"CIR4FUN"
CIR4FUN - ADVANCING EUROPEAN INDUSTRIAL SUSTAINABILITY AND COMPETITIVENESS THROUGH CIRCULAR DESIGN STRATEGIES, DIGITAL PRODUCT PASSPORTS, AND SUSTAINABLE PRODUCT-SERVICE SYSTEMS IN THE FURNITURE SECTOR
DESCRIPTION
The Cir4Fun Project endeavors to transform the furniture industry by championing circular economy principles across the product life cycle. Through innovative strategies, DPP and digital solutions supporting mechanisms, it aims to enhance furniture sustainability, eco-labelling, and consumer engagement while aligning with relevant regulations and initiatives. Cir4Fun's approach involves creating a comprehensive circular economy roadmap, defining content for a Furniture DPP, developing circular business models and ecodesign guidelines, and establishing new assessment methodologies for maintenance, reparability, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recyclability. All this knowledge will be integrated in a holistic Furniture Assessment System (FAS) including a Sustainable Index System, d-LCA, LCC, SLCA. FAS will support the furniture eco-scoring system and DPP. Additionally, it focuses on interoperability, data sharing and data management with reliable approaches to enable simulation testing to inform supply chain strategies and extend product lifespan. Social engagement with stakeholders is emphasized to promote sustainable behaviors and circular practices, ultimately supporting new regulations and standardization in the furniture industry. The project outcomes will be implemented and validated in 3 use cases addressing different value chains across Europe and the findings will be widely circulated across the furniture ecosystem in Europe.
OBJECTIVES
Obj 1: Introduces circular Business Models, based on reducing the environmental impact of furniture materials. Analyzing stakeholder views and providing added sustainability value will support the creation of viable and inclusive business governance
• Increase knowledge about the main environmental impacts coming from furniture materials and other stages of the life cycle, and about the socioeconomic framework of its value chain, to establish strategies with greater potential to support the European industry of furniture, increase its competitiveness and sustainability and circularity.
• Support the creation of more circular business models from a life cycle perspective and innovate value chains through the application of collaborative processes, design thinking, servitization and social engagement methods.
• Provide guidelines to integrate circular business models and EcoDesign strategies.
• Support the transformation of existing furniture value chains into closed-loop circular value chains.
• Promote the Furniture as a Service (FaaS) business practice to dematerialize the value chain, AI based
• Promote the RE furniture business practices to dematerialize the value chain, AI based.
Obj 2 Delivery of a Furniture Assessment System (FAS) considering EcoDesign strategy-based environmental scoring system and dynamic sustainability life cycle assessment (LCA, LCC, SLCA) and ETV.
• Develop new assessment methodologies and indexes regarding 6 cycles, adapted to each relevant furniture category and priority parts.
• Create a Furniture Assessment System that will connect EcoDesign strategies with both a Sustainable Indexing System for furniture and a dynamic sustainability assessment (LCA, LCC and SLCA).
• Develop an eco-labelling system aimed at external communication of most relevant product environmental information and comparison of different products.
• Implementing ETV methodology at the sustainability assessment software.
Obj 3: Improve EcoDesign methods by introducing a design support framework based on furniture evaluation methods and generative AI methods that will consider environmental aspects
• Introduces an EcoDesign management system that will include both human knowledge and digital solutions based on AI models to collect, structure and analyze information, and support decision-making in the design.
• Delivery of an integrated framework in which the generative AI module will also consider LCA and ecological scoring results from Cir4Fun
Obj 4: To identify the different stakeholders' needs to provide valuable information into the introduced Furniture DPP to facilitate green purchasing, life span extension and to recover components or high-quality materials at end of life.
• Establish strategies that will consider the specific characteristics of furniture industry and its products, as well as the value chain needs.
• To provide objective and accurate information for the environmental impact of a product.
• Extend the CE strategies at the use phase and End-of-life phase.
• Develop an interconnected Furniture DPP, for sustainable production, use and EOL.
