Prof Surendra M. Gupta
Professor Emeritus of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Northeastern University, USA
Reverse Supply Chains, Disassembly and Remanufacturing Research and Future Trends
Abstract: Human beings would like to maintain the existing and future economic prosperity, environmental protection and lifestyle. This requires the need to embrace sustainability which is the ability to continue the modern activities forever. Consequently, a push for reduction and elimination of waste as well as preservation of resources, which are the goals of lean manufacturing and product recovery through reverse supply chain, is warranted. Reverse supply chain consists of a series of activities required to collect used products from consumers and process them to either recover their leftover market values or dispose of them. Remanufacturing is an important constituent of reverse supply chains. The increase in popularity and implementation of remanufacturing have created many challenges including uncertainties in the quality and quantities of returned products, difficulties in estimating the remaining lives of the components, unspecified timings of the availability of end-of-life (EOL) products, balancing the remanufacturing line, pricing decisions, warranty cost estimation and potential for committing fraud by third party and customers, just to mention a few. This presentation will offer an overview of the various modeling techniques used by researchers to address the above-mentioned challenges as well as opportunities for future research.
About the Speaker: Surendra M. Gupta, Ph.D., P.E., is Professor Emeritus of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. He received his BE (Honors) in Electronics Engineering from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, MBA (Honors) from Bryant University, and MSIE and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University. He is a registered professional engineer in the State of Massachusetts, USA. Dr. Gupta’s research interests span the areas of Production/Manufacturing Systems and Operations Research. He is mostly interested in Environmentally Conscious Manufacturing, Reverse and Closed-Loop Supply Chains, Disassembly Modeling and Remanufacturing. He has authored or coauthored thirteen books and well over 700 technical papers published in edited books, journals and international conference proceedings. His publications have received over 20,000 citations (with an h-index of 73) from researchers all over the world in journals, proceedings, books, and dissertations. He has traveled to all seven continents viz., Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America and presented his work at international conferences on six continents. In addition, he has delivered over 35 plenary/keynote speeches in international conferences in several countries including Spain, The Netherlands, Denmark, France, Japan, Korea, Thailand, India, Taiwan, China, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. He has supervised 35 PhD’s dissertations and over 70 Master’s Thesis and Projects. Dr. Gupta has served as editor, associate editor and editorial board member of dozens of international journals. Among the many accolades received, he is Listed in the Stanford’s List of World’s Top 2% Scientists; Distinguished Professor Award from the Industrial Engineering and Operations Management Society International; Best Dissertation Advisor Award from the American Society for Engineering Management; Outstanding Research Award, Outstanding Industrial Engineering Professor Award and Multiple Major Works Awards from Northeastern University; and Outstanding Author Contribution Award from Emerald Publishing.
Prof John W. Sutherland
Professor and Fehsenfeld Family Head, Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Purdue University, USA
Environmental Sustainability and Circularity via Value Retention Strategies: Past, Present, and Future
Abstract: Over the last decade there has been growing interest in the circular economy (CE) paradigm, with many believing it is a key to achieving environmental sustainability. The CE paradigm calls for abandoning the “take-make-use-dispose” approach in favor of closing product/material loops, e.g., reusing, remanufacturing, and recycling. While the concept of circularizing material loops is not new to those familiar with remanufacturing, its espousal by corporate executives and policymakers is a more recent development. This presentation will review the origins of environmental engineering and industrial ecology, and how that has led to advances in the environmental analysis of industrial systems. The life cycle benefits of remanufacturing and recycling will be discussed as will the economic and environmental challenges of circularization. Specific examples will be discussed including i) projections of critical material demands for clean energy technologies and potentially recoverable resources from end-of-life products, ii) life cycle and techno-economic assessment applications, iii) life cycle symbiosis, and iv) recent efforts to develop circularity indicators. Promising research directions for the future will be discussed.
