25 October 2023
Lego and the challenges of sustainable design
Back
Who doesn’t love lego? It conjures up feelings of nostalgia as we think back to our childhood days and the many hours most of us whiled away letting our imagination run free as we created structures and whole villages and even space stations. And over the years Lego has become more and more sophisticated, appealing to older children and adults alike.
Lego is an heirloom
Has anyone out there ever thrown away - dumped – their Lego? I doubt very much anyone has, and I also doubt anyone will own up to doing so here! I can’t think of many examples of products that are kept in the family to be handed down, but Lego is definitely one. We have tubs of it in the loft for a potential grandchild and I am praying I am a long, long way off becoming one. All the lego I inherited as a child is in those tubs.
The gift that keeps on giving
When the time comes for some to decide they need to free up some space and let it go, judging by eBay results it does not appear to be destined for landfill. Instead it is re-bought so others can experience the joy of it. If I type Lego into ebay I get 590,000+ results. Our local charity shop told me that when they get Lego in, it is a product they can charge more for and it flies off the shelf. Interestingly, it’s mainly men buying.
Designed to stand the test of time
Lego is a great example of a high quality product, designed to be loved and reused and I would argue passed on. Many will know of my focus on designing out obsolescence, and yes, Lego by its very nature is a product that can change and be used time and time again. I doubt a large percentage reaches landfill. So the front end of the sustainable design question is answered- design a product to stay in the market for as long as possible.
Converting bottles to blocks
So we cannot argue that Lego have designed a sustainable product but they have not stopped there. In 2021 Lego posted that they were working on making their lego bricks from recycled PET bottles. One bottle was hoped to make around 10 2x4 Lego blocks, one of the mainstay building blocks in their sets. However, they have just announced that they are not progressing that development as it did not reduce Lego’s carbon emissions.
Still on a mission
They are not giving up on the challenge they have set themselves. Instead, the team of over 150 staff dedicated to this project for the last two years are pivoting and looking at other materials, both sustainable and recycled as well as other sources such as e-methanol. The “e” – in methanol, I assume to be relating to the way the methanol would be produced sustainably, which would be taking captured CO2 and combining it with green hydrogen. A quick google dive told me that European Energy is building the world’s biggest E-methanol plant in Denmark – that’s handy for Lego.
Although the main customer will probably be fuel for the shipping industry, e-methanol resins and plastics could be a viable option for Lego, and I feel reassured it is the Lego team that will put its best minds and highest quality standards to that challenge.
A truly sustainable business model
The story highlights that innovation is hard, expensive, takes time, and sometimes the desired result cannot be reached. This quest that Lego is on underlines that the innovation process must be sweated but cannot be cheated, and the drive for a truly sustainable business model revolves around not compromising on the values that make your product a treasured item, but one that your customer will wish to use again and again and then pass on.
If you have a sustainable design problem then get in touch, we would love to help you solve it. Email stefan@bangcreations.co.uk or give us a call on +44 (0)1428 654466.
Back
25 October 2023
Lego and the challenges of sustainable design
Back
Who doesn’t love lego? It conjures up feelings of nostalgia as we think back to our childhood days and the many hours most of us whiled away letting our imagination run free as we created structures and whole villages and even space stations. And over the years Lego has become more and more sophisticated, appealing to older children and adults alike.
Lego is an heirloom
Has anyone out there ever thrown away - dumped – their Lego? I doubt very much anyone has, and I also doubt anyone will own up to doing so here! I can’t think of many examples of products that are kept in the family to be handed down, but Lego is definitely one. We have tubs of it in the loft for a potential grandchild and I am praying I am a long, long way off becoming one. All the lego I inherited as a child is in those tubs.
The gift that keeps on giving
When the time comes for some to decide they need to free up some space and let it go, judging by eBay results it does not appear to be destined for landfill. Instead it is re-bought so others can experience the joy of it. If I type Lego into ebay I get 590,000+ results. Our local charity shop told me that when they get Lego in, it is a product they can charge more for and it flies off the shelf. Interestingly, it’s mainly men buying.
Designed to stand the test of time
Lego is a great example of a high quality product, designed to be loved and reused and I would argue passed on. Many will know of my focus on designing out obsolescence, and yes, Lego by its very nature is a product that can change and be used time and time again. I doubt a large percentage reaches landfill. So the front end of the sustainable design question is answered- design a product to stay in the market for as long as possible.