Obj 5: To create a secure Furniture Data Space and information management system to enable secure, trustworthy and interoperable data exchange in agile collaborative networks in furniture domain
• To create a Data Space in furniture domain based on IDSA, GAIA X and DSSC guidelines.
• To establish a Data Management System based on data spaces principles, standardized data models, related regulations to enable interoperability between various sectors.
• To use Blockchain technologies for track and trace to ensure fully visibility in all supply chain phases and to further promote secure and trusted data exchange
• Create User Interfaces, APIs, and SDKs to support economic operators follow a standard data exchange methodology.
Obj 6: To provide a Harmonized framework for circular solutions in the furniture domain, along with the technical support to stakeholders and demonstrate it in 3 real-world furniture related supply chains
• To demonstrate the effectiveness of Circ4Fun solutions, the benefits of EcoDesign methods and enhanced competitiveness of EU companies through focused activities in domestic and collective use (contract) furniture scenarios.
• To provide stakeholder engagement methods and collaboration activities.
• Promote social engagement and collaboration activities.
• To demonstrate collaboration ways to promote Green Public Procurement (GPP) and local circular economy by stakeholders' commitment to boost local business models based on Furniture-as-a-Service (FaaS) and re-use.
• To support the development of upcoming furniture circularity standards and regulations on furniture DPP and Green Public Procurement. To support local Administrations to develop circular economy Action Plans
Project Number: 22300111 Grant Agreement: 211000135 Duration: From 01/01/2025 to 31/12/2027
Coordinated in AIDIMME by: NÚÑEZ ARIÑO, Mª JOSÉ
R&D Line: CIRCULAR ECONOMY

PUBLISHED NEWS
general broadcast
PARTNERS
FEVAMA (BUSINESS FEDERATION OF WOOD AND FURNITURE OF THE VALENCIAN COMMUNITY), AIDIMME - METAL-MECHANICAL TECHNOLOGICAL INSTITUTE, FURNITURE, WOOD, PACKAGING AND RELATED - COORDINATOR, INSTITUTO DE DESENVOLVESO DE NOVAS TECNOLOGIAS, SONAE ARAUCO PORTUGAL, SA, FRAUNHOFER INSTITUTE FOR FACTORY OPERATION AND AUTOMATION IFF, POLITECNICO DI MILANO, ETHNIKO KENTRO EREVNAS KAI TECHNOLOGIKIS ANAPTYXIS, ELLINIKI DIAHEIRISI APPRIMATON ANONYMI ETAIRIA, COPENHAGEN BUSINESS SCHOOL, COMMISSARIAT À L'ÉNERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ÉNERGIES ALTERNATIVES, KAVE HOME, SLU, MICUNA FAMILY BRANDS SLU, APO TO SCHEDIASMO STIN YLOPOIISI IDIOTIKI KEFALAIOUCHIKI ETAIREIA, OPENDOT SRL, CENTRO PARA VALORIZACAO DE RESIDUOS ASSOCIACAO, POZZI ARTURO, MUNICIPALITY OF GUIMARAES, ENOSI KATANALOTON POIOTITA TIS ZOIS,
GRANT
569.375 €
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TARGET AUDIENCE AND IMPACT MEASUREMENT
757
Access to the project website 460
Access to news published on own websites.

Total Accesses: 1217
Objective Sectors by CNAE
CNAE: 0162 - Livestock support activities - No. of target companies: 3 (1 from the Valencian Community)
Objective Sectors by Activity
MANUFACTURERS - Number of target companies: 120 (39 of the Valencian Community)
WOOD AND SHEET - Number of target companies: 144 (70 of the Valencian Community)
TRACTOR COMPANIES
Thanks to its support and signature of the "declaration of participation" the project has been funded.
COMPANIES DIFFUSION R&D PROJECTS
They want to know first-hand the evolution of the project, and its progress to the final result.
COMPANIES TRANSFER KNOWLEDGE
They will implement technologies, develop strategies or look for new models based on the results.
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