Reduce, Re-use, Recycle …. Repair & Refurbish?

We all know the mantra, “Reduce, reuse, recycle.” Well, I think we can add a fourth and a fifth R to that: repair and refurbish!

At the time of writing, our office counter (by Smiirl) at The Wheel Specialist has ticked past 1.35 million. That being the number of wheels we’ve repaired and refurbished since 2007. That’s pretty sustainable when you think about it and something we should make more of. We’re not ones for hyperbole and grandiose claims, but we’re all quietly proud of what we’re doing. Every little helps and giving otherwise sound, corroded, bent or buckled wheels a second chance has got to be a good thing.

Our customers certainly think so. More and more of the larger repairers are becoming increasingly committed to refurbishing rather than replacing. At the height of Covid, the more cynical observer of the industry may have suggested that this was driven through necessity, given that new parts were almost impossible to obtain because of supply chain constraints. However this is very much not the case now. Some of the most prominent players in the sector are convinced that refurbishing a perfectly serviceable building is a genuinely and demonstrably sustainable thing to do, helping them lower their environmental impact and footprint. It’s undoubtedly far better when it comes to embedded emissions, which are by far the greatest in the manufacturing stage than at any other point – apart from disposal. So, keeping between those points has simply got to be sensible.

One cloud on the horizon, though – we’re noticing more and more wheels coming through from car brands (naming no names…) with ever-more intricate designs or things like inserts that appear to have been designed (if one were a cynic) with the express purpose of “nudging” an owner towards a new wheel rather than a refurb. Looking at the manufacturers, you know who you are, you know what you’re doing, so stop it – you know it’s not right!!!

And while we’re at it, don’t even get us started on some of the irreparable carbon fibre wheels out there at the moment at £7,000 a set…