BÖHME ApS’ Post

Why Design for Disassembly and reality sometimes are like oil and water. The idea behind Design for Disassembly (DfD) is straightforward—create products that can be easily taken apart for repair, recycling, or reuse. In practice, however, aligning this intention with the realities of manufacturing, costs, and the actual disassembly process is often a significant challenge. We try to sell the ideas whenever we see an opportunity, but it always fails due to one or more of the following reasons. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐯𝐬. 𝐒𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 Designs optimized for disassembly can add complexity to production. For example, replacing permanent adhesives with mechanical fasteners may make repairs easier but complicates development and assembly processes. 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 While single-material designs are ideal for recycling, real-world performance requirements often necessitate multi-material solutions or composites, making separation at the product's end of life more difficult. 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 Upfront costs for DfD are typically higher, creating tension with cost-efficiency goals—particularly in industries operating with tight profit margins. 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐫 Even when products are designed with disassembly in mind, they may still end up in landfills due to insufficient recycling infrastructure or consumer awareness. 𝐋𝐨𝐰 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐄𝐧𝐝-𝐨𝐟-𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 One of the biggest barriers is the low economic value of plastics at the end of their lifecycle. If materials hold no significant value for the owner, there is little financial incentive to prioritize disassembly for material recovery over cheaper, less sustainable disposal methods. To make DfD truly effective, alignment is needed between design, production, and the systems handling end-of-life processes. Until then, the gap between intention and reality may continue to persist—like oil and water. 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘱 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭-𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘴? 𝘖𝘳, 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘥 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘯𝘰 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦?

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