Showing papers on "Remanufacturing published in 1996"

An (s,Q) inventory model with remanufacturing and disposal

Abstract: textIn this paper we analyse an (s, Q) inventory model in which used products can be remanufactured to new ones. We develop two approximations for the average costs and compare their performance with that of an approximation suggested by Muckstadt and Isaac. Next we extend the model with the option to dispose returned products and present a heuristic optimisation procedure which is checked with full enumeration.

Product remanufacturing and disposal: A numerical comparison of alternative control strategies

Abstract: textIn this paper we consider a single-product, single-echelon production and inventory system with product returns, product remanufacturing, and product disposal. For this system we consider three different procurement and inventory

Scheduling using drum-buffer-rope in a remanufacturing environment

Abstract: Scheduling in a remanufacturing environment is more complex and the scheduler must deal with more uncertainty than in a traditional manufacturing environment. In order to properly schedule in a remanufacturing environment the schedule must be able to cope with several complicating factors which increase variability. The schedule must be able to cope with conditional routeings, a routeing that may or may not be taken due to the condition of the unit. The schedule must also be able to cope with dependent events, e.g. operation B cannot begin until operation A is completed. Drum-buffer-rope (DBR.) offers an extremely robust method of scheduling. A schedule built using DBR can take both conditional routeings and dependent events into account. A realistic example from a military depot is discussed in detail and each step required to build a schedule using DBR is explained fully. This paper also shows the results from a simulation model of DBR at a repair/rework depot which are benchmarked against the present p...

Towards Design for Remanufacturing - Metrics for Assessing Remanufacturability

Abstract: A growing concern about the environment, and especially about waste and landfill, has spurred research into the design of more environmentally benign products. A dramatic reduction in environmental impact can be made by product remanufacturing in which, in contrast to material recycling, the geometrical form of the product is retained and its associated economical and environmental value preserved. Our research goal is to establish design metrics which efficiently and effectively measure the remanufacturability of product designs. In this paper, metrics for assessing the remanufacturability based on product design features are introduced. Similar like Design for Assembly metrics, these Design for Remanufacturing metrics provide a relatively efficient and effective means for a product designer to obtain feedback with respect to the remanufacturability of a product. The metrics have been applied to various case studies, ranging from consumer electronic to automotive products. Feedback from the remanufacturing industry confirms the remanufacturability assessments obtained using the metrics described in this paper.

Production planning and inventory control for remanufacturable durable products

Abstract: In this paper we focus on production planning and inventory control in systems where manufacturing and remanufacturing operations occur simultaneously. Typical for these hybrid systems is, that both the output of the manufacturing process and the output of the remanufacturing process can be used to fulfil customer demands. This process interaction together with other process interactions and various sources of uncertainty make production planning and inventory control in hybrid systems more complex than production planning and inventory control in traditional systems. The objectives of this paper are to demonstrate some of the effects of remanufacturing on production planning and inventory control, and to indicate various actions that can be taken by remanufacturing companies to improve their cost-efficiency. In particular, the issues of how much and where to keep (safety) stocks, how much and when to manufacture and remanufacture, and how to reduce the various sources of system uncertainty will be addressed. In this context we study a relatively simple hybrid system, related to a single component durable product. The behaviour of this system is numerically evaluated both under a PUSH-remanufacturing strategy (in which all returned products are remanufactured as early as possible) and under a PULL-remanufacturing strategy (in which the timing of remanufacturing operations depends on a combination of market demands for new products and market supply of returned products).

Designed experiments to analyze the solder joint quality output of a SMD remanufacturing system

Abstract: A robotic remanufacturing cell system developed at Rensselaer is used to replace a surface mounted component on a populated Printed Circuit Board (PCB). The performance goal is to estimate the high quality solder joint output to measure the cell system's throughput. Maximizing the number of the reliably reworked components by the cell system is not chosen as a goal for measuring the system's performance. This is because rework is a low volume process and the cell being used is an experimental prototype system. The purpose of this paper is to present the steps, factors, and levels for obtaining a good solder joint with the rework cell developed here.

Remanufacturing system of vehicle

Abstract: PURPOSE: To suppress the generation of waste at the minimum level while minimizing the manufacturing cost, by providing a classifying means to classify the parts to reuse depending on the data of a discrimination managing means, and a remanufacturing means to remanufacture a vehicle by using the classified parts CONSTITUTION: A vehicle reaching to the using limit is recovered, and it is thrown into a classifying means 14 to be classified The discriminating mark of the recovered vehicle is checked, the discriminating mark is led into a discrimination managing means 12, and the managing data such as the reusing cycles of the recovered vehicle 18, and the parts to compose the vehicle, are delivered to the classifying means 14 In the classifying means 14, the parts to reuse are classified depending on the managing data such as the reusing cycles fed from the discrimination managing means 12, as to each decomposed part, and they are fed to a remanufacturing means 16 In the remanufacturing means 16, the parts to reuse fed from the classifying means 14 are thrown in, and besides that, new parts are thrown in for the parts to be exchanged, and the vehicle is remanufactured through a formation process, a painting process, an assembling process, an examination process, and the like

Lead-Time Effects in PUCH and PULL Controlled Manufacturing/Remanufacturing Systems

Abstract: In this paper we extend the PUCH and PULL control strategies defined in Van der Laan et al. (1995) to evaluate empirically the effect of lead-time duration and lead-time variability on total expected costs in production/inventory systems with remanufacturing.

Planning tools and techniques for production evaluation and disassembly

Abstract: This paper describes the development and implementation of a computerized model to support production planning in a specialized type of remanufacturing facility, the Pantex Plant operated for the US Department of Energy. The model integrates two different production processes (nuclear weapon dismantlement and stockpile evaluation) which use common facilities and personnel, and reflects the interactions of scheduling constraints, material flow constraints and resource availability. These two processes reflect characteristics of flow-shop and job-shop operations in a single facility. Operational results from using the model are also discussed.