Remanufacturing Of Components Research Articles

Production planning for hybrid remanufacturing and manufacturing system with component recovery

In this paper, we address component recovery under the condition of limited resources from the OEM's (Original Equipment Manufacturer's) standpoint. We develop a linear programming model for a hybrid remanufacturing and manufacturing system for production planning problems with deterministic returns. In this paper, a data set from an OEM that both remanufactures and manufactures the products is used to demonstrate the performance of the proposed model. Subsequently, an analysis of the impact of the remanufactured product’s price and the quantity of returns on revenue and total cost will be discussed. We have found that uncertain factors of manufacturing influence the profit and uncertain factors of remanufacturing influence the production planning, such as the rate of the yield on component remanufacturing and the quantity of returns.

Simulation and Experimental Study of Ultrasonic Cleaning Based on Multi-Field Coupling

In current Ultrasonic Cleaning simulation, high calculation complexity and low precision is a big problem. The disadvantages of reflecting the sound field characteristics inaccurately and quantitative difficulties exist in the sound field measurements. Firstly, the two-dimensional and three-dimensional models of Ultrasonic Cleaning are established in COMSOL Multiphysics and corresponding cleaning effects under different frequencies are simulated, then the frequencies of cleaning machine suitable for remanufactured components are determined. Finally, by means of staining method, sound field distribution on different work cross-sections in the Ultrasonic Cleaning process is studied. Halcon and Matlab are used in our investigation to deal with the experiment results in order to provide a new idea on the measurement of the sound field of Ultrasonic Cleaning.

Current Status and Future Perspective of Waste Printed Circuit Boards Recycling

For waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), large quantities of waste printed circuit boards (PCBs) are released into environment. In light of their characteristics including complex structures, high metals content and potential hazards, waste PCBs are regarded as the most difficult parts of WEEE to be recycled. Therefore in recent ten years, the issue has attracted much attention from researchers and enterprises. This article reviews the latest processes of waste PCBs developed from laboratories to pilot engineering applications, and presents the most suitable available technology for waste PCBs, typically categorized as manually dismantling and automatic approaches in developing and developed countries, respectively. Towards achieving the better sustainability and recyclability for waste PCBs, nonmetal powder and precious metals should be developed for a deep recovery following mechanical treatment. Additionally, a significant shift is emerging from dismantling for recycling of printed wiring boards, to disassembling for remanufacturing of electronic components, which will indicate that a new paradigm of reclaiming waste PCBs is shaping.

Decentralized Closed-Loop Supply Chain Model with Component Remanufacturing

Decentralized Closed-Loop Supply Chain Model with Component Remanufacturing

An analysis of remanufacturing practices in Japan

This study presents case studies of selected remanufacturing operations in Japan. It investigates Japanese companies' motives and incentives for remanufacturing, clarifies the requirements and obstacles facing remanufacturers, itemizes what measures companies take to address them, and discusses the influence of Japanese laws related to remanufacturing. This study involves case studies of four product areas: photocopiers, single-use cameras, auto parts, and ink and toner cartridges for printers. Results and conclusions are based on the authors' discussions and interviews with 11 remanufacturers--four original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and seven independent remanufacturers (IRs). In the discussions and the interviews, we asked the companies their motives for remanufacturing and asked the measures they take to overcome the obstacles of remanufacturing. This study highlighted three requirements for remanufacturing: (1) collection of used products, (2) efficient remanufacturing processes, and (3) demand for remanufactured products. Where OEMs are the main remanufacturers of products covered by this study, their motives are long-term economic and environmental incentives. Where IRs are the main remanufacturers, it is often because OEMs shun remanufacturing, fearing to cannibalize new product sales. Companies' efforts to meet the above mentioned three requirements were observed and documented: (1) establishing a new collection channel; (2) developing reverse logistics to collect used products; (3) designing products for remanufacturing (DfReman); (4) accumulating know-how to establish remanufacturing processes; and (5) controlling product quality to stimulate demand for remanufactured products. This study also notes that (6) OEMs who engage in remanufacturing build consumer demand by incorporating remanufactured components into new products. This point has not been particularly noted in previous studies, but it has an important implication for OEMs' remanufacturing. The authors found that Japan's Home Appliances Recycling Law and End-of-Life Vehicle Law have promoted material recycling but have been insufficient to stimulate remanufacturing within the country. This study clarified the differences between OEMs' and IRs' remanufacturing. Both IRs and OEMs are important for remanufacturing. Institutional measures to encourage appropriate competition between OEMs and IRs and to enhance consumers' acceptance of remanufactured products is important to promote remanufacturing.

Variability and Component Criticality in Component Reuse and Remanufacturing Systems

Different operations, such as take-back, cleaning, and repair, lead to high system variability rendering remanufacturing systems difficult to manage. Even when a product is successfully remanufactured, there remains the problem of customer perception of remanufactured products being not able to perform as well as new ones. The possibility of several different options (reusing, remanufacturing, and recycling) further compound the complexity of the information set that should be considered for effective remanufacturing. This paper develops a method that can be employed for making component level decisions that accounts for aforesaid issues. A metric is proposed that measures the randomness or variability imposed by a reuse alternative. A measure of effective age is also proposed, extending the lines of previous research. A washing machine example illustrates the method and how the two measures can be incorporated into a design decision model.

