Building a Circular Future: How ABB Is Rethinking Waste and Resources
September 1, 2026The world is using natural resources faster than they can be replenished, and the cost of that imbalance runs into the trillions each year. At ABB, tackling this challenge isn't an afterthought; it's built into how products are designed, made, used, and eventually recovered.
Rethinking the product lifecycle. Rather than the traditional "take–make–dispose" approach, ABB is embedding a "reduce–reuse–recycle" mindset across its business. As ABB's Head of Sustainability, Anke Hampel, puts it, closing the loop takes collaboration — with suppliers, partners, and customers all playing a part.
Smarter sourcing and design. ABB is partnering with companies like Boliden and ArcelorMittal to bring lower-carbon copper and recycled steel into its products, while its synchronous reluctance motors deliver top efficiency without rare-earth materials. Across its motor and drive range, 90–98.5% of components are recyclable.
Greener operations. Closed-loop systems have cut industrial water use by roughly two-thirds at ABB sites worldwide, and a Finland facility has slashed plastic waste by half while boosting recycling rates.
Equipment that lasts. Instead of replacing ageing infrastructure, ABB modernization projects — from a Swedish utility to South Africa's Cape Town power grid — are extending the life of critical equipment by years, cutting waste and emissions along the way.
Responsible end of life. Through partnerships with recyclers like Stena Recycling and Remondis, ABB recovers metals from old motors and generators, converts factory wood waste into furniture materials, and has cut electronic waste sent to landfill by 93% over four years.
That's a lot of behind-the-scenes work most people never hear about, real changes, at every stage, in every part of the business.