August 18, 2008
Material Versus Product Lifecycles
Landfills are crowded with broken, failed products designed to either have a short shelf-life, or simply not well-designed at all. Unfortunately, the raw materials used to make these products typically aren’t as poorly made, usually having a much longer lifecycle than the product they help to make. One example is the $5 umbrella us New Yorkers are able to purchase from street vendors whenever it begins raining. Good for a few hours before the thing literally begins to fall apart, the nylon & metal umbrellas are cheaply made with nice materials, just not made well. They end up in more trash bins than apartments after the rain passes.
Combining a long product lifecycle in both material and design in mind, a Finnish company called Durat is making high-end, durable, multi-use plastic products from recycled materials including sinks and bathtubs. Will Durat rescue all of our plastics from landfills? Probably not. But we’re hoping their way of thinking will begin trickling down to New York City’s umbrella suppliers.
[via greenupgrader]
Article Link | 
| Email This | Print This Post |
Leave a Comment