How do you turn circular ambitions into concrete action?
Circular business requires more than a good idea. You need to get customers on board, find partners, test new business models and enable your organisation to evolve. But you do not have to go through this process alone. In Circular Economy Connect, Sirris and Agoria bring technology companies together to share experiences, challenges and solutions.
This allows you to learn from what works, as well as from what works less well. Practical cases, peer-to-peer learning and feedback help you discover new perspectives and identify concrete next steps.
What can you expect?
Ready for Circular Economy Connect 2026-2027?
Do you want to turn the circular economy into concrete action within your company? Bring your own case and work with other technology companies and experts in Circular Economy Connect to define concrete next steps.
This programme is part of the Industry Partnership, in which 13 Flemish innovation partners offer integrated services to stimulate growth and innovation in Flemish industry across the following six themes: AI, Circularity, Cybersecurity, Digitalisation, Climate & Energy and Industry 4.0. They do so under the leadership of Agoria and Sirris and with the support of Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship (VLAIO).
1. What is Circular Economy Connect?
You cannot build a circular business alone. CE Connect brings together technology companies that want to turn their circular ambitions into concrete action.
Sirris and Agoria create an environment where companies share questions, experiences and their own cases. Participants learn during the sessions and from each other. Tools and the CE Connect community also support them in taking their next steps.
2. How do you learn from and with each other?
The participants' challenges help shape the programme. Company cases, feedback and knowledge exchange make the learning immediately practical.
The current cycle consists of five sessions spread over one year. Participants bring their own cases, receive feedback and explore concrete solutions together. Sirris and Agoria support them with expertise and practical examples.
3. What do participating companies gain from CE Connect?
Companies learn above all from both the successful and less successful experiences of others. This helps them identify opportunities and obstacles more quickly.
Cases from other sectors offer new perspectives on your own projects. They help you identify priorities and recognise existing strengths. At the same time, the network provides a sounding board for your next steps.
4. Why does learning together make a difference?
No one knows exactly how the circular economy will evolve. Learning and experimenting together helps companies deal with this uncertainty.
A clear vision provides direction. Small experiments then show what works. By sharing experiences, you can identify more quickly which next step makes sense for your company.
5. Which lessons keep coming back?
The transition is not linear. Start small, learn together and keep moving forward. This message comes back time and again.
There is no universal approach. Lifetime extension, services, product design and new forms of collaboration offer different routes. Which one works depends on your product, customer and value chain.
6. What have we learnt from 10 years of Circular Economy Connect?
After 10 years, one thing is clear: the biggest circular challenges are rarely purely technical.
Customer relationships, collaboration, data and new revenue models are at least as important. More than 20 practical cases show how the same questions recur across a wide range of sectors.
Discover 10 practical lessons in this white paper
In this white paper, Sirris and Agoria bring together 10 insights from more than 20 practical cases involving companies such as Atlas Copco, Signify, Proximus and Daikin.
Discover the choices made by circular frontrunners, the challenges they encounter and the lessons that can be learnt from them.
Ready for Circular Economy Connect 2026-2027?
Do you want to turn the circular economy into concrete action within your company? Bring your own case and work with other technology companies and experts in Circular Economy Connect to define concrete next steps.
Register and start tackling your circular business challenges
The questions below are just a selection of the many challenges companies face when transitioning to circular business. Are these or other questions on this topic relevant to your company? Then Circular Economy Connect 2026-2027 is the place to tackle them together with other technology companies and experts.
How do you make a circular offering attractive to customers?
Start from your customers' needs and demonstrate the business value. Reduce risks related to service, upgrades, financing and technology obsolescence. A flexible offering, transparent costs and clear agreements help get customers on board.
How do you convince management of a circular business model?
Start with clear, realistic objectives and support your proposal with figures from experiments, proofs of concept or pilot projects. Demonstrate not only the economic value, but also the impact on customers, the environment and society.
Why is ROI not enough to assess circular investments?
ROI often focuses on the investment and the return over a relatively short period. With circular solutions, the entire lifecycle matters. Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) also takes into account costs and value related to use, maintenance, repair, upgrades and end of life.
Do you need to change your entire business model straight away?
No. Start with small experiments and use the results to learn and build internal support. Ultimately, a circular business model requires changes in areas including design, sales, service, IT, logistics and cost calculation.
Is a circular product the same as a leased product?
No. Leasing primarily changes ownership, but does not automatically result in a longer product lifetime or reduced material use. A circular model combines services with circular design, maintenance, repair, upgrades, reuse and take-back.
How do you prevent customers from feeling locked into a long-term contract?
Give customers sufficient choice and flexibility. Where relevant, work with open technology, interchangeable solutions and upgrade options. Also make it clear how risks and responsibilities are shared between the customer and supplier.
What role do sales and marketing play in circular business?
Sales and marketing need to make the value across the entire lifecycle visible. Consider Total Cost of Ownership, CO2 impact, services and product lifetime. Adapted KPIs and incentives can also help sales teams put services and circularity at the heart of their approach.