Converting bottles to blocks
So we cannot argue that Lego have designed a sustainable product but they have not stopped there. In 2021 Lego posted that they were working on making their lego bricks from recycled PET bottles. One bottle was hoped to make around 10 2x4 Lego blocks, one of the mainstay building blocks in their sets. However, they have just announced that they are not progressing that development as it did not reduce Lego’s carbon emissions.
Still on a mission
They are not giving up on the challenge they have set themselves. Instead, the team of over 150 staff dedicated to this project for the last two years are pivoting and looking at other materials, both sustainable and recycled as well as other sources such as e-methanol. The “e” – in methanol, I assume to be relating to the way the methanol would be produced sustainably, which would be taking captured CO2 and combining it with green hydrogen. A quick google dive told me that European Energy is building the world’s biggest E-methanol plant in Denmark – that’s handy for Lego.
Although the main customer will probably be fuel for the shipping industry, e-methanol resins and plastics could be a viable option for Lego, and I feel reassured it is the Lego team that will put its best minds and highest quality standards to that challenge.
A truly sustainable business model
The story highlights that innovation is hard, expensive, takes time, and sometimes the desired result cannot be reached. This quest that Lego is on underlines that the innovation process must be sweated but cannot be cheated, and the drive for a truly sustainable business model revolves around not compromising on the values that make your product a treasured item, but one that your customer will wish to use again and again and then pass on.
If you have a sustainable design problem then get in touch, we would love to help you solve it. Email stefan@bangcreations.co.uk or give us a call on +44 (0)1428 654466.
25 October 2023
Lego and the challenges of sustainable design
Back
Who doesn’t love lego? It conjures up feelings of nostalgia as we think back to our childhood days and the many hours most of us whiled away letting our imagination run free as we created structures and whole villages and even space stations. And over the years Lego has become more and more sophisticated, appealing to older children and adults alike.
Lego is an heirloom
Has anyone out there ever thrown away - dumped – their Lego? I doubt very much anyone has, and I also doubt anyone will own up to doing so here! I can’t think of many examples of products that are kept in the family to be handed down, but Lego is definitely one. We have tubs of it in the loft for a potential grandchild and I am praying I am a long, long way off becoming one. All the lego I inherited as a child is in those tubs.
The gift that keeps on giving
When the time comes for some to decide they need to free up some space and let it go, judging by eBay results it does not appear to be destined for landfill. Instead it is re-bought so others can experience the joy of it. If I type Lego into ebay I get 590,000+ results. Our local charity shop told me that when they get Lego in, it is a product they can charge more for and it flies off the shelf. Interestingly, it’s mainly men buying.
Designed to stand the test of time
Lego is a great example of a high quality product, designed to be loved and reused and I would argue passed on. Many will know of my focus on designing out obsolescence, and yes, Lego by its very nature is a product that can change and be used time and time again. I doubt a large percentage reaches landfill. So the front end of the sustainable design question is answered- design a product to stay in the market for as long as possible.
Converting bottles to blocks
So we cannot argue that Lego have designed a sustainable product but they have not stopped there. In 2021 Lego posted that they were working on making their lego bricks from recycled PET bottles. One bottle was hoped to make around 10 2x4 Lego blocks, one of the mainstay building blocks in their sets. However, they have just announced that they are not progressing that development as it did not reduce Lego’s carbon emissions.
Still on a mission
They are not giving up on the challenge they have set themselves. Instead, the team of over 150 staff dedicated to this project for the last two years are pivoting and looking at other materials, both sustainable and recycled as well as other sources such as e-methanol. The “e” – in methanol, I assume to be relating to the way the methanol would be produced sustainably, which would be taking captured CO2 and combining it with green hydrogen. A quick google dive told me that European Energy is building the world’s biggest E-methanol plant in Denmark – that’s handy for Lego.
Although the main customer will probably be fuel for the shipping industry, e-methanol resins and plastics could be a viable option for Lego, and I feel reassured it is the Lego team that will put its best minds and highest quality standards to that challenge.
A truly sustainable business model
The story highlights that innovation is hard, expensive, takes time, and sometimes the desired result cannot be reached. This quest that Lego is on underlines that the innovation process must be sweated but cannot be cheated, and the drive for a truly sustainable business model revolves around not compromising on the values that make your product a treasured item, but one that your customer will wish to use again and again and then pass on.
If you have a sustainable design problem then get in touch, we would love to help you solve it. Email stefan@bangcreations.co.uk or give us a call on +44 (0)1428 654466.