Project Overview
Role
Solo student project | Semester 1| Master in Industrial Design | Georgia Institute of Techchnology
Duration
2 months (Oct – Dec 2021)
Problem Statement
Recycling is a highly popular concept everywhere, but non degradable waste recycling is rarely considered in the consumers perspective
Goal
Identify the pain points in the current waste recycling system for consumers, waste collectors and waste recyclers, and develop a new a system that can make the waste recycling process more efficient, easier, and conscious
Design process
Empathize
Tools used in the research
Market research (Online)
Interviews
Three main target groups were identified for research interests
- Consumers (Waste generators)
- Waste handlers / Waste recyclers
- Experts / Educators in waste managements
Analysis
Define
Personas
Waste Generator
30 years old
Busy life style
Focusing on career
Leaves in morning and arrives in evening
Thrift
“Recycling correctly is not easy as it sounds”
Story
I have a very busy lifestyle. Usually, my day start at 6 am and I leave for work at 7 am. I am focusing hard on my career, but I try to squeeze in some time to gym and social life in. I am an extremely cautious person about the impact I create on the environment.
Available recycling options are not very convenient for me. I have to leave my recyclables outside when I leave for work and sometimes it’s still there when I come back. And sometimes it’s hard to determine the best practices for recycling. There are many materials in packaging nowadays. But I try my best to recycle my waste. I wish I could do more.
I’ve heard some say that no matter how well I recycle, in the end all of them end up in the landfills with others.
Goals
- Improve recycling skills
- Be more environmentally friendly
- Manage waste more efficiently
Motivations
- Sense of accomplishment
- Incentives
- Convenience
Waste Handler
42 years old
12 years in recycling
Facility manager
“People don’t manage their waste properly”
Story
I manage a wase collection and recycling facility and I have about 50 workers working under me. My main responsibility is collecting consumer waste in the city area and managing them properly. My facility direct degradable waste for landfills and fertilizer manufacturing plants and direct non degradable waste for specific recyclers.
Even consumers are required to separate their recyclable waste most don’t do that. Most people who does don’t have a proper idea about what they are doing. If recyclable waste was clean and properly sorted, we could save a lot of time.
Goals
- Recycle maximum amount of waste
- Reduce the operational cost
Motivations
- Cleaner and sorted waste
- Reduction of operational cost
Before User Journey (As is journey map)
Ideation
Identified opportunities
Convenience
- A more convenient system to recycle waste
- A waste recycling bin with smart features
Information & Knowledge
- A system to improve the knowledge of general consumers on waste handling
- A waste recycling machine for schools to promote recycling
- An app to track if people recycle correctly
- A system to update the consumers on what happened to the items they gave for recycling
Incentives and Rules
- A system of better rules and regulations
- Developing a system to fine people if the recyclables are unclean or unsorted
- A system to provide incentives for better recycling practices
Simpler packaging
- A strategy to make the packaging are more recyclable
- A smart delivery system with less packaging materials
Considerations for selecting design opportunities
- Combining opportunities together to deliver an integrated product
- Meet pain points from many stakeholders
- Keeping the users engaged for the long run
Design outcomes
Refined Project Brief
Develop a new a system that can make the waste recycling process more efficient, convenient, and conscious for both consumers and waste workers, and to provide incentives for waste generators based on the quality of waste recycling
Objectives of the project
Objective 1
Make actions deliberate
Educate & Guide
Objective 2
Make things easy
Improve the interaction process
Objective 3
Make people aware
Trace and Feedback
Objective 4
Make people motivated
Rewards and Fines
Recycler is
A system to make the consumer recycling process more convenient, more transparent and to offer feedbacks and incentives based on the quality of the recycling and a mobile app to guide consumers on correct recycling practices, and to make the interactions more convenient for both waste generators and waste handlers
How does it work?
Recycling QR Code
Recycling QR Code is a proposal for all the product manufacturers. It is arguable that the manufacturers will have the exact details regarding the materials of the packaging and the best practices to clean the material.
A common platform will be introduced so the manufacturers can share the recycling guidelines for each packaging.
In case where there is a possibility of reusing the packaging this initiative will create the background to receive them in a desired condition.
Stakeholders of the system
Waste generator
Product manufacturers
Waste collectors/ Recyclers
Government
Identified challenges
- How to motivate consumers to recycle and how to keep the users engaged in long-term
- How to keep the stakeholders engaged in the long run
Service diagram
Benefits of the system
After Journey map
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Benefits for stakeholders
Waste generator
Convenience of handing over waste on a desired time from door step
Incentives such as discounts on annual tax, electricity bill etc.
Product manufacturers
Information on Consumer such as Location, Amount and frequency of of usage
Waste collectors/ Recyclers
Clean and sorted waste
Information on exact requirement of labor based on location and time
Government
Clean and sorted waste
Upcoming generations will learn recycling as a life skill
App prototype
Revenue stream for app
Advertising eco-friendly products on the news feed from different companies
Personal review of Project
Further developments
- Recyclable collector’s end of the system and an app
- The platform for manufacturers to share the recycling guidelines
What would I do differently?
- Conducting a survey to get more data on consumer attitudes regarding waste recycling after the interview session.
- With the time constrains I didn’t have the opportunity to do any interviews with product manufacturers. I would do some interviews with some manufacturers to get their idea on recycling possibilities for consumers.
- I didn’t have time to conduct user testing on the app. I would like to do user testing with several people to get an idea on the usability of the app.