Reducing a Laboratory’s Carbon Footprint Through the Circular Economy: The Role of Equipment Reuse

Why does the circular economy matter for laboratory equipment?

The conventional management of laboratory assets can follow a relatively linear model: purchase new equipment, use it for a period of time, replace it and eventually manage its end of life.

The circular economy takes a different approach. Among other principles, it aims to extend the useful life of products, encourage reuse, further use or repair, and reduce the consumption of new resources whenever appropriate.

This approach is particularly relevant to laboratory equipment and furniture. A centrifuge, oven, shaker, microscope, laboratory bench or storage cabinet may no longer be required by one organisation without necessarily having lost its functional value.

A change in protocols, the end of a research project, equipment renewal, relocation or organisational restructuring can leave assets unused even though they may still meet the requirements of another laboratory.

Reuse therefore aims to preserve this remaining value by keeping equipment in service or putting it back into circulation when its condition and intended application make this appropriate.

How can laboratory equipment reuse help reduce carbon impacts?

Manufacturing equipment requires raw materials, energy and a range of industrial processes. Packaging, transportation and, eventually, end-of-life management can add further environmental impacts throughout the equipment’s life cycle.

Extending the useful life of a product is therefore an important circular economy principle. The longer suitable equipment remains productively in use, the greater the opportunity to avoid or postpone the manufacture of additional equipment when an existing asset can fulfil the same requirement.

This does not mean, however, that used laboratory equipment automatically has a lower carbon footprint than every new alternative. The actual environmental balance depends on numerous factors, including the type of equipment, the additional service life achieved, transportation, refurbishment or repair requirements, energy consumption during use and the replacement scenario.

It is therefore more accurate to refer to the potential to reduce environmental impacts rather than attributing the same carbon benefit to every reuse project.

Avoiding some of the impacts associated with manufacturing new equipment

When existing equipment meets a laboratory’s requirements and can be used under satisfactory conditions, reusing it can help reduce demand for additional production.

This is one of the key environmental benefits of extending equipment life: preserving the value already embedded in a product instead of immediately using new resources to replace it.

Extending the useful life of scientific equipment

The amount of time an asset remains physically present in a laboratory is not necessarily the same as its actual period of productive use. Equipment may remain idle for months or years because a project has ended, a team has changed its activities or the instrument has been replaced.

Identifying these assets and assessing their potential for reuse can help move equipment management away from a purely ownership-based model and towards a greater focus on the effective use of available resources.

Preventing usable equipment from reaching end of life prematurely

Unused equipment is not necessarily end-of-life equipment. This distinction is important.

If an instrument still retains useful value, exploring opportunities to put it back into circulation before treating it as waste can help preserve the materials and energy already invested in its manufacture for longer.

The best option is not always to replace existing equipment

Reducing the environmental impact of a laboratory equipment portfolio is not simply a matter of buying used laboratory equipment. Sometimes the first question should be more straightforward: does the equipment already available actually need to be replaced?

If an instrument continues to meet the laboratory’s requirements, appropriate servicing, maintenance and, where technically and economically viable, repair may help extend its useful life.

Before replacing equipment, laboratories can consider several questions:

• Does the equipment still meet its intended use?
• Are its performance levels still compatible with the laboratory’s requirements?
• Can it be maintained or repaired under satisfactory conditions?
• Are the necessary parts, accessories or consumables still available?
• Would replacement provide a sufficiently significant operational, technical or environmental benefit?

In some cases, keeping existing equipment will make sense. In others, replacement will be necessary. A circular economy approach is not about artificially extending the life of every instrument; it is about avoiding replacement when the actual requirement does not justify it.

Buying used laboratory equipment as another option

When a laboratory genuinely needs additional equipment, used laboratory equipment can be considered alongside new alternatives.

The objective is not to systematically position one option against the other. New equipment may be essential when the application requires recent technology, a specific configuration, particular performance characteristics, a certain level of support or other conditions that available pre-owned equipment cannot satisfy.

For other applications, however, equipment that is already in circulation may provide a suitable solution while extending the asset’s useful life.

Before purchasing used scientific equipment, it is particularly useful to check:

• the exact model, reference and configuration;
• its overall condition and history, where available;
• its suitability for the intended application;
• which accessories are included and which need to be sourced separately;
• the availability of necessary consumables and spare parts;
• maintenance and support options;
• transportation, installation and commissioning requirements;
• any internal, technical or regulatory requirements applicable to its intended use.

These checks are particularly important in scientific environments, where the suitability of an instrument can depend heavily on its application, configuration and the level of performance or assurance required.

Selling surplus laboratory equipment: the other side of reuse

The circular economy is not only about purchasing decisions. It also involves managing equipment that is already present within laboratories more effectively.

Over time, scientific facilities can accumulate unused or underused assets. These may include replaced instruments, equipment associated with completed programmes or laboratory furniture that is no longer needed following a refurbishment or reorganisation.

