Product Life Cycles

Cradle to Cradle^® at Würth

A tree becomes a tree. Nature “operates” in a closed loop. Human beings make use of Earth’s warehouse. We mine, we produce, we throw away materials. At some point, Earth’s warehouse will be emptied. Unless we succeed in preserving the materials mined.

The purpose of the Cradle to Cradle^® design concept is to create products that can be reused in recurring product cycles. The products are developed in such a way that as many of the materials used as possible can be recovered. This requires for product design and production to adopt a new mindset paving the way for a long and successful use phase as well as for easy repair and reuse of products. Once the products have reached the end of their useful life, they find their way back and are broken down into their constituent materials, which are then returned to nature and biodegraded or recycled. Materials circulate in recurring material cycles, with waste being consistently avoided.

Würth has been able to further develop some of its products and packaging, thus obtaining certification according to the Cradle to Cradle Certified^® standard. These products include the VARIFIX^® quick-mounting system , the packaging of our machining tools made from post-consumer recycled material as well as the ORSY^® system rack. Drawing on these experience, we have taken up the challenge of addressing our M-CUBE power tools, one of our most complex product groups, and developing them further in accordance with the Cradle to Cradle Certified^® standard.

"We won the German Sustainability Award 2025”.

Europe's largest award for ecological and social excellence. It honors companies that take on a pioneering role through visionary projects and initiatives.