Recycled ABS Contributes to a More Sustainable Shower

Premium bath brand Hansgrohe earns a 2024 German Sustainability Award for its Planet Edition hand-held shower

In private households, a hot shower represents one of the biggest sources of energy costs and CO₂ emissions. In fact, “taking a hot shower for one minute consumes about as much energy as driving an electric car at full throttle on the highway for the same amount of time,” according to Steffen Erath, head of sustainability at Germany’s Hansgrohe SE. Two firms partnered to enable recycled ABS and upcycled PET to contribute to a more sustainable shower.

Hansgrohe, a 122-year-old maker of premium bath and kitchen products, collaborated with Phoenix Design GmbH + Co. KG to develop a new type of hand-held shower. Its Pulsify Planet Edition model offers various sustainability advantages including reduced water and energy consumption and a greater use of recycled materials.

Greatly Reduced Use of Water

The shower head allows only six liters of water flow through per minute. This is 60 percent less water than traditional Hansgrohe showers. Still, the device offers “a high level of showering comfort.” Additionally, the firm sought to close the loop on some of its materials usage.

Using a special process developed in-house, it makes the hand-held shower’s handle from recycled ABS copolymer. Hansgrohe obtains the coated plastic from end-of-life products and rejects, then shreds and cleans it before converting it into a high-quality granulate. It does this at its plant in Offenburg, Germany. The process eliminates the use of environmentally challenging chrome-plated plastics.

Avoiding Chrome While Leveraging Recycling

“This alternative to petroleum- and fossil-based primary plastics achieves a significant reduction in energy consumption during production,” says Erath. “The material itself offers a unique look and elegant appearance in sandy colors due to the pattern of the flakes bound in it.” The end product uses no chrome and all of its materials are recyclable.

The project includes various related accessories, from wall hooks and shelves to a storage basket and a squeegee. Hansgrohe notes it used upcycled PET for the shower’s flexible textile hose. (Here’s a video, in German, about the effort.)

German Prize Recognizes the Project

Based in Schiltach, in southern Germany, Hansgrohe has been recognized for its efforts with a 2024 German Sustainability Award in the “Energy, Water and Sanitary Technology” category. The contest is Europe’s largest award for ecological and social commitment.

“The winners are pioneers of change.” says Stefan Schulze-Hausmann, chairman of the board of the Düsseldorf-based German Sustainability Award Foundation e.V. “As good examples and role models, they show how ecological and social progress can be achieved more quickly. The award aims to encourage companies to act sustainably and help to better anchor the principles of sustainable development in public perception.”

Hansgrohe Marketing Manager Natascha Beha shared some background in an interview she did for the award competition’s newsletter.

“We wanted the Planet Edition to be Hansgrohe’s most sustainable line,” she said, “particularly in the production phase. … One prime example is a process innovation that allows production waste, for instance, chrome, to be recycled and incorporated into a new product.”

Despite the Recycled ABS, No Sacrifice in Aesthetics

One big challenge, she noted, involved ensuring that alternative materials still met stringent sanitary standards. “We were pleasantly surprised at how good it looks and feels. The Planet Edition has a less sedately technical, but more of a warm, appealing aesthetic and stands apart for its superior design.”

Beha said this is just the first step on the journey. “The new production processes are to become the default and will have an impact on other products. Technologies, such as the recycled yarns in our Designflex shower hose, will also be applied to standard products.”