Search

Remanufacturing offers the potential for simultaneously recovering the economic value of manufactured components and improving the environment. Some design features make remanufacturing less expensive and/or increase the proportion of components that can be remanufactured. For example, sacrificial components can be used to protect key parts from wear. However, trade-offs are sometimes involved, and product designers need tools to support design for remanufacturing. This paper presents models for estimating the costs and environmental impacts of employing sacrificial components (cylinder liners) in engine blocks. These models are incorporated into a spreadsheet-based design decision tool. Three illustrative examples demonstrate that (1) remanufacturing lowers overall costs when two life cycles are considered. (2) sacrificial cylinder liners should be employed for small (2 L) engines, and their superiority increases with multiple remanufacturing cycles, and (3) for large engines (5.3 L) using cylinder liners is equally preferred to not using them, with respect to both overall cost and environmental impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the new concept "microfactory" and related developments. Machined parts are becoming progressively smaller; so production machinery that remains a conventional size is often inappropriate for such products. The term "microfactory" represents an entirely new approach to design and manufacture that minimizes production systems to match the size of the parts they produce. It leads to conservation of space and energy, and the reduction of investment and operational costs, as well as the reduction of emissions and the load on operators. Furthermore, it provides a system with dynamic reconfigurability, aiming at a light and agile manufacturing system optimized for current manufacturing needs in a borderless and highly competitive market. In Japan, research institutes, research consortia, and the private sec- tor have carried out targeted research and development aimed at this concept for over a decade. Some systems are past the research stage and in daily use. Outside Japan, the philosophy and advantages of microfactory have reached an appreciative audience in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Microfactory is at the cutting edge of competitive manufacturing in the 21st century, ushering in a multidimensional paradigm shift. Here we also briefly examine some future tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]