Recap

What it does

Recap is a service designed to extend the life of household appliances by improving maintenance. It encourages responsible consumption and questions our behaviors with manufactured products to meet environmental challenges.

Your inspiration

It is the result of a long process of research and exchange with industrial players (Lacroix Group, Fnac-Darty Group), players in the circular economy (La Recyclerie de l’Île, Envie44), as well as potential users. The intention behind this project is to provide a comprehensive response to a clearly identified problem. It is in the continuity of what is committed by distributors of household appliances, with the index of reparability for example. It is an answer to the fact that the amount of equipment produced is complex to manage.

How it works

It consists of a digital space that collects maintenance information, a connected sensor placed on the maintenance product cabinet, as well as a range of benefits and discounts in partner repair services. Each appliance in the house is assigned a service sheet with all the tasks to be carried out to guarantee an optimal service life. Following these recommendations is as simple as following a cooking recipe with all the necessary materials and a description of the intermediate steps. When these tasks are properly performed, a maintenance score is then assigned to each appliance. The higher the score, the more attractive the rewards will be and extend the lifespan of the devices. Finally, external links allow access to content specific to each device. There are tutorials, manufacturer’s manuals, and other product-related documentation.

Design process

The genesis of this project comes from a desire to confront a practice of industrial design with environmental issues. This journey began with the meeting of Nicolas Hulot and a real awareness of the limits of our planet’s resources. The first phase of this project involved extensive literature research and discussions. This is an essential step in establishing the context and taking a systemic approach. The figures relating to electrical and electronic devices are impressive, all the more so because we don’t even pay attention to them anymore, because they are so deeply rooted in our everyday lives (cf. Geneviève Vidale). Once the main interactions within the home were identified, the first challenge was to materialize the user/object relationship. Indeed, proper maintenance of the devices depends on the affect and habits of the user. A first prototype materializing storage of maintenance products made it possible to highlight the essential actions as well as different ways of notifying the need. This prototype evolved with a digital environment designed to be omnichannel. Subsequently, the economic dimension came along with the manufacturers and an interest in collecting data that had not existed yet.

How it is different

Most of the answers to the problems of the lifespan of household appliances are integrated upstream, with customer information and marketing, or downstream, with recycling and reclamation. This project is unique in that it aims to tackle the problem at the source, i. e. within households and as close as possible to users. It responds to a lack on the part of users and manufacturers (cf. Fnac-Darty group). In addition, it is complete in its approach with favorable user feedback, a viable business model, and a working principle validated by different prototypes.

Future plans

After several evolutions of the sensor prototype and the app, the Recap service still has to face new user tests to adjust the perceived experience. It is also by attracting the interest of the large retail groups that it will achieve the critical mass of users needed to have an impact on e-waste. Finally, in the longer term, the data collected will help to improve manufactured products so as to minimize maintenance.

Awards