About the Speaker: John Sutherland is a Professor and the Fehsenfeld Family Head of Environmental and Ecological Engineering (EEE) at Purdue University, USA. He has made pioneering research and education contributions to establish and advance the field of environmentally responsible design and manufacturing. He has served as an investigator on numerous externally funded projects, mentored over 100 students to the completion of their graduate degrees (including 34 Ph.D. students), and published nearly 450 papers in various journals and conference proceedings. His honors and recognitions include the SME Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer Award (1992), Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (1996), SAE Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award (1999), SME Education Award (2009), SAE International John Connor Environmental Award (2010), ASME William T. Ennor Manufacturing Technology Award (2013), SME Gold Medal (2018), AEESP Frederick George Pohland Medal (2022), and National Academy of Engineering member (2023), and AEESP Dist. Service Award (2024). He is a Fellow of SME, ASME, CIRP, and AAAS. He received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Environmental and Ecological Engineering (EEE) at Purdue University has undergraduate and graduate degree programs and is one of the largest environmental engineering programs in the USA. EEE is unique in that it embraces industrial sustainability in addition to classic environmental engineering. For more info see the EEE homepage.
Prof Dr -Ing Rolf Steinhilper
About the Speaker: Rolf Steinhilper graduated as a mechanical engineer specializing in Factory Management and Automotive Technology at the University of Stuttgart, Germany in 1978. He then worked as a Fraunhofer R&D Manager on innovation projects dealing with Manufacturing, Remanufacturing, Recycling and EcoDesign for major industrial clients in Europe, USA and Canada, Japan, China and Taiwan in the past 40 years. In 1990, Rolf belonged also to the founding members of the APRA European Division. In 2001 he was appointed full professor for Manufacturing and Remanufacturing Technology at the University of Bayreuth, Germany. Since 2006 he was also responsible for the Fraunhofer Project Group “Process innovation” there, where he started and orchestrated the European Remanufacturing Technology Center from 2001 until 2018, when he retired from his academic positions at the age of 66 years. His team consisted of more than 45 specialized scientists and engineers who gave significant innovation support to the remanufacturing industry worldwide. He has written 15 books among them a Bestseller entitled “Remanufacturing”, which has been published in seven World languages, also Japanese, Chinese, Korean. In 2016, Rolf Steinhilper won the “Remanufacturer of the year” award as the first academician among the so far industry management award winners.
Fernand Weiland
Director, FJW Consulting, Germany
About the Speaker: Fernand Weiland founded the APRA European Division in 1989, serving as the Division’s first Chairman for more than 20 years. Between 1990 and 2010 he organized a considerable number of APRA forums, workshops and exhibitions across Europe. A co-founder of the biennial Rematec remanufacturing exhibitions in Amsterdam, Fernand Weiland has written numerous articles for the Rematec News magazine and edited five books about automotive remanufacturing in Europe. He was also instrumental in setting up APRA’s established Asia-Pacific Division. In 2019 Fernand was honoured with the prestigious Best Reman Ambassador Award presented by Rematec Amsterdam. Fernand is currently an editor and Director of FJW Consulting.
Mike Hague-Morgan
Executive Director, Autocraft Solutions Group, UK
About the Speaker: Mike Hague-Morgan is co-owner and majority shareholder of Autocraft Solutions Group. With his strong track record in turning companies around, Mike was appointed Commercial and Engineering Director of US-owned Autocraft Industries in 2008, with a brief to turn the loss-making company into profit. Seeing the potential of this very unique company, Mike led the MBO of the company in 2010 and the company was re-born as Autocraft Drivetrain Solutions. Under Mike’s and his senior leadership team’s direction, Autocraft Solutions Group was formed following the purchases of Vertex Engineering Solutions in 2015 and Autocraft Machining Solutions in 2018. Since the MBO, the company has grown from £6m to £60m+ turnover, and from 98 to over 430 employees. It has diversified into EV battery repair and remanufacture, and provides a fully outsourced IC engine assembly solution for OEMs moving to EV.
Mike has a BEng in Mechanical Engineering and prior to entry into the remanufacturing arena had a successful career in the conventional manufacturing automotive sector. Mike is a passionate believer in B2B partnerships with a win-win philosophy and champions the use of new technology in manufacturing businesses. Mike is a Vice President of the SMMT, Chair of their Automotive Components Section (ACS), former Vice Chair of the East Midlands Regional Advisory Board for Make UK, and a former Manufacturing Board Member of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP. He regularly supports Innovate UK and KTN Workshops to promote engineering and manufacturing in the UK.
