What about the circular economy of vehicles in the U.S.? An extension of the analysis done in the EU by Saidani et al. (2017)

Abstract

Automobile ownership worldwide has exceeded 1 billion since 2010, and the U.S. plus the EU account for 50% of this total (Sakai et al. 2014). According to Wilson (2017), CEO of the U.S. Automotive Recyclers Association (ARA): “Different countries are on different parts of the path related to end-of-life management of vehicles. By looking at how other countries deal with their industry, one can choose some parts of the path that are desirable and try to avoid some of the paths that are unpleasant.” It is with this perspective that this communication initiates a discussion of the appropriate transfers and applications of recommended practices and know-how from one industrial sector (the automotive sector) to another (the heavy-duty and off-road (HDOR) sector) and from a geographic region (the EU) to another (the U.S.). Saidani et al. (2017) discussed the best industrial practices and remaining challenges for a circular economy (CE) of light and heavy vehicles in the EU. The end-of-life (EoL) business practices and regulations imposed on these sectors in the EU are considerably different than the same sectors in the U.S., and thus provide an interesting comparison case. To develop this juxtaposition, an updated literature review as well as industrial field investigations were done in the U.S. with the aim of providing supplementary insights to the questions raised by Saidani et al. (2017), including: (i) to what extent is CE achieved and implemented in the automotive and HDOR sectors, (ii) what industrial practices and regulations are prevalent and supportive of CE goals, and (iii) what are the main challenges both regions have to face for an enhanced CE of EoL vehicles?