CIRCOTRONIC project, led by the Chamber of Commerce of Slovenia (CCS), together with two Slovenian partners, ELVEZ and TECOS, and nine other partners from 5 different Central European countries, promotes the sustainable growth of Central European countries by transforming the production of electrical and electronic equipment (hereinafter EEE) into circular and resource efficient processes, high end value chains, products and services and reducing the negative impacts of the EEE industry. The project will contribute to the co-design and implementation of a circular economy policy framework that supports the circular production of EEO and handling of e-waste as new raw material sources. The total value of the project is EUR 2,381,955.00 and it is co-financed through the financial instrument Interreg CENTRAL EUROPE, program scheme 2021-27. The project will start in March 2023 and will last another 36 months.

The manufacturing of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) is rapidly increasing with the digitalisation of economy, society, and our daily lives. EEE has severe negative environmental and climate impacts arising from materials use, emission of air pollutants & greenhouse gases, chemicals use and waste. Additionally, planned obsolescence is often used in EEE. The increasing consumption and production of EEE makes its complex and challenging waste stream one of the fasted growing ones. 12 partners from business support, academia, policy-making and regional development from strong manufacturing regions in central Europe work together in CIRCOTRONIC with the objective to: 1) foster sustainable growth by transforming EEE manufacturing in Central Europe towards circular and resource-efficient processes, value chains, products and services, and minimising the negative impacts of EEE, and 2) to design a policy framework and implement circular economy policy measures supporting circular EEE manufacturing and the management of E-waste as a resource.

Ten CIRCOTRONIC partners will collaborate as transnational network of regional circular labs, taking up solutions that were jointly developed and tested for improved circularity in EEE manufacturing SMEs covering the themes 1) design, 2) materials & recovery, and 3) circular business models & value chains. We will capitalise knowhow, tools, approaches and instruments from existing projects and initiatives and adapt and test them in the EEE manufacturing sector. CIRCOTRONIC will prepare a transnational action plan, in which we design policy measures to implement the CEAP 2020 in Central Europe in the field of EEE manufacturing and the E-waste management, and support and monitor its up-take in the involved partner regions. A circular electrical & electronics industry is just evolving. CIRCOTRONIC engages with stakeholders, key actors and local communities to make circular change happen in a sector of key importance for Central Europe.