Circular Manufacturing: Have you ever wondered how to design out all waste in manufacturing?
Change often comes from asking yourself tough questions. At the recent Leading Lights panel discussion, Christiaan and other circular business pioneers explored how to design out all waste for different manufacturing sectors. To prevent 🔥 incineration or 🚫 landfill, and instead create ♻️ new value out of this.
We are not set up going circular, not organized to create impact
The main barrier most often mentioned? "We are not set up, not organized to create impact." Even though there may be 80% circular potential in manufacturing, EU manufacturers struggle to make it happen. The often-heard "collaboration is essential" was brought to the debate. Achieving circularity is never a solo effort.
It demands 🤝 cross-sector partnerships, 🚀 innovations, 🔗 supply chain alignment, and a 🔄 mindset shift—from seeing waste as a problem to recognizing it as a valuable resource or even a source of value.
The answer?
Bridging startup flexibility with corporate power. For scale-ups, small business experiments are easy—they have ⚡ agility and 🔄 flexibility to pivot fast. Meanwhile, larger companies have the 🏭 system and 📊 control points to scale fast when an idea works. So, who will take the lead in bridging this gap?
Another answer? Identifying the waste, calculating & capturing its value—AI and platforms could play a role in rolling out traceability systems throughout the value chain: from 🎨 product design to 🏗️ manufacturing, 🔄 usage, and ♻️ returns.
At Leading Lights, the goal is clear: "Turn industry challenges into innovative collaborations." ✨ Hopefully, plenty of 💳 business cards were exchanged, building meaningful connections to make going circular pay off—because a strong joint business case is the fastest way forward. Let’s build them together. 🚀
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