Upcycling for repurposing waste into creative products
Abstract
Upcycling is the process of repurposing non-used materials or products to make them more valuable or usable, with increased quality and value. However, truly little research has been conducted on the design process and/or creative ideation of upcycling in order to produce higher-quality and more valuable products. This study presents the four stages of the design process, consisting of selecting the waste products, emerging conceptions, generating ideas, and rendering a series of creative ideas. SCAMPER (substitute, combine, adjust, modify, put to other uses, eliminate, reverse), one of the practical and effective techniques to create various creative ideas, was applied in the stages of emerging conceptions and generating ideas. With the upcycling concept of waste product design utilizing SCAMPER, the results demonstrated that waste soft drink cans could be converted into five creative products: a desk watch, a picture frame, a spring paper clip, a pencil holder, and a lamp. The five products featured the upcycling of waste soft drink cans, removing the need to recycle or send them to landfills at that point in their lifecycle. Consideration was given to the design process’ compatibility with creative concept generation and design. The study indicated that upcycling should be viewed as an essential component of waste management and repurposing in order to provide an intelligent answer to escalating product waste problems.
Keyword : creative products, creative design, repurpose, SCAMPER, upcycling, waste products
How to Cite
Boonpracha, J., Chanplin, P., Ngampipat, C., & Sermsri, N. (2024). Upcycling for repurposing waste into creative products. Creativity Studies, 17(1), 192–206. https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2024.18128
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
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Wegener, Ch., & Aakjær, M. (2016). Upcycling – A new perspective on waste in social innovation. Journal of Comparative Social Work, 11(2), 242–260. https://doi.org/10.31265/jcsw.v11i2.143
Wilber, D. (2010). [Review of the book Cradle to cradle: Remaking the way we make things, by W. McDonough & M. Braungart]. Environmental Practice, 12(1), 92–94. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1466046609990494
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Xu, J., & Gu, P. (2015, 25–26 September). Five principles of waste product redesign under the upcycling concept. In Advances in engineering research. Proceedings of the 2015 International Forum on Energy, Environment Science and Materials (pp. 1238–1243). Shenzhen, China. Atlantis Press. https://doi.org/10.2991/ifeesm-15.2015.227
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Bassi Padilha, de J., Cziulik, C., & Camargo Beltrão, de P. A. (2017). Vectors of innovation definition for application during conceptual design stage of product development process. Journal of Technology Management and Innovation, 12(1), 49–60. https://doi.org/10.4067/S0718-27242017000100006
Bowen, S., Durrant, A., Nissen, B., Bowers, J., & Wright, P. (2016). The value of designers’ creative practice within complex collaborations. Design Studies, 46, 174–198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2016.06.001
Brun, J., Masson, le P., & Weil, B. (2016). Designing with sketches: The generative effects of knowledge preordering. Design Science, 2. https://doi.org/10.1017/dsj.2016.13
Brunetti, G., & Golob, B. (2000). A feature-based approach towards an integrated product model including conceptual design information. Computer-Aided Design, 32(14), 877–887. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0010-4485(00)00076-2
Chino, M. (2011). Is it green? The biodegradable soft drink can. Inhabitat. https://inhabitat.com/is-it-green-the-biodegradable-soft-drink-can/
Choi, S. Y., & Kim, M.-J. (2014). Creative idea and an analysis of fashion design on Korean image through the SCAMPER technique. Journal of the Korean Society of Costume, 64(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.7233/jksc.2014.64.1.001
Davis, S. C., Kauneckis, D., Kruse, N. A., Miller, K. E., Zimmer, M., & Dabelko, G. D. (2016). Closing the loop: Integrative systems management of waste in food, energy, and water systems. Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, 6, 11–24. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13412-016-0370-0
Deng, S., Wan, Zh., & Zhou, Y. (2020). Optimization model and solution method for dynamically correlated two-product newsvendor problems based on Copula. Discrete and Continuous Dynamical Systems – S, 13(6), 1637–1652. https://doi.org/10.3934/dcdss.2020096
Ellis, C. (2003). Ethnographic alternatives: Vol. 13. The ethnographic I: A methodological novel about autoethnography. C. Ellis & A. P. Bochner (Eds.). AltaMira Press.
Goldschmidt, G. (2003). The backtalk of self-generated sketches. Design Issues, 19(1), 72–88. https://doi.org/10.1162/074793603762667728
Gündoğan, A. (2019). SCAMPER: Improving creative imagination of young children. Creativity Studies, 12(2), 315–326. https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2019.11201
Hasenkamp, T., Adler, T., Carlsson, A., & Arvidsson, M. (2007). Robust design methodology in a generic product design process. Total Quality Management and Business Excellence, 18(4), 351–362. https://doi.org/10.1080/14783360701231294
Huang, Y.-Sh., Cheng, J.-H., & Yang, A.-J. (2020). A study of green printing technology application for product value-added design. In Q. Gao & J. Zhou (Eds.), Lecture Notes in Computer Science: Vol. 12207. Human aspects of IT for the aged population. Technologies, design and user experience. HCII 2020 (pp. 34–44). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50252-2_3
Kathy, K. (2019). Why are eco-friendly products more expensive? Clarify Green. https://clarifygreen.com/eco-friendly-products-cost-more/
Kerr, W., & Ryan, Ch. (2001). Eco-efficiency gains from remanufacturing: A case study of photocopier remanufacturing at Fuji Xerox Australia. Journal of Cleaner Production, 9(1), 75–81. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0959-6526(00)00032-9
Klausner, M., Grimm, W. M., & Hendrickson, Ch. (1998). Reuse of electric motors in consumer products. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 2(2), 89–102. https://doi.org/10.1162/jiec.1998.2.2.89
Mazhar, M. (2006). Lifetime monitoring of appliances for Reuse [PhD/Doctoral Thesis, University of New South Wales]. Sydney, Australia [unpublished source].
