ASTM E3461-25

1.1 This standard provides guidance for circular product design (CPD) through the introduction of general principles that extend the usability of products and their components, support material recovery at the end-of-use (EoU), and minimize resource use while considering environmental, economic, and social sustainability benefits across the product life-cycle.

1.2 In this guide, circular product design does not address life-cycle assessment (LCA) or product category rules (PCR). LCA, and other approaches such as life-cycle costing (LCC) and social life-cycle assessment (SLCA), are tools that can be used to analyze the impacts of a product within a circular economy framework and compare different circular economy strategies. But application of these tools alone does not guarantee circularity or holistic product circularity evaluation.

1.3 The general circular product design principles introduced in this guide provide guidelines and supplementary context for product designers to better understand, apply, and qualify design decisions advantageous to the creation of products for the circular economy.

1.4  This guide recognizes that product circularity may arise from various design solutions associated with specific life-cycle stages. As such, general circular product design principles presented in the guide are separated into four circular product life-cycle (CPLC) stages: material acquisition, production and manufacturing, use, and end-of-use (EoU).

1.5  The general principles identified in this guide can be applied to all types of products, including consumable products and products with long service lives, based on user-defined boundaries, identification of functions, product use, and understanding of constraints related to product design.

1.6 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

1.7 This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.

5.1 In a circular economy, products and their materials can maintain economic and societal value through resource management actions such as: (1) extended-use processing strategies, including reuse, repair, retrofit, and refurbish; (2) end-of-use processing strategies, including cascade and recycle; and (3) regeneration of renewable resources.

5.2 Modern sustainability is described by the dimensions of environment, economy, and society, also coined as the triple-bottom-line by Elkington and Rowlands in 1999.5 Since then, sustainability concepts have been expanded through the concept of circular economy. Through a circular economy, sustainable development can be accomplished through systems-level interventions and integrated interdisciplinary approaches to product design, with particular care put towards the EoU pathways at the point of product conceptualization.

5.3 Circular product design addresses the goals of a circular economy using principles and design processes focused on the preservation of product value through its current and subsequent life-cycles. Circular product design emphasizes factors such as physical design, material choice, use of renewable resources, product intention and integrity, and systems integrations across the entire circular product life-cycle to maximize material value and reduce the burdens associated with resource management actions.

5.4 This guide builds on research and industry practices to form a core standard to disseminate and operationalize circular product design principles. This guide is intended to provide guidance on circular product design for product designers, engineers, and policymakers.

5.5 The principles included in this guide are directed towards product designers considering product circularity across life-cycle stages.

5.6 The hierarchy of applying these principles could vary according to the specific context and on the circularity objectives of the practitioner.

5.7 While this guide primarily focuses on the potential benefits of circular product design, to understand trade-offs or unintended outcomes, the impacts of the design choices need to be reviewed holistically.