Responsible Resource Management in Remanufacturing—Framework for Qualitative Assessment in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

Paulina Golinska-Dawson,Karolina Werner-Lewandowska,Monika Kosacka-Olejnik

doi:10.3390/resources10020019

Paulina Golinska-Dawson, Karolina Werner-Lewandowska + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/resources10020019

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Abstract

Through the remanufacturing process, obsolete, broken, and end-of-use products are brought to “a like new condition”. Remanufacturing is an example of implementation of circular economy at a company level. There are few studies on responsible resource management in a remanufacturing process. This paper contributes to this research gap by presenting a two-layered framework, which uses the maturity model theory, and it allows for a quick scan of a remanufacturing process. First, in the descriptive layer of the framework we define five maturity levels with regard to responsible resource management. We analyze water, emissions, energy, and materials, and describe relevant responsible resource management practices, which we link with maturity levels. We also design the relevant self-assessment tool which utilizes the existing expert’s knowledge of a company. Then, in the prescriptive layer of the framework, we propose a method for the identification of the maturity gap, and areas for improvement. We develop a procedure for prioritizing the measures, which shall be implemented in order to achieve a higher level of responsible resource management in a remanufacturing company. The framework is tested in small and medium-sized enterprises from the automotive industry.

Highlights

The circular economy concept aims for redesigning the industrial practices in order to establish more resource-efficient business models that allow reducing, reusing, and recycling
The main goal of this paper is to develop the decision making framework for responsible resource management for remanufacturing Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) (RRMRem), that is based on the maturity model theory
In order to assess the current maturity level with regard to responsible resource management, we propose the tool (RRMQ) with the Likert-scale

Summary

Introduction

The depletion of natural resources and the burdens resulting from climate change have triggered the need to decouple the economic growth from the consumption of natural resources [1]. The circular economy (CE) concept provides a new alternative to the long lasting paradigm of the linear economy model (take-make-use-dispose). It has gained much attention in academia in the last decade [2]. The primary goal of circular economy is “to transform business processes into sustainable, closed-loop resource systems” The circular economy concept aims for redesigning the industrial practices in order to establish more resource-efficient business models that allow reducing, reusing, and recycling

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