Prioritising organisational circular economy strategies by applying the partial order set theory: Tool and case study

Abstract

This study presents a methodology to solve circular economy multiple indicators system decision-making problems by applying the Partial Order Set Theory (POSET). To this end, a user-friendly tool was developed to allow the prioritisation of alternative scenarios or circularity strategies based on the value that each of them takes for different circular economy indicators (both quantitative and qualitative), but avoiding processes involving aggregation and weight among the indicators. The developed tool also makes it possible to model different restrictions that facilitate its adaptation to any case study and the incorporation of the results into the decision-making process. Moreover, it allows a graphical representation of the results to be obtained by using Hasse diagrams. Finally, the developed tool was validated by means of its application to a case study with the aim of prioritising circular economy strategies in an organisation belonging to the construction sector. Specifically, this organisation presented some opportunities for improvement, mainly related to the use of recycled and recirculated materials and effluents, waste recycling, energy efficiency and the proximity of suppliers, among others. The sensitivity analysis of the considered restrictions showed not only the robustness of the results obtained with the tool but also its great influence in circular economy multiple indicators decision-making solutions.