Services are one way to reach dematerialization, i.e. a reduction in materials consumption. Here, the primary interest is not on the traditional services provided by e.g., banks, travel agents and hairdressers. As a way or organizing markets, they can facilitate a shared or more intensive use of products, more professional operation, as well as product take-back and recycling.
Services also imply different incentives than product sales.
Rather than selling as many products as possible, service providers have more incentives to economize in materials use throughout the product life cycle. It is today not yet clear what the overall role of services will be in dematerialization and in business development. It largely depends on specific contexts and conditions . However, it is already evident that the focus on services helps us broaden our views from traditional environmental management to sustainable business development . The role of services in the material efficiency of offices, e.g. energy saving contracts, equipment leasing 3.