Report on the remanufacturing of refrigerated display cabinets

©Centre for Remanufacturing & Reuse 2009
Assumptions
We estimate that the standard remanufactured RDC contains 30% new material
by mass, the remainder being obtained from the original RDC without significant
modification. The level of reuse is likely to be higher than this because the
remanufacturing process can use salvaged parts and materials from other cases,
which would further reduce the amount of new raw material used. However, this
is difficult to estimate correctly without an in-depth trial and therefore we use the
30% baseline figure, thus avoiding an unsubstantiated, over-optimistic analysis.
A number of other assumptions have been made in the comparison:
The remanufactured unit is considered to perform as new. Therefore, the
energy consumption and lifetime both of a new and of a remanufactured
RDC are identical (as described above).
Parts and materials come from similar sources for manufacture and
remanufacture and therefore individually have equivalent carbon
footprints.
Recycling of un-reusable materials is accounted for in the carbon footprint
values of materials manufacture, and is assumed to benefit components
used in new and remanufactured components equally..
The carbon footprints associated with the activities of disposal through
landfill or recycling and disassembly for remanufacture are assumed to be
the same. Similarly, carbon footprints associated with original
manufacture and the reassembly required for remanufacture are
estimated to be the same. These assumptions are likely to be inaccurate.
However, compared to the environmental burden of materials, the
contributions from these activities are believed to be relatively low.
At end of life, new and remanufactured RDCs are disposed of in the same
way with the same environmental burden.
The carbon footprint associated with both manufacturing and
remanufacturing activities is taken to be 1/3 of the materials‟ carbon
footprint for a new RDC.
For this model the manufacturing of the new RDC is defined as taking place
abroad but within continental Europe, and remanufacturing is assumed to take
place regionally within the UK. The level of recycling of raw materials is typically
higher within Europe compared with other countries of manufacture, and the
carbon footprint data used for the raw materials reflects this. Manufactured
products from the Far East will – on the whole – incur a larger transportation
impact. To simplify, the impact of transportation associated with the different
routes is considered, with the following assumptions being made:
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