Network Conference on Product Life Extension: Knowledge Transfer between
Clothing and Consumer Electronics
Oslo, 27 th -28 th March 2012

...was a rather primitive computer model, with graphics to match

‘A re-examination of the models from 35 years ago finds that they are largely on track in their projections.’
C.A.S.Hall and J.W.Day (2009). Revisiting the Limits to Growth After Peak Oil,
American Scientist , 97.

‘Modern economics is sick. Economics has increasingly become an intellectual game played for its own sake and not for its practical consequences for understanding the economic world.’
Mark Blaug (1997). Policy Options

Source: Graham Pritchard / Ellen MacArthur Foundation

‘Recycling offers business an environmental excuse for instant obsolescence.’
Simon Fairlie (1992). Long distance, short life: Why big business favours recycling, The Ecologist, 22 (6)

‘An environmental strategy is needed that goes beyond recycling, based on longer lasting products.
‘Only such a strategy could achieve the reduction in the volume of energy and materials ... necessary if sustainable development is to be achieved.’
Tim Cooper (1994). Beyond Recycling

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A patriotic duty during recessions
People should be ‘buying for up-to-dateness, efficiency and style ... rather than simply for the last ounce of use.’
J George Frederick, in Advertising and Selling, 1928
A marketing ploy during consumer booms
Instil in the buyer ‘the desire to own something a little newer, a little better, a little sooner than is necessary.’
Brooks Stevens Associates (untitled brochure), 1953

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Obsolescence of quality
‘a product breaks down or wears out at a given time, usually not too distant’, through deliberate intent’
Obsolescence of desirability
‘a product that is still sound in terms of quality or performance becomes “worn out” in our minds because a styling or other change makes it seem less desirable’
Vance Packard (1960). The Waste Makers

‘If this material lasts forever then how will the textile mills make money, and what will happen to the workers jobs?...
‘In a twisted marriage the owners and the workers join together to combat this threat.’
Review by Damian Cannon of The
Man in the White Suit (1951)

Tim Cooper (2004). Inadequate Life? Evidence of consumer attitudes to product obsolescence, Journal of Consumer Policy , 27.

‘What would become of the glaziers, if panes of glass were never broken? ... It is a good thing to break windows, that it causes money to circulate, and that the encouragement of industry in general will be the result of it...
‘Society loses the value of things which are uselessly destroyed.’
Frederic Bastiat (1850). That Which is Seen, and
That Which is Not Seen

Tim Cooper (2005). Slower Consumption: Reflections on product life cycles and the throwaway society, Journal of Industrial Ecology , 9 (1-2)

 The desire for the new
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The convenience of disposability
The justice of affordability

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Low expectations of product longevity
 Fast fashion in clothing
 Rapid change in ICT
Many items discarded while functional
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Imbalance in supply & demand of second hand clothing
(psychological obsolescence)
On-going functional improvement in electronic goods
(technological obsolescence)
Replacement often favoured over repair
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Repair work often unduly costly (economic obsolescence)
Lack of user skills

‘I was 23, 24 ... I was wanting to change my clothes every year, every season ... So why would I want to pay more ... for my clothes to last longer?’
‘Throwaway clothes … Once a month you can go (and) spend
£30 … You’ve got that month’s trends … and then it doesn’t matter. You don’t feel bad if you then chuck it all away and go out and do it next month.’
T. Fisher et al. (2008). Public Understanding of Sustainable Clothing

‘Expectations of product lifetimes could be getting shorter. If … results are compared with Coopers and Mayers ’ … we see a reduction in the expected lifetime from ten to seven years for televisions, four years to two for mobile phones and six to four years for computers.’
‘The general consensus (was) under five years for most consumer electronics and small appliances. Expectations for …
TVs, washing machines and cookers were most often between five and ten years.’
Defra (2011). Public Understanding of Product Lifetimes

‘Of the textiles that are discarded to the household waste bin, nationally 43% is reusable…
According to the empirical study in Birmingham, 61% is reusable or recyclable. Of this reusable/recyclable fraction, 42% is reusable clothing and 33% is shoes, leaving 25% as recyclable textile…
Lower socio-demographic groups appear to discard greater quantities of textiles as residual waste .’
Defra (2009). Maximising the Reuse and Recycling of UK Clothing and
Textiles

‘Householders surveyed were asked for their opinions on the reuse potential of the items that they had discarded. Almost 50 per cent of appliances were regarded as potentially fit for further use.’
(34% readily reusable, 15% after repair/refurbishment)
T.Curran, in Tim Cooper (2010). Longer Lasting Products

Home and garden tools
Toys
Computers and peripherals
Mobile phones and pagers
Telephones, faxes and answer machines
Video equipment
Televisions
Radio and personal radio, stereo and CD
Hi-fi and stereo
Small work or personal care appliances
Vacuum cleaners and carpet cleaners
Washing machines, dishwashers and tumble dryers
Refrigerators and freezers
Microwave ovens
Electric cookers
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
% working % in need of repair % beyond repair
Source: T.Cooper and K.Mayers (2000). Prospects for Household Appliances

‘I used to use (my sewing machine) when I was younger (...) for making all my clothes and other people’s.
But my daughters don’t think the same way; they’d rather go out and buy them because clothes are so much cheaper these days .’
T. Fisher et al. (2008). Public Understanding of Sustainable Clothing

Consumers are generally willing to spend only around 20% of the replacement price on repairs to large and small appliances, a proportion similar to that found in a study undertaken some 30 years earlier.
J.McCollough (2007). The effect of income growth on the mix of purchases between disposable goods and reusable goods,
International Journal of Consumer Studies, 31.

