How to Redesign an Atlas Copco Industry Tool for a Circular Economy

Abstract: Atlas Copco BLM, a competence centre for quality assurance tightening solutions, was the client of this master thesis project. This project focused on circular economy and how to improve the design of their STRwrench. This was done by utilizing existing knowledge and tools about circular economy, materials, and service design. The thesis project was conducted according to the Double Diamond design process, thus, divided into four different phases; discover, define, develop, and deliver. Focus during the first phase was on learning the problems and challenges of the STRwrench. The aim of this was to find information about circular indicators and how they can be implemented in the product development process. It was also of interest to gain an understanding of the different barriers that companies and customers are experiencing regarding sustainability and circularity. Three concepts were developed as a result of the key insights provided by the conducted methods. They address different strategies as to how Atlas Copco BLM can become more circular. The first concept presented in this report is a circular business model. This concept aimed to develop something that can support products in a circular economy, as well as focus on the company´s overall circular approach. The idea is to reuse internal product components that still work or are solely in need of little repair. The second presented concept includes new material choices for the STRwrench. This concept aimed to redesign the product to be more environmentally friendly. The results showed that the tool’s carbon footprint and embodied energy could decrease significantly by substituting a few materials and putting the STRwrench in the developed circular business model concept. The third concept that the project resulted in was a circular checklist. It is meant to guide the company in creating more circular products for the future. The checklist puts a lot of emphasis on involving different parts of the organization throughout the entire product development process. The project was discussed from different aspects, such as research questions and further work. The discussion showed that numerous things that can be improved on as well would require further work should they ever be addressed in reality. Many of these were related to the rather short time frame of the project.