Stefan Caba
Head of Innovation Field Sustainable Vehicle Development, EDAG Engineering GmbH, Germany
Circular Vehicle Design – A prerequisite for Remanufacturing
Abstract: The new End-of-Life Vehicle Directive by the European Union is still under elaboration, but already today it becomes clear that circular economy in all possible ways will become a mandatory part of vehicle manufacturing business. This generates novel business models, but in particular the way vehicles are designed and manufactured will be influenced towards more sustainable options. Remanufacturing is established in particular for parts concerning the drivetrain. The changes in regulation on the one hand and the stronger identification with sustainability on the other hand will lead to increased demand for circular solutions also for other parts of the vehicle. This creates chances for novel approaches of vehicle design that is dedicated to remanufacturing and adherent business models. In different projects approaches for vehicle concepts including circular economy thinking were elaborated. General findings showed that long-term use of components in combination with detachable joints deliver solutions that show lower carbon footprints and suitable business cases for remanufacturing. The combination with other circular businesses like car sharing creates a friendly environment to achieve marketability. Materials that enable long-term use are mandatory. Here, lightweight design using carbon fiber reinforced plastics is a viable option, since it shows excellent durability. The keynote will present the basic requirements for improved vehicle design for circular economy and remanufacturing. It will highlight benefits and discuss shortcomings based on vehicle concepts. Economic and ecologic aspects will be covered and possible pathways for future circular vehicles demonstrated.
About the Speaker: Stefan Caba has worked in composites for more than 15 years. In 2017 he completed his PhD working on void reduction in Resin Transfer Molding. Since then he has been part of the EDAG Innovation Department. His main area of work is the circular economy and sustainable solutions in the automotive industry with a focus on composite concepts for circular design.
The EDAG Group is a globally leading, independent engineering service provider that providing excellent engineering with the latest technology. With a global network of some 60 branches, the EDAG Group realizes projects in the Vehicle Engineering, Electrics/Electronics and Production Solutions segments. EDAGs proprietary 360-degreee development approaches has become a hallmark of quality in the holistic development of vehicles and smart factories.
Dr Hagen Thielecke
Director R&D, Vanguard AG, Germany
Medical Remanufacturing: Opportunities, Regulatory Requirements and Challenges in Research and Development
Abstract: The healthcare sector has an enormous impact on global warming and resource consumption. Medical remanufacturing as part of the circular economy enables hospitals to optimise their supply chains ecologically and economically, but also poses high challenges for process development and is highly regulated.
Medical remanufacturing is a practice that has been established for decades and enables the reuse of complex and expensive disposable medical devices. Reprocessing is strictly regulated in the Medical Device Regulation (EU) 2017/745 (MDR). Remanufacturing companies must generally comply with the same general safety and performance requirements as original manufacturers. For remanufactured products, this usually means that the products leave the remanufacturing process with a CE mark and are proven to be as safe and efficient as newly manufactured products. To make this possible, extensive preparatory work is required, which is carried out by the Research and Development department. Interdisciplinary teams ranging from engineers, biologists and chemists to specialists in clinical use are needed. The engineers specialise in particular in the fields of mechanics, electrical engineering, embedded systems, materials science and process engineering.
In contrast to most other industries, manufacturers of medical devices not only have to prove the safety and performance of their products, but also fulfil extensive regulatory requirements. Of course, this also applies to the remanufacturing of medical devices. Particular challenges in remanufacturing are material and product-friendly processes, especially for cleaning and sterilisation as well as for disassembly for cleaning. For example, many complex medical devices are made of thermolabile plastics. Only low-temperature processes and chemicals that are compatible with the plastics and do not have a negative impact on biocompatibility may be used for these plastics. When complex medical devices are placed on the market by manufacturers as so-called single-use devices, the manufacturers often do not co-operate with the re-manufacturers. In these cases, it is necessary to analyse the design, the material and the relevant product properties. Additionally, suitable procedures for recognising product changes must be developed.
After an introduction to the topic, the presentation will first provide a regulatory categorisation of medical remanufacturing and then look at the development of remanufacturing processes. Finally, the presentation will look at life cycle assessment studies to analyse the environmental impact of medical remanufacturing.
