Circular Sustainable Electronics from Design and Manufacturing to Business Models

This chapter addresses the challenges of integrating circular economy principles into healthcare product design, analyzing the issue from three different perspectives: the customer, technology developers, as well as sales and marketing strategies. The data was collected during a focus group workshop on circular electronics held at the IEEE FLEPS 2024 conference, which engaged 16 participants, including experts from the academia, research institutes, and the industry. These participants explored how to integrate circular economy principles into electronic products, with a specific emphasis on smart hygiene devices used in healthcare environments such as hospitals and nursing homes. The primary objective of the workshop was to identify barriers within the circular product value chain and critical aspects of product circularity and explore potential circular business models (CBMs) that could be applied in the electronics sector. The Impact Canvas (IC) tool was utilized to analyze the identified challenges and opportunities, providing a structured framework for the study evaluation. The workshop employed structured brainstorming sessions and iterative group discussions, indicating a customer demand for smart hygiene products that are efficient, reliable, and user-friendly. In addition, the findings highlighted the importance of incorporating reusable electronics and detachable components to enhance sustainability while maintaining optimal hygiene standards. From the technological development perspective, the results illustrated the importance of designing products with easily separable, reusable, or recyclable electronic parts. Such design practices not only extend product life cycles but also contribute significantly to reducing environmental impact. In terms of sales and marketing, developing transparent cost models and defined value propositions that highlight the benefits of the new products such as enhanced efficiency, reduced workload for healthcare providers, and improved patient care is an important strategy for facilitating the adoption of sustainable electronics. This study highlights the importance of aligning technological advancements with customer needs and effective marketing strategies to facilitate the integration of circular economy principles into healthcare electronics.