Analysis and taxonomy of remanufacturing industry practice

The remanufacturing industry is a large and economically important industry that includes many market sectors and provides significant societal and environmental benefits. Products are remanufactured through a series of industrial processes including disassembly, cleaning, inspection, reconditioning, reassembly and testing. Literature on the subject is diverse, and widely differing views, definitions and descriptions of 'remanufacturing' are given. The objective of this paper is to review the literature available and examine the terminology surrounding remanufacture, and establish definitions for the various processes such as recycling, refurbishing and reconditioning that are used synonymously. The definitions provide a sound research framework for examining the processes further. Secondly, via a review of industrial practice and a set of case studies, the key business drivers faced by the remanufacturing industry are presented.