McDonough, W., & Braungart, M. (2002). Cradle to cradle: Remaking the way we make things. North Point Press.
Mohamed-Kamal Hijazi, M. (2016). Scamper technique to promote creative thinking and learning the compound attack in fencing. Assiut Journal of Sport Science and Arts, 316(3), 15–31. https://doi.org/10.21608/ajssa.2016.70713
Monsù Scolaro, A., & Medici, de S. (2021). Downcycling and upcycling in rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of pre-existing buildings: Re-designing technological performances in an environmental perspective. Energies, 14(21). https://doi.org/10.3390/en14216863
Mont, O., Dalhammar, C., & Jacobsson, N. (2006). A new business model for baby prams based on leasing and product remanufacturing. Journal of Cleaner Production, 14(17), 1509–1518. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2006.01.024
Moscato, I., Callejo Munoz, D., & González, S. D. (2020). How to deal with organic municipal solid waste over-sieve fraction. Environmental Engineering and Management Journal, 19(10), 1807–1811. https://doi.org/10.30638/eemj.2020.172
Ng, A. W. Y., & Chan, A. H. S. (2020). Participatory environmentally friendly message design: Influence of message features and user characteristics. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17041353
Oh, Y., Yoon, J.-A., & Lee, Y. (2016). Expression method and technique of upcycling design in contemporary fashion design. Journal of the Korean Society of Costume, 66(7), 109–123. https://doi.org/10.7233/jksc.2016.66.7.109
Papanek, V. (2005). Design for the real world: Human ecology and social change. Chicago Review Press.
Svihla, V., & Kachelmeier, L. (2020, 22–26 June). The wrong theory protocol: A pre-ideation technique to enhance creativity and empathy [Conference presentation]. 2020 American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Virtual Annual Conference. https://peer.asee.org/the-wrong-theory-protocol-a-pre-ideation-technique-to-enhance-creativity-and-empathy
Taura, T., & Nagai, Y. (2011). Discussion on direction of design creativity research (Part 1) – new definition of design and creativity: Beyond the problem-solving paradigm. In T. Taura & Y. Nagai (Eds.), Design Creativity 2010 (pp. 3–8). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-224-7_1
Thorpe, A. (2007). The designer’s atlas of sustainability. Island Press.
Vasileiadis, Th., Tzotzis, A., Tzetzis, D., & Kyratsis, P. (2019). Combining product and packaging design for increased added value and customer satisfaction. Journal of Graphic Engineering and Design, 10(2), 5–15. https://doi.org/10.24867/JGED-2019-2-005
Vezzoli, C., & Manzini, E. (2008). Design for environmental sustainability. Springer.
Wegener, Ch., & Aakjær, M. (2016). Upcycling – A new perspective on waste in social innovation. Journal of Comparative Social Work, 11(2), 242–260. https://doi.org/10.31265/jcsw.v11i2.143
Wilber, D. (2010). [Review of the book Cradle to cradle: Remaking the way we make things, by W. McDonough & M. Braungart]. Environmental Practice, 12(1), 92–94. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1466046609990494
Witek, L. (2020). Green marketing: The environmentally-friendly attributes of products and decision to purchase. Folia Oeconomica Stetinensia, 20(2), 451–467. https://doi.org/10.2478/foli-2020-0059
Woodall, C. M., McQueen, N., Pilorgé, H., & Wilcox, J. (2019). Utilization of mineral carbonation products: Current state and potential. Greenhouse Gases: Science and Technology, 9(6), 1096–1113. https://doi.org/10.1002/ghg.1940
Xu, J., & Gu, P. (2015, 25–26 September). Five principles of waste product redesign under the upcycling concept. In Advances in engineering research. Proceedings of the 2015 International Forum on Energy, Environment Science and Materials (pp. 1238–1243). Shenzhen, China. Atlantis Press. https://doi.org/10.2991/ifeesm-15.2015.227
Zhang, L., Zhao, J., & Zheng, L. (2016, 27–29 May). The application of confucianism in modern furniture industry. In Advances in intelligent systems research. Proceedings of the 2016 International Conference on Education, Management and Computer Science (pp. 74–78). Shenyang, China. Atlantis Press. https://doi.org/10.2991/icemc-16.2016.15