A reuse strategy can begin with an inventory that distinguishes between:

• equipment that is still in active use;
• equipment that should be retained for an identified future requirement;
• assets that could be reassigned internally;
• equipment that could potentially be sold or returned to circulation;
• equipment that has genuinely reached the end of its useful life.

This approach can help prevent functional equipment from remaining indefinitely idle when another organisation may have a genuine use for it.

Laboratory furniture can also have a second life

Circular equipment management does not have to be limited to scientific instruments. Furniture is also an important part of the laboratory environment.

Depending on its condition, specifications and suitability for its future environment, certain items may be suitable for reuse, including laboratory benches, tables, storage units, cabinets and other technical furniture.

Laboratory relocations, renovations and site closures are particularly relevant opportunities to carry out an inventory before deciding what should happen to each asset.

Planning ahead makes it easier to distinguish between items that genuinely need to be replaced or managed at end of life and those that still retain useful value.

Equipment reuse and carbon footprint: why oversimplification should be avoided

Describing all used equipment as automatically “low carbon” would be an oversimplification.

Several factors can influence the environmental relevance of an equipment reuse project:

• the additional useful life actually achieved;
• transport distances and conditions;
• any refurbishment or repair operations required;
• the equipment’s energy consumption during use;
• the need to replace certain components;
• its performance compared with a more recent alternative;
• whether the reused equipment genuinely replaces the need for another asset.

An older instrument that consumes particularly large amounts of energy, is difficult to maintain or does not meet the intended application does not become a suitable choice simply because it is available second-hand.

The appropriate approach is therefore to consider the full situation: extend the life of existing assets when this makes sense, reuse equipment when a second application is appropriate, and choose new equipment when technical or operational requirements justify it.

How can laboratories integrate equipment reuse into asset management?

For a circular economy strategy to go beyond good intentions, reuse can be incorporated directly into laboratory equipment and asset management decisions.

1. Build a clearer picture of the equipment portfolio

An up-to-date inventory makes it easier to identify equipment that is actively used, underused or idle. It also provides a useful basis for anticipating replacement needs and identifying assets that could be reassigned or recovered for further use.

2. Define the requirement before every purchase

Before ordering new equipment, laboratories can define the actual requirement in detail: expected performance, frequency of use, technical constraints, project duration, essential accessories and installation conditions.

This makes it possible to compare different options, including equipment already available internally, suitable used equipment and the purchase of a new instrument.

3. Plan equipment exit earlier

Waiting until an instrument has been stored for several years can make it more difficult to put it back into circulation. Once it becomes clear that an asset is unlikely to be used again, assessing its condition and reuse potential promptly can help preserve more of its remaining value.

4. Include reuse in relocation and restructuring projects

A laboratory relocation, renovation or site closure often requires decisions to be made simultaneously about large numbers of instruments and items of furniture.

Preparing inventories and deciding on potential routes early enough makes it easier to identify assets that should be retained, transferred, sold or returned to circulation rather than managing everything under time pressure.

5. Track the results of the approach

An organisation seeking to incorporate reuse into its environmental strategy can monitor indicators relevant to its activities, such as the number of assets reassigned, sold or purchased second-hand, extensions in useful life, or the proportion of unused equipment returned to circulation.

Translating these actions into avoided greenhouse gas emissions, however, requires an appropriate calculation methodology and sufficiently robust data. The number of reused items alone is not enough to establish an accurate carbon assessment.

Laboratory equipment reuse: environmental and operational considerations

The value of reuse is not limited to environmental considerations. Depending on the equipment and circumstances, putting laboratory assets back into circulation may also address budget, availability and asset management challenges.

For a buyer, pre-owned equipment can provide an additional option when it matches the requirement precisely. For a seller, finding a new use for surplus laboratory equipment can prevent assets from remaining idle for long periods and allow them to deliver value elsewhere.

This complementary approach reflects LabSquare’s positioning as a specialist in the reuse of laboratory equipment and furniture, supporting professionals with equipment searches, purchasing, selling and recirculation.

The objective is therefore not to treat pre-owned equipment as the default solution, but to create opportunities for equipment that remains relevant and usable to continue serving a laboratory when a corresponding need exists.

Towards more circular laboratory equipment management

Reducing a laboratory’s carbon footprint requires action across multiple areas. Equipment reuse does not replace efforts to reduce energy consumption, optimise processes or implement other environmental measures relevant to a laboratory’s activities.

It does, however, address a practical question: why systematically manufacture or purchase new equipment when an existing asset can still meet the requirement?

Maintaining suitable equipment for longer, improving visibility over laboratory assets, reallocating existing equipment, considering pre-owned options when purchasing and finding new uses for surplus assets are all practices that can bring scientific equipment management closer to circular economy principles.

For research laboratories, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, research and educational institutions and industrial organisations, the key issue is ultimately not to choose between new and used equipment as competing principles, but to select the solution that best fits each specific requirement.

As a specialist in the reuse of laboratory equipment and furniture, LabSquare supports this approach by helping scientific equipment remain in circulation through search, purchase, sale and reuse when it can still provide genuine value.