Circular potential is best identified by systematically analyzing material, product, and value creation processes and viewing them throughout their entire life cycle. The goal is to identify starting points where resources can be saved, cycles can be closed, or new value creation logics can be established.
The first step is a structured status quo analysis that makes existing processes, material flows, waste streams, and product life cycles transparent—at both the corporate and product levels. This analysis highlights where high material losses, short service lives, or dependencies on critical raw materials exist. Additionally, benchmarking against competitors and best practices helps to categorize realistic potential and maturity levels.
This is where our Circular Excellence Assessment comes in: with this tool, we evaluate the integration of circularity at the corporate level and the circularity of individual products based on defined criteria and indicators. On this basis, specific starting points can be derived to sustainably increase circular economy performance.
Circular potential often lies at interfaces: in product design (e.g., modularity, repairability), in procurement (choice of materials, use of secondary raw materials), in use (service or take-back models), or in recovery (reprocessing instead of disposal). Companies with complex supply chains in particular benefit from considering circularity in conjunction with supply chain due diligence, as transparency regarding preliminary products, origin, and risks opens up new levers.
Close integration with sustainability and climate strategy ensures that identified potentials do not remain isolated but are strategically prioritized. Material efficiency and longer product life cycles also often have a direct impact on emission reductions, particularly in Scope 3.
Please feel free to contact us to learn more about the Circular Excellence Assessment and to work together to identify potential for circular value creation in your company.
