The document outlines Grundfos' commitment to sustainability and circularity in its operations, including a take-back system for pumps to improve recycling and reduce environmental impact. Key initiatives include projects for redesigning products for circularity and collaboration with customers to collect end-of-life materials. Grundfos aims to contribute to global water access and has set ambitious targets for material recovery and sustainability practices.

1. Sustainable and circular plastic opportunities and Grundfos Take
back system
Plastic Engineering Day - 2021
Michael Lei, Senior Specialist, Materials Technology & Support
28th October 2021

2. 16,000,000 DKK 26.3
1945
when it all
started
#1
pump manufacturer
in the world
100+
companies
worldwide
units produced
per year
19,000
employees
billion net
turnover in 2020
The most global pump company in the world

3. Water and climate challenges motivate us

4. 4
Our flagships
Sustainability differentiator:
sustainability as business opportunity
Sustainability backbone:
Meeting stakeholder
expectations
Operate on
renewableenergy
Advance a diverse
workforce,inclusive
culture and equal
opportunities
Provide a safe and
healthy workplace,
ensuring staff
well-being
Governance
Humanrights
due diligence
Community
engagement
Sustainability at Grundfos
Develop towardsa
circular business
Enabling end-users to
save energy by
innovating and delivering
smart pumps and new
solutions
Enabling end-users
to save water
through water re-use
and water efficiency
Contribute to improve
water access for 300
million people in need
Sustainability Flagships:
Leading and driving the
agenda
Customer
engagement,
branding and sales
Own footprint
Green
Supply Chain
Employee
motivation &
satisfaction
Human development
& training
Chemical & product
compliance
Code
of Conduct
• Public policy &
• Social-economic compliance
• Customer health & safety
• Marketing & labelling
Sustainability
data &
reporting

5. 5
Our flagships
Sustainability differentiator:
sustainability as business opportunity
Sustainability backbone:
Meeting stakeholder
expectations
Sustainability at Grundfos
Develop towardsa
circular business
Sustainability Flagships:
Leading and driving the
agenda

7. Regrind Implementation
Project
CirCus
Design for circularity
RHQI
Innovate with outside
Future Polymers
Sustainable Sourcing
Long term, “high
risk” research
project on PA6.6

8. Life Cycle Assessments of materials

11. CirCus – Design for Circularity
Project purpose
Examples to demonstrate how sustainability can be increased through design changes to improve circularity
Sprint 1 – redesign of parts
Control box
• Welding ⇒ snap fit
• Modular design to minimize material mixing
Pump housing
• In-molded bushings ⇒ inserted nuts
• Deflector: Welding ⇒ snap fit

12. Ambition: collect a total
of 500,000 kg by 2025
CLIMATE
• During 2020, in collaboration with key customers in Denmark,
Argentina, the Netherlands and the UK, we collected 14,665 kg, an
increase of 22% compared with 2019. Despite difficulties in
collecting the products caused by the global pandemic, we managed
to retrieve an amount relatively close to our 2020 target.
• Both environment and social impact
More about the take back programme
Circular economy:
Take back programme

13. The RHQI project
• Recycling of High Quality Industrial products
• Publicly (government) funded through Innovation Foundation Denmark
• 4 years starting spring 2020
• Partners:
>PA6.6-GF30<
>HDPE<

14. Grundfos motivation
The world moves towards increase circularity
Grundfos take-back system
In the future we will get pump housings back, made of >PA6.6-GF30<
that have been exposed to hot water for 10-15 years
Degradation level?
Can they be
• Re-used?
• Re-cycled?
• Up-graded?
Sprængningstryk vs. molekylevægt
0,0
5,0
10,0
15,0
20,0
25,0
0 5000 10000 15000 20000
Molekylevægt
Sprængningstryk
60°C
75°C
95°C
110°C
Design criterion
Tid til kritisk nedbrydning
10
100
1000
10000
100000
1000000
40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120
Temperatur
Tid
Model
Målte
Burst pressure vs. molecular weight
Burst
pressure
Molecular weight
Time to critical degradation level

15. Master thesis H2-2020 – Material analysis of mechanically recycled
glass-fibre reinforced polycarbonate and future polymer traceability
possibilities - Frederik Schroll Bjerregaard
Polycarbonate parts from
the Grundfos Take back
system - End-of-Life items

16. Material name Virgin material % End-Of-Life material %
V100R0 - reference 100 0
V90R10 – 10% EOL 90 10
V75R25 – 25% EOL 75 25
V0R100 – 100% EOL 0 100
Material combinations investigated in the project:
EOL part End-of-Life material
Virgin material

17. Mechanical tests – Results and comparison
25% of Grundfos End-of-Life material from Take Back combined with
75% virgin material without significant deterioration of
the material properties

18. Regrind Implementation
Project
CirCus
Design for circularity
RHQI
Innovate with outside
Future Polymers
Sustainable Sourcing
Long term, “high
risk” research
project on PA6.6
The world moves towards increased sustainability and circularity