A comparative study on end-of-life vehicles network design

Abstract

This paper investigates the current research in the field of the end-of-life vehicles (ELV) recycling network. The optimisation of the location of a network facilities in forward logistics in the automotive industry has received a lot of attention for many years but the reverse logistics for ELVs has been a subject of investigations since the beginning of 21st century. ELV recycling network design gained in popularity after the European Union and other countries like Japan, South Korea and recently China introduced legal obligations to organize a collecting or recycling network for used vehicles. When regulations are introduced, there is a need for a systemic solution to the problem, especially since the obligation to create a collection network is often accompanied by requirements related to its accessibility for vehicle owners or efficiency of operation. With the growing scope of legal regulations, companies or organisations responsible for the network are forced to redesign the existing recycling infrastructure in a given area so that it meets specific requirements. Initially, the most important criterion was network availability. Currently, the same importance is attached to economic, environmental and social aspects in order to meet the sustainability criteria. In this paper, forty one peer-reviewed published studies focused on network design were classified. Its main purpose is to provide an extensive review of state-of-the-art research published in the period 2000-2019. The scope of the review is limited to network design problems including facility location and flow allocation problems. Only papers that present mathematical models are considered. Studies on the ELV network design are classified based on: type of supply chain, type of network, optimisation problem, type of facilities, modelling technique, single/multi objectivity, objective function, period of time, solution approach and scope of implementation. The final part of the paper includes discussion of the methodology of the reviewed studies and some recommendations for future research area.