Measuring the circularity of products and materials

Measuring the circularity of products and materials

Matrec concluded a KPI mapping project to measure circularity for 25 product categories (furniture, fashion, packaging, toys, tyres, lighting, food and others). We identified a total of 40 quantitative KPIs from standards, legislative and scientific documents such as ISO, CEN, UNI, ESPR, JRC, EEA, EEB. We applied and measured over 60 products to verify the applicability and correspondence of the KPIs for each category and evaluated the final results.
This project gave us confirmation and allowed us to further test approaches to measuring product circularity
The KPIs are partially transversal and must be evaluated not only by category but also by product type. The veracity of the data is especially crucial for measuring real (and not potential) end-of-life scenarios. The implementation of this project in addition to the measurement data already in our possession show that there is a slow but progressive improvement in circularity for certain types of products made in Italy.
All products were measured with CircularTool, a tool that we at Matrec have created to allow companies to know and evaluate the circularity of a design.
The involvement of companies has been fundamental in order to understand at the design stage the aspects that can change the circularity of a product also in relation to the choice of a material.
The choice of the right KPIs is fundamental for measuring the circularity of products and materials.
We will continue with the project in the coming months by expanding further product categories also in connection with the entry into force of the EU eco-design regulation.