Practical example
Remanufacturing: Turning Old into New
Did you know that used, non-functional products often still hold significant potential in terms of resource efficiency? By remanufacturing used products, the material and energy costs of production can be reduced, thereby lowering manufacturing costs. The remanufactured product is brought up to at least the same quality level as a new part and offers end customers an attractive alternative to a new part.
Background
High parts prices, dependence on suppliers, and increasing competitive pressure are making the spare parts business more challenging for OEMs today. Remanufacturing makes it possible to fulfill delivery obligations to end customers by refurbishing old products to current market standards and to reduce manufacturing costs by utilizing existing resources during the remanufacturing process. This creates room for lower spare part prices, allowing companies to offer attractive spare part deals to price-sensitive customers and counteract customer defection to lower-cost third-party suppliers. Environmental factors are also playing an increasingly important role in the implementation of remanufacturing by reducing resource consumption.
Specific task
By implementing processes for the remanufacturing of used parts, the company was able to improve resource efficiency, expand its existing product portfolio, and tap into new market segments.
KBC's Approach
To successfully implement remanufacturing, our first step is to focus on careful strategic preparation. Right from the start, we identify the primary objective and evaluate the use of remanufacturing in light of the company’s overall situation. Once the long-term strategy has been developed, we proceed to define the portfolio. To make a sound selection, the parts portfolio is analyzed in detail and evaluated technically. In doing so, we always keep the strategic direction and marketing in line with the defined strategy in mind. Finally, we develop a suitable pricing strategy, taking into account our market and competitive knowledge and incorporating benchmarks.
To ensure a closed-loop parts cycle, the next step involved working with our customer to develop suitable concepts for ensuring the return of used parts, as well as processes for inspecting and sorting them. Drawing on our technical expertise and remanufacturing experience, we then developed cost-effective remanufacturing concepts and assisted our customer in selecting appropriate remanufacturing technologies. After defining the necessary manufacturing and handling processes, we provided support throughout their implementation.
