Lube-Tech PUBLISHED BY LUBE: THE EUROPEAN LUBRICANTS INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
In the Taxonomy regulation EU/2020/852, the “inefficiency in the use of materials”, including the lack of wear protection and repairability, is classified as an economic activity significantly impairing environmental objectives (Art. 17(1) d) i)). Wear protection and increased longevity are core strategies for the prevention of waste and reduction of embedded CO2
footprint.
In such a context, terms like service life, durability and life span are essential to identify the capability of a part or a product to function as required under defined conditions of use, maintenance and repair until a limit state is attained. Under consideration of customer or market requirements and the technical complexity of the product, this “service life” is determined in advance.
Direct reuse, comprehensive refurbishment, and remanufacturing are among the value retention processes additionally extending the potential useful life of a product beyond the traditionally expected life span.
The G7 Toyama Framework on Material Cycles focuses on Value Retention Processes (VRP) and is fine-tuned with the current objectives of resource efficiency and resource productivity within circular economy and waste prevention [1]. At their core, value retention processes preserve both material value and product functionality. Repair is considered one of the value retention processes. The United Nations International Resource Panel defines “value retention processes” as follows [1]:
“Value retention processes are activities, typically production-related activities, promoting the completion and/or potential extension of the useful product life beyond its traditionally expected use period. Such processes include direct reuse, repair, extensive refurbishment and remanufacturing.”
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Within the DIN´s Environmental Protection Helpdesk (DIN EPH), working group 9 “Wear Parts” (AK9) deals with life cycle-oriented issues relating to products, processes, and organisations, with a particular focus on wear parts, i.e., those product system components that have a shorter service life compared to the potential total service life of the materials or the product system. One of the main focuses of DIN KU-AK9 [2] is the development of a technical specification (TS= guideline) DIN TS 35206 “Wear Parts”. Within the framework of the DIN standardisation process, the overarching “product system concept” is used as a starting point, which subsumes material, mechanical, electrical/electronic, digitised components, software, and information as system components. This range is also derived from the “goods concept” in the EU/2019/771 Goods Purchase Directive, which additionally includes digital content or digital services.
The term “wear part” is defined by DIN KU-AK9 as part of the overarching concept of maintaining the value or functionality of product systems as follows:
“Wear parts in the general sense are product system components, whose functional stability, due to their design, corresponds to a partial period of the potential material or product system service life.”
The term “partial period” may be illuminated for lubricants. Some automotive lubricants are designed to remain functional from one specified maintenance (drain) interval to the next, while others can be filled for life, such as transmission oils or lubricating greases.
The concepts for retention of value or functionality are in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #12 safeguarding sustainable consumption and production patterns.
LUBE MAGAZINE NO.193 JUNE 2026
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