Bosch has completed a pilot project demonstrating the potential for recycling technical plastics from discarded power tools. The initiative resulted in a special edition of the UniversalImpact 800 impact drill, whose housing is made largely from recycled material.
The project, developed in partnership with external collaborators, explored how plastics used in durable products such as drills could be reused rather than incinerated. Technical plastics, known for their strength and resistance, are typically difficult and uneconomical to recycle, with existing recovery processes focusing mainly on metals.
“With this project, we are demonstrating that we can indeed circulate technical plastic,” said Anne Purper, Circular Economy Project Manager at Bosch Power Tools. “The project targets several key areas of our sustainability strategy: responsible material use, circularity, and CO₂ reduction.”
To achieve the required material quality, Bosch conducted an extensive feasibility study involving the collection and disassembly of thousands of used tools. This process generated over half a million data points, enabling the company to identify plastics suitable for reuse.
“The challenge was to achieve a series-production quality for our special edition based on old devices – this was completely new territory, without established standards or years of practical experience,” said Thomas Hampel, Sustainability Expert at Bosch Power Tools.
The resulting UniversalImpact 800 Closed-Loop Edition met Bosch’s standard performance and quality requirements without additional additives or glass fibres. The project has been certified by TÜV Süd, confirming the integrity of the closed-loop process.
According to Bosch, the pilot offers key data on material recovery, processing times, and the integration of recycled materials into production, laying the groundwork for future circular economy projects in the power tool sector.
