Editing Durability (section)

{{Short description|Ability of a product to continue to function}}
{{About|the physical property|the database property|Durability (database systems)|the cognitive bias|Durability bias}}
[[File:MER No.6.jpg|thumb|The [[Manx Electric Railway]] on the [[Isle of Man]] still operates with its original tramcars and trailers, all of which are over one hundred years old, the latest dating from 1906.]]
'''Durability''' is the ability of a physical [[product (business)|product]] to remain functional, without requiring excessive [[maintenance (technical)|maintenance]] or repair, when faced with the challenges of normal operation over its [[design life|design lifetime]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Cooper|first=Tim|year=1994|title=Beyond Recycling: The longer life option|url=http://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/24666/1/201125_7266%20Cooper%20Publisher.pdf|journal=The New Economics Foundation, Whitechapel Road, London|pages=5}}</ref>{{rp|5}} There are several measures of durability in use, including years of life, hours of use, and number of operational cycles.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Longer Lasting Products: alternatives to the throwaway society|last=Stahel|first=Walter|publisher=Gower|year=2010|isbn=978-0-566-08808-7|editor-last=Cooper|editor-first=Tim|location=Farnham|chapter=Durability, Function and Performance}}</ref> In [[economics]], goods with a long [[service life|usable life]] are referred to as [[durable good]]s.

Because there is no objective measure of durability for clothing, [[price]] has become an important indicator.<ref name="affm">{{cite journal |last1=Guo |first1=Yue |last2=Morris |first2=Kate E. |last3=Sumner |first3=Mark |last4=Taylor |first4=Mark |date=March 2025 |title=A framework for measuring physical garment durability |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784324000780 |journal=Cleaner and Responsible Consumption |volume=16 |doi=10.1016/j.clrc.2024.100245 |access-date=|doi-access=free }}</ref>