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Circular Strategies to Improve Ephemeral Products Sustainability Through Co-creation and Its Metrics

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Advances on Mechanics, Design Engineering and Manufacturing IV (JCM 2022)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Mechanical Engineering ((LNME))

Abstract

This study shows particularities of the problem caused by ephemeral products (EP), products with a short life cycle or products for immediate use that generate premature waste on a large scale and consequently a significant impact at the environmental level. Through the application of circular strategies typical of the Circular Economy (CE), EPs represent a potential opportunity for reuse by becoming new products that are reintroduced in new cycles of use, going from being a problem to a new solution. This paper presents a qualitative metric that evaluates a circularity index for new uses of ephemeral products called the Circularity Index for Product Uses (CIPU). To test the metric, the surgical masks have been selected to carry out the study, a critical product as a result of the crisis generated by COVID-19. To characterize the study, the different types of masks, materials, waste, environmental impact or circular strategies that are currently applied have been analyzed. Subsequently, a co-creative process has been carried out with experts to identify new uses for the masks based on reuse. Finally, the level of circularity of these concepts has been evaluated through the proposed index with the developed metric.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zaragoza University, 50018, Zaragoza, Spain

    Ignacio López-Forniés, Álvaro Aguerri Galindo & Jorge Sierra-Pérez

Authors
  1. Ignacio López-Forniés
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  2. Álvaro Aguerri Galindo
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  3. Jorge Sierra-Pérez
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ignacio López-Forniés .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Engineering, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli'', Aversa, Italy

    Salvatore Gerbino

  2. Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Naples FedericoII, Naples, Italy

    Antonio Lanzotti

  3. Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy

    Massimo Martorelli

  4. Ingeniería de Diseño y Fabricación, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain

    Ramón Mirálbes Buil

  5. Univesity of Bergamo, Dalmine, Bergamo, Italy

    Caterina Rizzi

  6. Arts et Métiers Institute, Aix En Provence Cedex 1, France

    Lionel Roucoules

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López-Forniés, I., Aguerri Galindo, Á., Sierra-Pérez, J. (2023). Circular Strategies to Improve Ephemeral Products Sustainability Through Co-creation and Its Metrics. In: Gerbino, S., Lanzotti, A., Martorelli, M., Mirálbes Buil, R., Rizzi, C., Roucoules, L. (eds) Advances on Mechanics, Design Engineering and Manufacturing IV. JCM 2022. Lecture Notes in Mechanical Engineering. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15928-2_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15928-2_5

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-15927-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-15928-2

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