# Slow - How does it work?
*Activity type: page*

#####

The ‘Slow’ approach is focused on slowing down the speed at which materials flow through the system, delaying the moment at which they need to be recirculated in one way or another. If we use a product for longer, the average impact it will have during its useful lifespan will be less. Let’s say you’re in the market for a new vacuum; buying one that needs replacing every year will obviously result in a bigger need for new materials when compared to a durable vacuum that lasts for five years or longer. Using stuff for longer is a great way to retain value in a value chain.**
The Slow approach makes sense if the products or services you manage involve valuable, problematic, toxic, or otherwise tricky materials. Using those materials for longer and postponing the moment they need to be recirculated in a circular economy will generally reduce their impact. Similarly, solutions that are complex or require specialist knowledge to develop or operate will benefit from this approach, because alternatives could be hard to find. Putting the Slow approach into action can look like this, when implemented on three different levels:

You can put the Slow approach into practice at the product-level**, focusing on increasing the longevity of the product during design and manufacturing. When your business or organisation has control over the design or production process of a product, consider these strategies:

- **Design for physical durability:****Products designed to be more durable will last longer, increasing their useful lifespan. Durable products are also easier to reuse.

- Design for emotional durability:****Another way of making a product last longer is to design a product that users will love and trust over a long period of time, making it less likely to get thrown away prematurely.

- Design for ease of maintenance and repair:****Products that will last longer when kept in good nick. Design them to enable and support maintenance or repair .

- Design for easy dis- and reassembly:****When a product can be easily dismantled and reassembled afterwards, it becomes easier to facilitate maintenance *(Note 1)* and repair *(Note 2)* activities.

- Design for upgradability and modularity:****A product can be made upgradeable if its functionality or performance can be improved during or after use. The use of modularity can assist with this by make upgradeable components easily interchangeable.

- Design for standardisation and compatibility:****When a product uses standard components, parts or interfaces, refurbishment and repair become easier to do. When a product break, its components can easily be reused in another product if needed.

On a business model-level**, you can use the Slow approach when your business or organisation plays a service-focused role or procures products from other businesses in your value chain. Consider strategies like:

- **Provide maintenance and repair services:****Making a product repairable is one thing, but actually making that happen is another. The availability of maintenance and repair services will help users do so.

- Provide services to upgrade or adapt your products:****As with making a product repairable, making a product upgradeable might not do much without an associated service to make that happen. Offering such services will help users make use of this type of functionality.

- Remanufacture existing products and components:****Products that are at the end of their life can be collected for their components and parts to be reused in other products that might require a repair or upgrade. This is called remanufacturing *(Note 3)*.

- Repurpose existing products and components:**** When products can no longer be remanufactured or refurbished *(Note 4)*, consider how their components can be repurposed* (Note 5)* in a completely different product, extending their value.

- Provide increased warranty:****Warranties are a great tool to show customers that your products are made to last and gives them a pathway to keep products in use for longer.

- Encourage sufficiency:****Another way to make existing products last longer is to encourage your customers to moderate their consumption of your products.

- Provide the product as a service:****Not all products need to be owned, as it is often their functionality that is important. Offer a product as a service, under a product-, use-, or results-oriented model, keeps the ownership of the product with the business. This makes it easier to keep it in use for longer.

The Slow approach can also be used on an ecosystem-level**, which might be relevant when your organisation plays a coordinating or influencing role in your value chain. This usually includes government or not-for-profit organisations, who could consider this strategy:

- **Turn disposables into a reusable service ecosystem:****Where single-use or disposable products are used, consider making use of or providing a service that replaces them with durable, reusable products. Think of a food court in a shopping centre providing durable cutlery and crockery that can be washed and reused, rather than single-use alternatives.

Notes:**

-
**Maintenance: ** Maintaining means inspecting a product so as to retain its functional capabilities- *href="https://www.circularitydeck.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" (https://www.circularitydeck.com/)*

-
**Repair:** Repairing is about restoring a product to a sound/good condition after decay or damage - *href="https://www.circularitydeck.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" (https://www.circularitydeck.com/)*

-
**Remanufacturing:**  Using parts of a discarded product to make, repair, or upgrade a new product with the same function - *href="https://assets.sustainability.vic.gov.au/susvic/Document-Our-strategy-SV-3-year-strategic-plan-2024-2027.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener" (https://assets.sustainability.vic.gov.au/susvic/Document-Our-strategy-SV-3-year-strategic-plan-2024-2027.pdf)*

-
**Refurbished:**  Restoring an old product and bringing it up to date - *href="https://assets.sustainability.vic.gov.au/susvic/Document-Our-strategy-SV-3-year-strategic-plan-2024-2027.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener" (https://assets.sustainability.vic.gov.au/susvic/Document-Our-strategy-SV-3-year-strategic-plan-2024-2027.pdf)*

-
**Repurposed: ** Using parts of a discarded product in a new product with a different function - *href="https://assets.sustainability.vic.gov.au/susvic/Document-Our-strategy-SV-3-year-strategic-plan-2024-2027.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener" (https://assets.sustainability.vic.gov.au/susvic/Document-Our-strategy-SV-3-year-strategic-plan-2024-2027.pdf)*
