Signify Circle goal is to help professional users and customers identify reliable products aligned with the principles of a circular economy. Signify Circle program is launched first on the professional portfolio for the European market.
The terminology used in the Signify Circle initiative is based on the standards and regulations listed at the bottom of this page. Since there is currently no universally recognized way to identify circular lighting products, Signify has established its own criteria.
The Signify Circle criteria are based on the EU Taxonomy Framework and European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS E5) under Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
In setting the requirements of these criteria, Signify strives to achieve solid circularity performance for all relevant properties of a product while ensuring that lighting performance and cost-effectiveness are also excellent. The Signify Circle visual identifier marks products and solutions that meet specific requirements defined by Signify for a defined set of criteria. Requirements for these criteria may vary by product type. These criteria and consequently the Signify Circle visual identifier are not intended to replace any official mark, certification, or similar standard, and Signify intends to comply when a recognized comprehensive mark for lighting solutions becomes available.
For consistency, transparency, and credibility, Signify publicly reports the percentage of Signify Circle revenues within its sustainability program Brighter Lives, Better World 2030. This reporting reflects how effectively the company is advancing circularity in the professional lighting sector.
The Signify Circle revenues represent the sales of the professional portfolio within the European market:
- products classified as Signify Circle products,
- Light-as-a-service and remanufactured products,
- Spare parts and upgrade kits.
Professional luminaires
- Non-virgin material % - At least between 15% and 50% (depending on the product *)
- Restricted substances - Complies with Signify restricted substances requirements (link)
- Packaging material - ≥80% post-consumer recycled paper and ≥35% post-consumer recycled plastic
- Energy efficiency - ≥110 lm/W
- Initial functional period - ≥ 50000 hours according to L70B50C10 lifetime methodology
- Repairability - The driver and light source of the luminaire can be replaced by a service technician. Parts and documentation are available for an extended period of time **
- Recyclable material % - At least between 20% and 55% (depending on the product ***)
- Disassembly instruction for Recycling - Available per EU 2019/2020
* The percentage is determined by the Global Warming Potential of the product; a higher Global Warming Potential leads to a higher requirement for non-virgin material.
** Ability to repair and availability of spare parts will differ per product.
*** The value is 5 % greater than the value for non-virgin material .
Professional lamps
- Non-virgin material % - At least between 10% and 20% (depending on the product *)
- Restricted substances - Complies with restricted substances policies (link)
- Packaging material - ≥80% post-consumer recycled paper and ≥35% post-consumer recycled plastic
- Energy efficiency - ≥135 lm/W
- Initial functional period - ≥ 50000 hours according to L70B50C10 lifetime methodology
- Repairability - The lamp is a consumable which cannot be repaired - therefore, we provide successor information to enable a compatible replacement, so the lighting installation can continue operating
- Recyclable material % - At least between 15% and 25% (depending on the product **)
- Disassembly instruction for Recycling - According to Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE ) Directive 2012/19/EU
* The percentage is determined by the Global Warming Potential of the product, a higher GWP leads to a higher requirement for non-virgin material percentage.
** The value is 5 % greater than the value for non-virgin material.
The definitions of Light-as-a-service, remanufactured products, spare parts and upgrade kits are based on the clauses CE 5.1, CE 5.2, CE 5.5 of the EU Taxonomy Framework.
List of standards and regulations used in the Signify Circle initiative:
- IEC 60050 - International Electrotechnical Vocabulary (IEV)
- IEC TR 45550 - Definitions related to material efficiency
- IEC 62430 - Environmentally conscious design (ECD)
- IEC TR 62635 - Guidelines for end-of-life information provided by manufacturers and recyclers and for recyclability rate calculation of electrical and electronic equipment
- IEC TR 62824 - Guidance on material efficiency considerations in environmentally conscious design of electrical and electronic products
- IEC 62309 - Dependability of new products containing reused parts and life-extended products
- EN 45560 - Method to achieve circular designs of products
- EN 45552 - General method for the assessment of the durability of energy-related products
- EN 45559 - Methods for providing information relating to material efficiency aspects of energy-related products
- ISO 14009 - Environmental management systems — Guidelines for incorporating material circulation in design and development
- ISO 14006 - Environmental management systems — Guidelines for incorporating ecodesign
- ISO 14025 - Environmental labels and declarations — Type III environmental declarations — Principles and procedures
- EN 15804 - Sustainability of construction works – Environmental product declarations – Core rules for the product category of construction products
- BS 8887-221:2024 - Design for Manufacture, Assembly, Disassembly and End-of-Life Processing (MADE). Remanufacture of luminaires. Code of Practice
- CIBSE TM-66 - Creating a Circular Economy in the Lighting Industry
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 establishing a framework for the setting of eco-design requirements for sustainable products (ESPR)
- Directive (EU) 2024/825 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 February 2024 empowering consumers for the green transition through better protection against unfair practices and through better information (ECGT)
- Directive 2012/19/EU on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)
- Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2020 on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 (EU Taxonomy)
- Directive (EU) 2024/1799 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 April 2024 on common rules promoting the repair of goods (Right to Repair)