How product characteristics determine end-of-life strategies

This paper surveys end-of-life strategies currently used in the electronics and appliances industries and identifies product characteristics that determine feasible strategies. The survey includes consumer products with different end-of-life strategies: an inkjet printer, digital copier, washing machine, vacuum cleaner, television set and single use cameras. Products have distinct end-of-life strategies, composed of end-of-life paths determined by product characteristics. These characteristics not only include product related factors such as product life and functional complexity, but also “inverse supply chain” factors such as available recycling technologies and demand for recycled materials and parts. This study categorizes product characteristics under following factors: external, material, disassembly, and “inverse supply chain”. Ongoing work links the identified product characteristics with information available to design engineers during the early stages of product development. Our plan for a web-based design tool will provide a methodology for determining appropriate end-of-life strategies for a broad range of products based on key product characteristics. The survey contributes to the development of recycling technologies such as novel separation, recovery and disassembly techniques