Innovative Tool for the Circular Design of Technical Textiles

Our planet is going through political, economic, social and ecological crisis, which are constantly feeding each other. Human activities driven by a rapidly growing global population, unsustainable economic growth, technological innovations, but also inappropriate production practices and consumption models- create increasing pressures on ecosystems and natural resources. Neither the social nor the ecological crisis can't be overpassed without changing the way of our economic system works and which involves the manner how innovative transformations take place. In this context, it is mandatory to use design as a strategy consist of people to understand the basic principles of design: user orientation, empathy, mental and physical process, future orientation, visual approach, co-creativity, interconnection of complex systems, continuous testing and iteration. The circular design is an innovative tool for implementing the circular economy whose main purpose is: “to connect all material flows, integrating them in a circular process, which ensures efficient consumption of resources and minimizes the amount of resulting waste”. The paper presents a practical example of using an interactive map, owned by Delft University of Technology (Netherlands), applied as a technical analysis tool, in order to determine the reuse potential of a technical product components, specifically a laptop bag for transporting personal IT equipment.