An integrated approach to support product supply and end-of-life recovery

This thesis reports on research carried out into development of a systematic approach to support the integration of the product supply and product end-of-life recovery processes. The principal objective of the research is to generate knowledge and generic solutions to facilitate the realisation of end-of-life product recovery as an extension to the product supply chain processes. The research contribution is divided into three major parts. The first part reviews the most relevant publications and categorises the contemporary approaches to end-of-life product recovery to identify the most relevant research directions. The second part has investigated the novel concepts related to an integrated view of a `product supply and recovery chain' and the development of systematic approach to the implementation of product recovery procedures. These concepts are then supported by the design and development of an information management system for end-of-life product recovery activities. The third part of the thesis explores the application of the research concepts using a case study of recovery of cutting tools in machining applications. This is illustrated through the design and development of a web based information system to support end-of-life recovery of cutting tools. The concept of an integrated product supply and recovery chain has provided a powerful perspective for a holistic view of business, technological, information and management requirements for implementation of product recovery activities within different industrial applications. The application of a Product Recovery Implementation Methodology developed by the research has shown significant potential for gaining tactical insights into the decisions involved in adoption of product recovery procedures. The geographical spread of various actors involved in a product supply and recovery chain highlights the requirements for a distributed information system providing a simple, simultaneous, and secure access to information. This has been achieved by the utilisation of a web based information support system. The case study formulated within the context of systematic recovery of cutting tools has effectively demonstrated the applicability and the significant potential of the research concepts and has demonstrated that the web based distributed information system provides a powerful tool for the integration of processes involved in product supply and recovery.