Remanufacturization

A storage for remanufactured items such as furniture, tv, kids bicycle.

The project will support B2C manufacturers in the transition towards remanufacturing by developing and improving manufacturers' remanufacturing ecosystems as well as investigating the remanufacturing potential of consumer products

The European Union (EU) supports the circular economy (C E) through its “Green Deal” initiatives and “Eco-Design” directives and calls for prolonged product use and reuse through remanufacturing, emphasizing its substantial economic, environmental, and social benefits. Due to many risks associated with circular business strategies, business-to-customer (B2C ) manufacturers hesitate to adopt remanufacturing, a process that brings used products back to as-good-as-new performance yet prolongs the products’ lives. Consequently, many Swedish B2C industries still live in a linear economy and hide great remanufacturing potential that needs to be excavated and deployed to support the smoother transition to a circular economy.

Today remanufacturing is accepted by many OEMs in a business-to-business (B2B) market worldwide. The portion of EU remanufacturers in a B2C market remains low. In the EU and, in particular, Sweden, remanufacturing is limited to a few B2B industries like heavy vehicles, automotive, and IT and is often provided as an additional aftermarket service. Despite its benefits, remanufacturing is typically undervalued and under-recognized by Swedish B2C manufacturers and their customers. This hinders customers' access to a wide range of remanufactured products, diminishing their acceptance. Therefore, up to now, the Swedish B2C market was hiding great remanufacturing potential that needs to be excavated and deployed to support the smoother transition to a circular economy.

The goal of the project

The project “Remanufacturization” has an overall objective to accelerate the remanufacturization (shift to remanufacturing) of the Swedish B2C manufacturing sector. Therefore, the specific goals of the project are to:

Facilitate the adoption of remanufacturing strategy by the Swedish B2C manufacturing industry.
Mitigate B2C market risks associated with the shift to remanufacturing.
Increase customers’ acceptance of remanufactured products within the B2C market.
Support the development of the B2C remanufacturing ecosystem in Sweden.

The project consortium consists of two researchers at Linköping University and six initial B2C industrial partners with an interest to adopt and/or improve remanufacturing as a circular strategy for their consumer products.

Do you want to collaborate?

Do not throw away -reuse instead!

Most consumer products are not made for remanufacturing. There are a lot of fears, prejudices, obstacles and other risks on both the producers’ and customers’ sides and Dr. Jelena Kurilova-Palisaitiene together with Prof. Lars Witell are ready to shine the light on that issue in the Remanufacturization project.

Expected results

Short-term impact

The “Remanufacturization” project’s projected results with a short-term impact on the participating industries and connected society include:

Sustainable production, waste reduction, and material salvation.
Sustainable infrastructure, new types of business, and new types of partnership between a large number of stakeholders in a product value chain.
Sustainable consumption.
Learning and education, and new job opportunities.

Long-term impact

The “Remanufacturization” project’s projected results with a long-term impact on Swedish industry and broader society (outside the project consortium) include:

Improved adaptability of the Swedish B2C manufacturing industry to climate challenges and market requirements.
Increased access to knowledge and skills on remanufacturing among Swedish manufacturing industries.
Increased sustainability and competitiveness in the Swedish manufacturing industry.
Reduced gap between the B2B and B2C remanufacturing industries.

Contact

Project time and financier

Project time

The project runs from 1 January 2022 - 31 December 2025.

Formas

We are a government research council for sustainable development. We fund research and innovation, develop strategies, perform analyses and conduct evaluations. Our areas of activity include the environment, agricultural sciences and spatial planning

Sustainable Manufacturing

Researchers at Linköping University together with industrial partners are studying industrial process for manufacturing to make them more sustainable.

electronics equipment assembly workplace with pliers and necessary tools

Remometer

We help manufacturers and other actors to start remanufacturing by investigating their suitability and readiness to start remanufacturing.

Sustainable Business Models

A rapidly growing field of research. The focus is on life cycle-based offerings and business models in which design and innovation are important components. The research is interdisciplinary and is conducted in close collaboration with industry.

Organisation

Environmental Technology and Management (MILJÖ)

Division of Environmental Technology and Management is a research and education environment at the Department of Management and Engineering. We turn environmental problems into opportunities.

Business Administration (FEK)

Business Administration is a division at the Department of Management and Engineering. The division offers education on undergraduate, masters, and PhD levels, and is an active research environment.

Image with words as services, products, innovation

Products Services and Innovation

The unit is a research group that are leading experts in applied and transdisciplinary research on sustainable value creation based on a system perspective that enables effective and efficient use and preservation of resources.

Remanufacturization

The goal of the project