Calculating the environmental benefits of remanufacturing

Remanufacturing operations have taken place quietly for many decades on the simple grounds of their economic benefits. However, in recent years, the potential environmental benefits have brought them to the fore. This paper starts by illustrating two main business models behind remanufacturing. Product remanufacturing involves the return and reworking of an entire product for resale, such as is undertaken with manufacturers of large photocopiers. Component remanufacturing involves the return of individual components for resale, such as is undertaken with manufacturers of heavy earth-moving equipment. After an explanation of the various environmental benefits claimed for such activities, the main challenges to these environmental benefits are outlined, namely equating the manufacturing phase benefits with the potentially greater use-phase benefits from newer technologies. Finally, the authors present and illustrate a software tool they have developed in an attempt to address this challenge, when combined with a modular design paradigm.

Counterfeiting, Cloning and Remanufacturing of Electrical Components and Its Impact on Life Safety and Equipment Reliability

Counterfeiting, Cloning and Remanufacturing of Electrical Components and Its Impact on Life Safety and Equipment Reliability

Characteristics of the automotive remanufacturing enterprise with an economic and environmental evaluation of alternator products

Technology has improved the standard of living while resulting in serious global challenges with respect to the climate, air, water, land and material resources. Remanufacturing is a process that restores old products to perform like new, while saving energy, reducing consumption of natural resources and lowering environmental emissions. In this paper, we investigate characteristics of the automotive remanufacturing enterprise with an economic and environmental evaluation of alternator products. The paper reveals attitudes and impressions that were collected from 13 automotive component remanufacturers and shows that typical business structures of remanufacturing companies and their core collecting and product retail logistics influence the economics of component remanufacturing. The economic and environmental analysis also provides a baseline estimate of improvements in material use and energy associated with remanufacturing versus producing a new alternator.

A comparison of manufacturing and remanufacturing energy intensities with application to diesel engine production

Climate change reports and policies relating to end-of-use products, CO 2 emissions, and energy are causing manufacturers to examine their operations closely. Several reports have touted the economic and environmental benefits of remanufacturing, including claims of significant reductions in terms of energy and CO 2 emissions. However, large-scale remanufacturing of heavy equipment engine components has not been closely examined and no standard procedure exists to quantify the benefits of remanufacturing. A methodology is presented for determining the energy intensity and benefits of remanufacturing as compared to new manufacturing, and this is applied to a diesel engine example. These findings are used to estimate the embodied manufacturing/remanufacturing energy across multiple use cycles.

Structural integrity and life extension of high-temperature components

Four different topics for high-temperature components, namely the development of the assessment codes for the structural integrity of high-temperature components, the application of continuous damage mechanics and probabilistic damage mode on the life assessment of high-temperature components, the life extension for high-temperature components and a proposed strategy for remanufacturing of high-temperature components were discussed in this paper. These topics should provide some important insights for the design and re-design of high- temperature components.

Automatic brush-plating technology for component remanufacturing

An automatic brush-plating system was developed for component remanufacturing. With this system, Ni/nano-alumina composite coatings from an electrolyte containing 20 g/L nano-alumina particles were prepared. Microstructure, surface morphology, microhardness and wear resistance of automatically plated coating and manually plated coatings were investigated comparatively. The results show that the automatically plated coatings are relatively dense and uniform and have lower friction coefficient of 0.089 under lubricant condition, when compared with manually plated coatings with friction coefficient of 0.14.

A web-based Demand Planning System (DPS) to enable coordinated re-manufacture of automotive components

Remanufacturing has gained popularity in recent years due to both environmental necessity and the potential for increased profits. Information systems are key to remanufacturing processes as they can reduce coordination problems and create improved visibility. This is especially important in remanufacturing as the rate of returns and/or demand for remanufactured products can be subject to heavy fluctuations. Many corporate legacy systems do not have the capacity to cope with remanufacturing circumstances and so the prototyped application discussed in this paper provides a cheap alternative to the otherwise heavy investment that would accompany a new ERP product. This paper reports on a case study involving two companies involved in the manufacture and assembly of automotive transmissions. Furthermore, it provides evidence to suggest that the internet can provide a simple and cost-effective solution to significantly improve the information flow between two companies situated in a reverse flow supply chain.

The logical core architecture

Molecular nanotechnology (MNT) promises new functions for engineered systems, such as fairly general purpose fabrication and disassembly. Systems designed afresh to take advantage of these new functions should offer original architectures. One compelling example is the `logical core architecture', which uses subsystems providing general purpose manufacturing to enable a long-lived, very flexible system. This paper provides motivation for the logical core architecture, discussing systems architecting, the inclination of MNT to support polymorphic systems and the implications of using dynamic remanufacture of on-board components for reliability. It describes in detail the logical core architecture, which comprises four levels, the logical core, the physical core, the surge layer, and the external interface layer. The functions of the subsystems in each of these layers are presented. To illuminate the architecture's capabilities, example operations are presented. Several are space mission profiles for systems using a logical core architecture for such tasks as multimode trajectories and asteroid mining, and several illustrate more general capabilities and flexibilities of the architecture. Basic equations are derived for reliability via on-board remanufacture of subcomponents and for surging functional capacity. The prospect of fundamentally new operating modes raises interesting questions regarding appropriate operating policies. Initial observations are offered on these novel problems. The paper concludes with a discussion of important open questions, including appropriate directions for further stepwise refinement of the architecture.