material intensity

6.8

How much material a factory or country uses to make one product

noun

Specialized

: intensidad material

Government policies are aimed at lowering the material intensity of the national economy.

Examples

The material intensity of this product is quite high.
The company reduced its material intensity by adopting more efficient manufacturing processes.
By increasing recycling rates, industries can decrease their material intensity and environmental impact.
Companies strive to reduce material intensity in production.
The factory's focus on reducing material intensity has significantly lowered its production costs.
Analyzing the material intensity of various products can help manufacturers minimize waste.
By improving processes, the company aims to lower the material intensity involved in each unit of output.

Synonyms

consumption of materials

vsmaterial intensity

Specialized

6.0

Amount of materials, fuel, energy, and machine wear used to make one product

focuses on quantity of raw inputs per unit rather than fuel or equipment wear

Surface Forms

material intensity singular

material intensities plural

Morphology

material + intensity

The phrase composes transparently from 'material' (what is used) and 'intensity' (degree/amount), so a learner could infer it refers to the degree or amount of material involved (i.e. how much material is used). However, this is a specialized, technical usage (economic/manufacturing jargon) and 'intensity' is often associated with physical phenomena, so without domain context a B1 learner may not reliably map the phrase to 'materials per unit of production'.

Etymology

Material intensity combines material, meaning the stuff used to make things, and intensity, meaning how much of that stuff is used, so imagine a factory that needs a huge pile of raw material to make one product. That's why material intensity means 'how much material is used for each item made'.