About the Speaker: Dr Hagen Thielecke is currently the Director of R&D at Vanguard AG since December 2010. Dr. Thielecke previously held significant positions, including Head of the Biohybrid Systems Department and Founder and Manager of the Interdisciplinary Cell-based Sensors & Biomonitoring Group at Fraunhofer IBMT from February 2002 to November 2010. Dr. Thielecke began as a Project Manager at Fraunhofer Gesellschaft from September 2000 to January 2002 and previously worked as an R&D Project Manager at QUEG Thermometerbau GmbH from October 1994 to August 1997. Academic qualifications include a Diplom-Ingenieur in Electrical Engineering and Electronics from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, a Doctorate in Engineering from Universität des Saarlandes, and a Master's in Engineering and Production Technology from Middlesex University.
Dominic Schultze
Manager Components Rebuild and Warehouse, Herrenknecht AG, Germany
HERRENKNECHT REBUILD SERVICES - High quality rebuilds for ensuring resources and ecological efficiency in tunneling
Abstract: The talk will provide a short introduction on the topic “What is a TBM” and how Herrenknecht creates the circular economy for TBM-Components. It will discuss what does Herrenknecht understand behind the heading REBUILD and why we have a separate plant for these activities. Carbon footprint is becoming more and more important, and Herrenknecht has a unique selling point here.
About the Speaker: After graduating the University Offenburg - University of Applied Sciences with a Bachelor of Engineering, Dominic joined Herrenknecht AG, Schwanau, Germany as a Project Engineer / Manager for Tunnel Boring Machines. In 2013 he moved to become Technical Support Engineer at Herrenknecht Rebuild Services in Kehl, Germany, then in 2022 started his current position as Manager Components Rebuild and Warehouse at Herrenknecht Rebuild Services.
Herrenknecht AG is a German company that manufactures tunnel boring machines, headquartered in Allmannsweier, Schwanau, Baden-Württemberg. It is the worldwide market leader for heavy tunnel boring machines. Roughly two-thirds of its 5,000 employees work at the company's headquarters in the installation of hydraulic and electronic components and final inspection. Approximately 300 work at three locations across China. The company has 82 subsidiaries around the world and has worked on 2,600 projects. As the leading premium supplier of comprehensive technical solutions in mechanized tunnelling, Herrenknecht is the first port of call for underground infrastructure projects around the world. Dominic Schultze, Technical Support Engineer will provide an overview of Herrenknecht AG remanufacturing activity.
Siva Balakrishnan
General Manager (Lifecycle Solutions), GE HealthCare, USA
Circularity in GE HealthCare
Abstract: The talk will discuss global population dynamics, the need for health equity around the world, and for expanded healthcare solutions. It will provide an overview of what GE HealthCare does and what remanufacturing they do in GE HealthCare.
About the Speaker: Siva has approximately 30 years of experience spanning multiple industries including construction and industrial equipment. During his career, he has led remanufacturing and lifecycle operations for a wide variety of products including industrial cranes, mobile cranes, Utility trucks, aerial work platforms, industrial compressors, industrial blowers and trailers over and above his current area of expertise in healthcare equipment. In addition to extensive operational experience in product and part circularity, Siva’s career also spans multiple functional areas including internal audit, Lean, and Six Sigma. Siva is extremely passionate about driving inclusiveness in organizations and has been involved in inclusiveness efforts over the last ~20 years. He continues to champion these efforts within GE HealthCare.
GE HealthCare Technologies, Inc is an American multinational medical technology company spun-off from General Electric. The company is committed to people and planet and aims to enable earlier, better, and faster diagnosis and treatment for more people in need, while reducing or eliminating their impact on the environment. This group drives product and parts circularity initiatives, supporting sustainability within GE HealthCare including solutions for parts repair and harvesting and equipment remanufacturing and refurbishment. The group also drives one stop shopping options for its customers worldwide with availability of accessories and locally sourced items for usage with GE HealthCare products. The GE HealthCare industry keynote will be presented by Siva Balakrishnan the General Manager for Lifecycle Solutions in Global Services which includes the GE GoldSeal Programs (Remanufacturing and Refurbishment) as well as Repair and Harvesting of parts and subassemblies.