Which framework is this based on?

It draws on the Ellen MacArthur Foundation circular economy principles — designing out waste, keeping products and materials in use, and regenerating natural systems — expressed as five practical dimensions with a five-level maturity ladder for self-assessment.

What do the five maturity levels mean?

Level 1 is a linear take-make-dispose model. Level 2 is reactive compliance, level 3 is structured programmes, level 4 is embedded business models, and level 5 is a regenerative model where circularity is a core value proposition. Most organisations start between levels 2 and 3.

Why include circular procurement?

Much of a product's circularity is locked in by what you buy. Specifying recycled content, durability, repairability, and take-back in purchasing contracts moves the whole supply chain, which is why procurement is one of the five scored dimensions.

What is product-as-a-service?

It is a business model where you sell the function of a product rather than the product itself, retaining ownership and incentivising durability, reuse, and refurbishment. Examples include leasing, pay-per-use, and subscription models that reward keeping assets in service longer.

Is averaging the right way to score maturity?

A simple average gives a clear single number and is transparent, but a low score in one dimension can be hidden by strengths elsewhere. That is why the tool also surfaces your weakest dimension separately, so a blind spot is not masked by the average.

What is the Circular Economy Maturity Assessment?

Rate your organisation across five circular economy dimensions — circular design, product-as-a-service, reverse logistics, material recovery, and circular procurement — on a five-level maturity scale to compute an overall score aligned with Ellen MacArthur Foundation principles. It runs free in your browser on Gera Tools, with nothing uploaded.

Circular Economy Maturity Assessment

Name: Circular Economy Maturity Assessment
Creator: Gera Tools
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

A circular economy keeps products and materials in use, designs out waste, and regenerates natural systems. This assessment rates your organisation across five practical dimensions on a five-level maturity ladder aligned with Ellen MacArthur Foundation principles, giving you an overall score and a clear next step.

How it works

Each dimension is scored from level 1 (linear) to level 5 (regenerative). The overall score is the average of the five, and the weakest dimension is surfaced separately so a single blind spot is not masked:

dimensions  = circular design · product-as-a-service · reverse logistics
            · material recovery · circular procurement
overall     = (sum of five levels) / 5
band        = Linear (1–1.9) · Reactive (2–2.9) · Structured (3–3.9)
            · Embedded (4–4.9) · Regenerative (5)
priority    = lowest-scoring dimension, with its next-level target

What each dimension measures

Circular design. Does the product make disassembly easy? Are materials chosen for recyclability and durability at the design stage? A level 1 score here means design is driven purely by cost and aesthetics, with no circularity criteria. Level 5 means every new product is designed with an end-of-life recovery pathway and material passports so downstream processors know exactly what they are handling.

Product-as-a-service. Has the organisation moved from selling ownership to selling function — through leasing, pay-per-use, or subscription models? This dimension rewards business model innovation that aligns the organisation’s financial interests with product longevity.

Reverse logistics. Can the organisation retrieve its products or materials at end of life? Level 1 means there is no take-back programme at all. Level 5 means the reverse supply chain is as planned and measured as the forward one, with tracked return rates and a clear fate for every recovered unit.

Material recovery. What fraction of material inputs are actually reused, remanufactured, or recycled? This is typically the easiest dimension to measure because it can be expressed as a percentage, and it is often the highest-scoring dimension even in otherwise linear organisations — because recycling is visible and externally reportable.

Circular procurement. Are purchasing criteria requiring recycled content, repairability, and supplier take-back? Without circular procurement requirements, even a well-designed product may be assembled from materials that constrain later recovery.

Common patterns and what to do next

The most widespread assessment profile is strong material recovery (level 3–4) paired with weak circular design (level 1–2). This means recycling is happening downstream, but the products being manufactured are not designed for it — leading to lower recovery rates and more downcycling than necessary.

If your lowest dimension is circular design, that is the highest-leverage place to act, because design decisions lock in circularity potential for the entire lifecycle of a product. Small changes — using fewer material types, adding snap-fit instead of glued joints, marking material grades — have compounding effects through every other dimension.

If your lowest dimension is reverse logistics, the priority is building a take-back infrastructure before investing further in design improvements, because recovered products have nowhere to go without that foundation.

Using the score over time

A single assessment snapshot is less useful than tracking the score quarterly or annually. The trend reveals whether circularity initiatives are translating into measurable practice change, and can serve as an internal accountability mechanism or a data point for ESG reporting and supply-chain due-diligence questionnaires from customers and investors.