Any business that has found success within their production processes are likely hesitant to make any changes to them. Most often these businesses are operating under a linear economy model and producing waste that, within other production models, wouldn’t have to be wasted. In a closed-loop economy, this waste can be turned into new inputs to begin the production processes anew. Throughout this post, the ways in which this can be made possible for any business in any industry will be detailed in length.

In comparison to a linear economy model, a closed-loop economy model attempts to create a closed-loop supply chain, as its name suggests. Within this closed-loop supply chain, a sustainable economic model can be created that is capable of taking the ‘waste’ that a production process will produce and repurposing it to become a raw material substitute. When these models operate at their highest efficiency, every input in the production process can be reused, recycled, shared and or repaired in some way.

With more focus within the professional sphere turning to green initiatives, more and more organizations are opting into this closed-loop economy model. So much so that recent studies indicate a global contribution estimate of nearly $4.5 trillion by the end of 2030. While many industry heavyweights are looking to this model, it also serves to benefit the businesses operating at a much smaller scale. With the organizations that have switched reporting an increased sense of customer loyalty, more public recognition for their plans to go green and even less of a need to rely on external suppliers for raw materials. All of these benefits in connection with one another creates less harm on the environment and more savings for any business operating under the model.

Here’s How It Works

As previously mentioned, it’s impossible for any business to achieve operating under a closed-loop economy without first finding a way to perfect their own closed-loop supply chain. This can require organizations to reconsider not only the ways in which their products are created, but also how their products are packaged, designed and manufactured, all without producing something unable to be reused. This can also impact the ways in which these business sell their products, in addition to how these products would be refurbished if they’re ever returned and how they’d be recycled once their life is over. As the number of businesses willing to collaborate within a closed-loop supply chain increases, the more raw material can be saved and reused within production processes across varying industries.

The trouble becomes convincing the organizations so stuck in their ways to transition out of their linear economy models. Continuing to waste such a great deal of raw material can limit production processes in the future for more than just one organization. Being unable to reuse any of their initial sets of raw material will mean continuing to eat into the limited supply of it for new production processes. Opting into a model that ceases to have an endpoint will mean being able to endlessly reuse and continue the production process over again. This is the key to producing much more sustainable products for both the environment and consumers.

Finding ways to bring this model to life in your business can be a challenge, but for more information on how to ease the process, take a minute to check out some of the tips within the infographic included alongside this post. Courtesy of Quincy Recycle.