The DEA law(1) has been shaking the furniture industry since 2017. The resulting requirements are indeed significant in the economic equation of a very competitive market. The objectives set for 2022 and 2023 represent significant leaps in terms of efficiency of the sector. However, it seems that a more optimistic reading can be made regarding this decree, particularly for the logistics sector, in terms of market opportunities but also in terms of innovation.
Objectives defined in 2017
Decree 2017-1607 of November 27, 2017 and the decree of November 27, 2017 defined the technical and financial objectives of the DEA collection sector. According to ADEME, in 2018, 2.69 million tonnes of DEA elements furniture were placed on the market, representing 281 million units, and 990,000 tonnes were collected.
Since 2013, the French sector has been organized. To date, three players are approved for DEA:
| Eco-Organism | Scope |
| Eco-Furniture
Valdelia EcoLogic |
Household furnishings and professional bedding
Professional furnishing elements excluding bedding Category 6 professional furnishing elements (kitchen) |
In 2020, Eco-furniture collected 842,000 tonnes of DEA… COVID is at the origin of this drop in volume of 4 % compared to the previous year. For comparison, sales by members of the eco-organization in charge of the extended producer responsibility sector for DEA amount to 2.2 million tonnes. In 2020, 4.9% volumes were reused, 46% were recycled and 42% were energetically recovered. Recycling is in decline since it was 51% in 2019 as is reuse (6% in 2019).
Valdelia announces having processed around 100,000 tonnes of waste in 2020.
And Eco-Logic processed around 200,000 tonnes of waste in 2020.
What changes for 2022 and 2023?
From 2021 1.5% of the DEA held by households and 5% of the rest of the DEA must be made available to actors in the social and solidarity economy. A quality criterion allowing 60% reuse of these products has also been defined.
In 2022, 50% DEA collected separately from other waste must be recycled. 90% of this waste must be able to be recovered through the following sectors:
- Reuse
- Recycling
- Energy recovery
This represents a real benefit in terms of logistics but also processing.
In 2023, 40% DEA must be collected separately from other waste. This also implies a significant evolution of the sector to be able to separate waste more efficiently.
Who are the actors involved?
The actors concerned are the manufacturers (French manufacturers being more numerous than one imagines), the importers (outside the European Union), the introducers (from the European Union), the resellers under its brand and the distance sellers .
These actors have understood this problem for a long time now and therefore master the issues which are mainly:
- financial (funding of the sector)
- the ability to take back old furniture acquired by their customers.
The supply chain also needs to mobilize around this issue. It is in fact necessary to transport products, which, unlike new furniture with optimized packaging, often take up large volumes when dismantled, are fragile and susceptible to humidity. There is also a health problem, particularly linked to bedding.
Delivery to “XL” collection points having become widely used in recent years in France, the problem also concerns these players (C Chez vous, SmilePickup, etc.) who are likely to offer DEA recovery solutions when the customers come to pick up their new furniture.
The challenges of this market for logistics
The eco-organization Eco-mobilier, specializing in collection, launched a call for applications on October the 4th, 2021 with a view to strengthening its territorial network. This represents significant opportunities for the logistics sector (waste transport) but also for the “XL” collection point sector.
Indeed, the development of the furniture market sold online is experiencing very strong growth. At the start of 2020 the penetration rate for bulky furniture was only 10% (compared to 15% in Anglo-Saxon countries). Xerfi estimates that 50% sales in the furniture and decoration market should be done online within 20 years.
This implies a 5-fold increase in DEA volumes for a sector that is saturated in terms of collection points, but also in terms of processing capacity. Transporters must prepare for a specific market, where the capacity for reuse depends in particular on the ability to transport AEDs without humidity problems, without damage, and while optimizing volumes. The current saturation of logistics resources will also be a major challenge.
Likely legislative developments
Given the increasingly significant importance of environmental protection in Europe, it is likely that the requirements in terms of recycling rates and in terms of capacity to reintegrate AEDs into a "second life" sector are even more significant. The sector must therefore prepare but also anticipate future directions. Designing furniture to make it easier to dismantle and repair is a major challenge for the industry (as it is for the electronics sector). In particular, Eco-Mobilier has initiated a "collaborative eco-design" approach.
Innovation must also be used to develop recovery and transfer capacities in recycling units, whether in terms of volumes or in health terms. There is no doubt that designers of automated logistics platforms will have solutions to offer to resolve these difficulties, just like manufacturers of heavy goods vehicles.
(1) Waste of furniture elements
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