Product portfolio design for component reuse

Abstract

In order to make product take-back a viable end-of-use alternative, long-range product planning needs to be incorporated in the early design stages. Furthermore, meeting the opposing demands of different market segments requires development of a long-range plan for a portfolio of products based on market segmentation rather than a single product. Analyzing a portfolio of products creates opportunities for the design engineer to distribute the cost, reliability and environmental impacts of component re-use and recycle in such a way that the end result is higher customer satisfaction than designing one product for all customer groups. Incorporating long-range planning for component reuse in product portfolio design. A decision tool aids in determining when a product should be taken back and which product components should be re-used, recycled, or disposed of. A hypothetical case study demonstrates the implementation of this model.