be minimised and biodegradable material should not go to landfill.
Raw Materials | Manufacture | Retail | Use | End of Life
