Critical success factors for remanufacturing and reuse of equipment in the engineer-to-order shipbuilding industry

Abstract

Ship equipment is of extremely high value, making them prime products for remanufacturing and reuse. However, despite increasing efforts to regulate the impact of shipping on the environment by promoting circularity, the strategies extending the product life of marine equipment, especially in European shipbuilding, are limited. This paper aims to identify critical success factors that enable better decisions making for remanufacturing and reuse of equipment in the engineer-to-order (ETO) shipbuilding industry. It contributes with an empirical study addressing circularity in the maritime industry for ETO products, which are typically designed for a specific customer. The research is based on an inductive study incorporating multiple workshops within the Norwegian ship building industry and includes actors such as original equipment manufacturers (OEM), shipyards, ship operators, and a classification society. The type of equipment in focus includes thrusters, cranes, generator sets, and hydraulic power units. Critical success factors specific to shipbuilding remanufacturing and reuse are identified, which are compared and contrasted with existing generic factors from the literature. We also examine the potential tensions and areas of agreement between the actors in the supply chain in relation to the identified factors. Our results confirm the potential for interfirm tensions, indicating that tensions in terms of perceived levels of importance exist in relation to damage, transport, product types, product value, and material composition. The study proposes self-reflective managerial questions, as well as new research lines to undertake a whole systems evaluation of the opportunities for adopting remanufacturing and reuse in the shipbuilding supply chain.