Data-Driven Innovation Meets Sustainable PC Design: Concept Luna’s Evolution

Last year, Dell Technologies introduced Concept Luna, a sustainable PC design which illustrates the company’s vision of how to reduce waste and emissions, reuse materials and achieve next-level innovation. Dell’s Experience Innovation Group engineers have worked over the last year to further refine the modular design of Concept Luna, eliminating the need for adhesives and cables, and minimizing the use of screws. These refinements make it easier to repair and dismantle a system. Concept Luna could dramatically simplify and accelerate repair and disassembly processes, making components more accessible and expanding opportunities for reuse.

Once the device itself is truly at the end of life, it’s refurbished and recycled to incorporate the same materials into next-generation laptops, monitors or phones. It’s a future where nothing goes to waste and the mountain of electronics discarded every year (more than 57 million tons, globally, to be exact) is dramatically reduced. Not only is technology dematerialized, but the materials used fuel a robust circular economy. Thereby, reducing the need for new, raw materials. 

Key concept highlights include: 

• New automation capabilities 
• Disassembly robotic micro-factories that reduce hours-long processes to minutes or even seconds, for optimized component harvesting, reuse and refurbishment 
  • Dell’s Experience Innovation Group engineers have refined the modular design of Concept Luna to eliminate the need for adhesives and cables and minimize the use of screws, making it easier to repair and dismantle systems. The result is a device that can be disassembled in mere minutes, as opposed to the current technology that takes recycling partners over an hour to disassemble.
• New design features improve performance and reliability, while also making the overall concept easier to disassemble for quicker repair, refurbishment, and recycling at scale
• Advanced intelligent telemetry to accurately diagnose component health, informing proactive repairs and maximizing the longevity of component reuse 

At its core, Concept Luna is about shaping a more sustainable future for all through circular design practices and driving breakthrough advancements in the tech industry. At scale, these innovations could have a massive impact on solving some of today’s most pressing environmental issues, such as e-waste, materials shortages, product carbon footprints, and growing emissions. While it is currently a concept, it is also a long-term vision for how e-waste can be reduced to have positive impacts on business and society. With its forward-looking vision, it has broad implications for customers and the industry as a whole.