Arvato Group | Gütersloh, 10/20/2022

Arvato SCS Publishes ‘Circular Economy in Logistics’ Whitepaper

The accelerating use of resources has serious consequences for people, the planet and industry for current and future generations – for example, increasing competition for a fixed resource base, rising resource prices and a decline in quality of life. To counteract these effects, it is necessary to turn towards the concept of “Circular Economy”. The basic idea behind this model is to “close the loop”, which means avoiding the use of virgin raw materials and, if possible, extending a product’s life cycle. Logistics play an important role. Arvato Supply Chain Solutions has examined the current situation in the “Circular Economy in Logistics” whitepaper along with the challenges that logistics service providers will be confronted with. While product design has to be considered early in the supply chain with regard to repair, refurbishment and recycling, logistics service providers can strategically leverage the supply chain network to support product life cycle extension and recycling through reverse logistics. This means not only collecting and transporting materials but also including value-added activities such as repair, refurbishment, recycling and redistribution. Logistics service providers can also increase transparency, simplify and consolidate returns, and presort secondary raw materials, which can make them enablers for return and reverse logistics. Andreas Barth, President Tech Vertical, Arvato Supply Chain Solutions, says: “Circular Economy is the future. It turns waste into opportunities, especially as laws regarding recycling and the proper disposal of production byproducts become more stringent. If companies want to remain profitable in the coming decades, they must recognize the importance of the circular supply chain model and begin to implement the necessary steps.” You can learn about other opportunities opening up for logistics service providers on their path from linear to circular logistics and what they need to do to develop these potentials in the whitepaper “Circular Economy in Logistics”.