REMANUFACTURING AND

ITS IMPORTANCE IN
TODAYS ERA

Santhu Varghese Thomas

INTRODUCTION

Remanufacturing is a form of recycling where used durable goods are refurbished to a

condition comparable to new products.

Study of key elements & challenges in the remanufacturing sector is essential for
successful launching of remanufactured products.

Remanufactured products are sold at 60 to 70 percent of the new products price, their
production accounts for only 35 to 60 percent of the original costs.

Remanufacturing benefits the population through

less post-consumption waste

lower energy and raw material consumptions

lower prices for replacement products

The generation of positive profits.

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PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE IN VIEW OF REMANUFACTURING

Remanufacturing company must consider:

Demand of remanufactured product
disposal rate of existing product .

The actual process of remanufacturing is almost always less expensive than

producing a brand new unit of the product because many parts and components can
be reused.

Launching of remanufacturing of used product is important to extend the product

life cycle in the decline phase

KEY ELEMENTS OF REMANUFACTURING

1. Product Acquisition Management (PrAM)

Reverse flow of used product with right quantity and good quality at right price
and right time

2. Framework for Reverse Logistic

3. Reverse Logistics Collection Models

The key activities in reverse logistics include transportation, warehousing,

distribution and inventory management.

sources through which remanufacturers can obtain products in the reverse

logistics are:

Supply chain return

Warranty returns

End-of-lease equipment returns

End-of-life products

Three methods for collection of EOL products

Xerox, Canon and Hewlett Packard

Single use of Kodak Camera, television, refrigerators

Cars, Automobile parts

4. Basic Remanufacturing Product Development

DEMAND AND SUPPLY FOR REMANUFACTURED

PRODUCT

Two important factors which decide the remanufacturing strategies.

Market demand of remanufactured product
availability of used products

No Action- insufficient market demand and insufficient supply of remanufacturable

products.

Watch- sufficient market demand, but an insufficient supply of remanufacturable

products available.
potentially profitable market and third-party remanufacturers will be attracted.

Remanufacture- both market demand and sufficient quantities of remanufacturable

products available

Recycle- sufficient supplies of remanufacturable products, but no market demand.

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REMANUFACTURING CHALLENGES

Cost of EOL Product

Quality Opinion

Supply Limitation

Competition

Change of Technology

REMANUFACTURING OF END-OF-LIFE ELECTRONIC

PRODUCTS

THE GLOBAL E-WASTE CRISIS

the fast expanding global market for electronic goods

the rapid reduction in the lifespan of electronic products

the rapid changes in technology

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key issues in dealing with the global e-waste crises include:

Reducing the volume generated

Design of electronics

Technology

Two common ways of electronic product recovery

Remanufacturing: focuses on rebuilding product cores

Demanufacturing: focuses on disassembling products and recovering materials to

reduce waste and extract economic value wherever practicable.

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The necessary infrastructures to manage e-waste in a sustainable manner have not

been developed or have not been appropriately commercialized.

The Creasolv process has been developed as a sound management option for ewaste plastics containing brominated flame-retardants, (BFRs).

It is a solvent-based method of removing BFRs.

This process removes the flame-retardants and other by-products such as dioxins
and furans, and permits the recovery of polymer products that have properties
similar to virgin polymers.

Unfortunately, this process is yet to be replicated at industrial scale or

commercialized.

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PRODUCT RECOVERY

Reuse option available for end-of-life electronic products

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Applications

auto parts

electric home appliances

personal computers

cellular phones

photocopiers

single-use cameras

industrial robots

medical equipment

heavy-duty engines

aircraft parts

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CONCLUSIONS

Remanufacturing is an ecologically preferable option to other EoL management

practices.

Solid waste reduction and new components savings are potential benefits of
remanufacturing.

Relatively cheaper products would also be readily available to the consumers in the
developing countries

In this study, three requirements for successful remanufacturing were highlighted:

Develop collection systems for used products;

Develop efficient remanufacturing processes; and

Cultivate demand for remanufactured products.

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Challenges of remanufacturing:

expectation of quality

supply limitation

Competition

change of pace of technology

Using remanufacturing as a waste diversionary strategy and as a business venture is

a demand of today

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REFERENCES

Hari Vasudevan, Vilas Kalamkar, and Ravi Terkar, Remanufacturing for Sustainable
Development: Key Challenges, Elements, and Benefits, International Journal of Innovation,
Management and Technology, Vol. 3, No. 1, February 2012

Innocent Chidi Nnorom and Oladele Osibanjo, Overview of Prospects in Adopting

Remanufacturing of End-of-Life Electronic Products in the Developing Countries, International
Journal of Innovation, Management and Technology, Vol. 1, No. 3, August 2010, ISSN: 20100248

Mitsutaka Matsumoto and Yasushi Umeda, An analysis of remanufacturing practices in Japan

Journal of Remanufacturing 2011, 1:2, http://www.journalofremanufacturing.com/content/1/1/2

Sophie Bernard, Remanufacturing, working paper 1003E, Department of Economics, Faculty of

Social Sciences, University of Ottawa, February 2010

A M King and S C Burgess, The Development of a Remanufacturing Platform Design: A

Strategic Response to the Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment, Proc. IMechE
Vol. 219 Part B: J. Engineering Manufacture , May 2005, DOI: 10.1243/095440505X32526
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