Why circularity plays a key role in sustainability?

Is it normal that we constantly need to use new raw materials for our products or can we start re-using what is still good? A not so stupid question it we consider that materials like steel and aluminum can be recycled endlessly without losing their intrinsic quality?

It comes as no surprise that many companies are rethinking the way they produce their products at a time when components and raw materials are at an all-time high in terms of prices and… in short supply.

Most of the materials used to produce airfield ground lighting fixtures can be recycled and re-used to produce new lights, CCR’s and much more and the good thing is that the same quality can be maintained by doing so.

We cannot continue to deplete our planet to create new products all the time without re-using what is freely available at equal quality, that would not make good business and environmental sense.

At OCEM Airfield looking into the sustainability has been a given for several years and reviewing how we could go for a circular approach has been part of that thinking.

1. We prioritized at first how we could contribute to supporting a sustainable future with our energy efficiency focus for our lights and CCRs, creating products that consume less and require less maintenance.
2. Secondly we wanted to make the best use of the materials our products are made off and which can be recycled to create new products at similar quality

A circular approach can only work if both OCEM Airfield as a company and the supplier of the different components understand the win-win situation and this win-win doesn’t stop when prices for raw materials drop.

Every component needs to be revisited, we need to check what impact it has on the entire product, what part can be recycled and what components can be re-used or melted and re-used to create new materials .

We are in it for the long run and so are our partners who are located in 9 out of 10 cases in close vicinity to our production facilities. Together we seek to find new ways to produce the components supplied in an environmental friendly way.

Not every component can be recycled or re-used but one of the key roles of our product designers is to continue finding new ways to develop products that are the most energy efficient around and of which the components can be easily taken apart to allow for easy recycling.

From the moment we recuperate a used fixture (or CCR) we can start the full process of giving used materials a second life without ever giving up on the highest quality standards we keep.

To find out how OCEM Airfield contributes to a sustainable future, read our sustainability brochure here. Questions? Address them to us via marketing@ocem.com