 Design
 Technological resistance and emotional durability
 Marketing, sociology and anthropology
 Understand consumer / user behaviour
 Public policy
 Appropriate pricing of factors of production

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Product level - physical durability (robustness)
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Clothing - resistance to shrinking, fading, unstitching
Electronics – reliability, repairability
User level - emotional durability (attachment)
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Clothing - classic lines, comfort
Electronics - customisation, upgradeability
 Societal level - system innovation
 Fiscal reform - price signals
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Retailer responsibility - educator / service provider
Business model – reuse / rental / sharing

Factors affecting consumption
Personal characteristics e.g. age, gender, attitudes, values, skills
Consumption process
Outcome
Social / situational characteristics e.g. norms, financial situation
Product characteristics e.g. appearance, origin
Choices / Actions during phases of
Acquisition
Use
Disposal
Product's potential life-span
S. Evans and T .Cooper, in Tim Cooper (2010). Longer Lasting Products

 Inconsistent (Evans)
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Irresponsible (Council of Europe)
Not so bad (Gregson and Crewe)
 The convenience of disposability
 The imperative of affordability

DIMENSION
Temporal
Value over time
Relational
Products with prestige
Technical
Flexibility in design
MARKETING PLATFORM
Heirloom
D. Mackenzie, T. Cooper and K. Garnett, in Tim Cooper (2010).
Longer Lasting Products
Investment
Resale value
Aspiration
Status
Performance
Adaptable
Upgradeable

‘We want people to see the benefits of extending the life of things they own and use, and for them to think about repair and re-use before considering replacing them...
‘We also want it to be easy for people to be able to borrow, hire or source second hand or recycled products.’
Defra (2011). Government Review of Waste Policy

 Deliver an economy where resources are used sustainability
‘through design for longer life, upgrading, re-use or repair.’
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‘Explore how waste prevention requirements might be incorporated into minimum mandatory standards for the design of energy using products.’
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Government is looking for businesses to ‘design and manufacture goods that are more efficient, durable, repairable and recyclable.’
Defra (2011). Government Review of Waste Policy

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Secondary objectives in EU Directives
Business model encourages short lifetimes
Consumer attitudes vary by product
 workhorse, up-to-date, investment
Consumers motivated by value more than sustainability
Longer lifetimes require change in design, manufacturing and consumer behaviour
ERM / Defra (2011). Longer Product Lifetimes

REGULATORY INSTRUMENTS
MANUFACTURERS Minimum durability performance for specified products.
Minimum length of product guarantee.
Eco-design requirements (standard components, ease of disassembly, lifespan, availability of parts, modularity, upgradeability, reparability).
Application of competition law.
Increasingly strict producer responsibility ‘take back’ and reuse targets.
RETAILERS
AFTER-SALES
SERVICE
PROVIDERS
MARKET-BASED INSTRUMENTS
Ecological tax reform to increase energy and raw material costs and reduce labour costs.
Tax on disposable products.
Differentiate level of VAT according to length of guarantee.
VOLUNTARY INSTRUMENTS
Design for durability / repair / upgrading.
Improved product testing and communication to retailers / consumers.
Longer product guarantees.
Inclusion of life-span data in marketing material and sustainability reports.
Mandatory life-span labels.
Full life cost labelling based on anticipated life span and operational costs.
Planning regulations and business rates to favour companies offering after-sales services.
Requirement to complete repair work at quoted price.
Guaranteed life-span would require service provision for specified period.
Zero-rated VAT or lower rates for longer lasting products and repair or upgrading work.
Zero or lower employers' NI for repair technicians and for employees in second hand stores.
Voluntary life-span labels.
Life-span requirement in environmental labelling schemes.
Graduated product guarantees.
Longer product guarantees.
Better value extended warranties.
Lower or zero-rated VAT on repair, maintenance, upgrading and reuse.
Abolition or reduction of employers' NI contributions in repair and reuse sectors.
Grants or tax breaks for repair workshops.
Grants for re-use projects.
Display of prices for spare parts and repair work.
USERS Requirement to separate waste. Fiscal reforms to reduce relative cost of longer lasting products and repair or upgrading work.
'Pay as you throw' waste tax.
Consumer education.
Tim Cooper (2010). Longer Lasting Products

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Waste Framework Directive
 Introduced requirement for Member States to develop waste prevention programmes
 Refers to product life extension as means of reducing waste
Ecodesign Directive
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Provides a framework within which compulsory design requirements may be set
Parameters include
○ ‘extension of lifetime as expressed through: minimum guaranteed lifetime, minimum time for availability of spare parts, modularity, upgradeability, reparability’

 Minimum standards for design
 Design that enables repair, upgrade, reuse, repurposing
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Increased consumer expectations
More information / improved access to repair and re-use
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Service-based business models
 New initiatives to increase rental, sharing, repair, re-use
Public policy support
 Firm strategic commitment with green fiscal reform

Tim Cooper
Professor of Sustainable Design and Consumption
Nottingham Trent University, UK
Email: t.h.cooper@ntu.ac.uk