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Material efficiency
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<p>Material efficiency is a description or metric ((<i>M</i>p) (the ratio of material used to the supplied material)) which refers to decreasing the amount of a particular material needed to produce a specific product. Making a usable item out of thinner stock than a prior version increases the material efficiency of the manufacturing process. Material efficiency is associated with <a href="/facts/Green_building/fG67vQCK">Green building</a> and <a href="/facts/Energy_conservation/Sk7d6Dg2">Energy conservation</a>, as well as other ways of incorporating <a href="/facts/Renewable_resources/mLvvNF6A">Renewable resources</a> in the building process from start to finish. </p><p>The impacts can include material efficiency include reducing energy demand, reducing <a href="/facts/Greenhouse_gas_emissions/Cu9nXPHE">Greenhouse gas emissions</a>, and other environmental impacts such as <a href="/facts/Land_use/BAMqwQcG">land use</a>, <a href="/facts/Water_scarcity/YN3qIwmv">water scarcity</a>, <a href="/facts/Air_pollution/zmk9Dy7S">air pollution</a>, <a href="/facts/Water_pollution/SCUhUYqB">water pollution</a>, and <a href="/facts/Waste_management/EKXuEqQU">waste management</a>. A growing population with increasing wealth can increase demand for material extraction, and therefore processing may double in the next 40 years. </p><p>Increasing Material efficiency can reduce the impacts of material consumption. Some forms of Material Efficiency include increasing the life of existing products, using them more in entirety, re-using components to avoid waste, or reducing the amount of material through a lightweight product design. </p>