Building a Digital Circular Economy for Electrical and Electronic Equipment

The rapid development of digitalisation has brought disruptive changes to the economy and life, as well as a growth in the consumption of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE). Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is now the fastest growing waste stream in the world (Balde et al., 2024). Despite this, less than a quarter of EEE is recovered globally. This means that the vast majority of WEEE is sent to landfill (Singh et al., 2020). In the face of rising pollution, resource scarcity and supply chain volatility, there are growing calls for a Circular Economy in which product lifetimes are maximised and resources are kept in use for as long as possible (Kirchherr et al., 2017). This means that EEE is effectively reduced, reused, repaired, remanufactured, recycled and recovered (Potting et al., 2017) at the end of its lifecycle. Circular Economy has gained significant attention in the last decade from industry and policy makers (Geissdoerfer et al., 2017). Within this rapidly growing field, a body of research is growing on how digital technologies can enable a more circular economy (Pagoropoulos et al., 2017). For example, Despeisse et al. (2017) examine how 3D printing could unlock a Circular Economy by enabling localised remanufacturing; Voulgaridis et al. (2022) study applications of Internet of Things (IoT) in the Circular Economy to improve traceability; and Bressanelli et al. (2022) consider the role of digital twins in the Circular Economy as a way of improving inventory and demand information across the supply chain. At a policy level, there has also been increasing interest in how digitalisation can enable the Circular Economy. In 2022, the European Commission announced its Circular Economy Package, which identified for Digital Product Passports (DPP) as a key framework for improving material, component and product traceability as part of a Circular Economy (European Commission, 2022). Despite their promise, there is limited knowledge as to how new digital technologies and capabilities such as IoT, Big Data and Digital Fabrication could be leveraged to support the transition to Circular Economy. Furthermore, it cannot be assumed that digitalisation will necessarily lead to sustainability gains and several circular economy rebound effects may take place (Zink and Geyer, 2017). Digitalisation may in fact lead to a proliferation of WEEE, if systems are not properly managed and implemented. This research aims to further explore the linkages between digitalisation and the circular economy, specifically in the EEE sector. It addresses the following research questions: (1) what are the current and future potential applications of digital (Industry 4.0) technologies in the EEE sector? (2) What are the main strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats related to the integration of digital technologies in the EEE sector?