Knowledge Agora



Scientific Article details

Title Recycling Technology Innovation as a Source of Competitive Advantage: The Sustainable and Circular Business Model of a Bicentennial Company
ID_Doc 21958
Authors Corral-Marfil, JA; Arimany-Serrat, N; Hitchen, EL; Viladecans-Riera, C
Title Recycling Technology Innovation as a Source of Competitive Advantage: The Sustainable and Circular Business Model of a Bicentennial Company
Year 2021
Published Sustainability, 13.0, 14
DOI 10.3390/su13147723
Abstract La Farga Yourcoppersolutions is a bicentennial Catalan company that manufactures semi-finished copper products. As copper is a 100% recyclable material, much of the sector's production comes from secondary copper, scrap, not from mined copper. In the case of La Farga, not only a good part of its output comes from recycled copper, but it is also a world leader in copper-recycling technology. The objective of the paper is to describe La Farga's business model from the point of view of sustainability and the circular economy. What have been the causes and effects of recycling on the business model? Regarding the methodology, the work follows the research strategy of the case study. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected from a variety of primary and secondary sources. Economic, social and environmental sustainability of the firm was assessed through financial and non-financial indicators; value-added generation and distribution were calculated from accounting data; and the circular business model was analysed via a thematic analysis: its components, innovation, enablers and barriers. Results show that the presence of barriers forces the implementation of circularity to be gradual and to combine linear and circular models to maintain competitiveness.
Author Keywords ESG performance; circular economy; circular business model innovation; copper industry; recycling technology; waste upcycling; copper scrap
Index Keywords Index Keywords
Document Type Other
Open Access Open Access
Source Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED); Social Science Citation Index (SSCI)
EID WOS:000677032600001
WoS Category Green & Sustainable Science & Technology; Environmental Sciences; Environmental Studies
Research Area Science & Technology - Other Topics; Environmental Sciences & Ecology
PDF
Similar atricles
Scroll