On first hearing, “Lego as a service” sounds like an April Fool’s joke or a PR parody. But the 87-year-old toymaker’s exploration of a rental service for its products is rooted in sensible sustainable thinking. In an era of dwindling resources, changing how products are treated is good for consumers, companies and the environment alike.
Lego’s sustainability drive stems from the formula behind its multi-hued bricks. The majority of the pieces produced each year are made from ABS, a plastic which gives them the grip which allows them to stay secure, but is reliant on petroleum. Renting Lego rather than allowing them to gather dust in attics could reduce the production demands. As the company itself admits, however, the idea is still only a proposal. Young customers and pieces known for vanishing under sofas do not make for an auspicious combination.
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Source: The Financial Times
Suppliers of engineering plastics are establishing sustainability programs to satisfy the demands of their OEM customers, as regulations have come into play and sustainable design becomes increasingly important. These efforts involve several related steps, primarily making raw materials and the process of manufacturing plastics more sustainable.
The United Nations estimated that the world’s population hit 8 billion people. That’s just 11 years after the global population hit 7 billion. The U.N. estimates that the rate of growth has started to slow down, and is only expected to hit about 10.4 billion people by the end of the century.
At a time when they are plotting their downturn strategy, many corporations that set ambitious decarbonization targets are wrestling with what they can now afford to do to accelerate decarbonization and monetize it with customers. Getting ahead of peers will be those that embrace visionary pragmatism and follow through during the downturn.
