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2. Remanufacturing
Facilitating the transition towards circularity is the concept closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) that refers to a supply chain system where manufacturing and remanufacturing coexist.
Therefore, the entire life cycle of the product is taken into account by also including reverse supply chain design and management activities for the recovery and remanufacturing of products (Kerr and Ryan 2001, Michaud and Llerena 2011; Wen-Hui et al. 2011). Remanufacturing processes and reverse logistics activities include the steps of collection, disassembly, inspection, sorting, cleaning, reprocessing, reassembly, checking, testing and redistribution (Pal et al. 2018). Remanufacturing recaptures and adds value to the use of the product (Charter and Gray 2008), and is an advanced form of recycling (Wen-Hui et al. 2011) as remanufactured components keep their original function (Michaud and Llerena 2011).
Remanufacturing comes with several benefits, due to its nature for sustainable production and waste management when comparing to replacing virgin fibres (Armstrong et al. 2015, Krystofik et al., 2015, Dahlbo et al. 2017). By reducing the production of new textiles, the use of water, energy and chemicals is decreased leading to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (Atasu et al. 2010, Dahlbo et al. 2017). Furthermore, as many components of the products used as raw materials are still functioning, the process becomes less expensive (Ferguson 2009). Additionally, the quality and performance of a remanufactured product can be compared to a new product, with added benefits relating to shorter processing times and decreased negative impacts on the environment (Wen-Hui et al. 2011). However, even when considering the range of benefits, many uncertainties are still present, especially related to the reverse flows of materials, lead times, quality and market demand (Ferguson 2009).
All the steps and their sequence in the remanufacturing process affect the quality and feasibility of the activities carried out and the final product. Furthermore, the quality standard of the process and product depends on the quality of the waste material, level of complexity of the activities required, and the available technologies (Pal et al. 2018). For example, the value of the waste material depends of the market, material demand and supply, legislation surrounding the remanufacturing activities, and technologies used (Charter and Gray 2008). Additionally, the disassembly stage has a direct impact on the quality, as it is highly time consuming and labour intensive, and therefore is subjected to higher risk for human error (Gallo et al. 2012).
Due to challenges, such as lack of adequate experience and infrastructure, majority of original equipment remanufacturers (OEMs) are not keen to explore the potential of remanufacturing (Ferguson 2009). While fashion remanufacturing has been tested in small volumes for a niche market (Niinimäki and Hassi 2011, Dissanayake and Sinha 2015, Choi 2017), adopting the circular mindset is yet to emerge at large (Niinimäki and Hassi 2011). This can be further attributed to a lack of motivation for increased collaboration due to unfamiliarity of remanufacturing operations (Hermansson and Sundin 2005), along with globalisation and low-cost sourcing from offshore manufacturing (Ferguson 2009), and a lack of understanding of consumer perception and purchase behaviour towards remanufactured products (Atasu et al. 2010, Paras et al. 2018, Wang et al. 2018).
In conclusion, while many benefits and challenges of remanufacturing in the textiles and apparel industry have been identified, a holistic understanding is required for successful scaling up of remanufacturing activities in the transition towards circularity. As emphasised for example by Jensen et al. (2019), a combination of integrated business activities and collaboration is required, relating to the purposes of the three sub-studies in this report.
Remanufactured fashion is defined as garments that are constructed by reclaimed fabrics, originating from post-industrial or post-consumer waste, or in combination of both. In the textile and apparel industry, activities such as pattern development, cutting and sewing are included in the remanufacturing process. It differs from remanufacturing in other industries, as the garments don’t necessarily keep their original shape (Dissanayake and Sinha 2015). Most relevant steps to focus on for strategic advantage in fashion remanufacturing are identified as design, cutting, assembly, modular manufacturing and quality control (Sinha et al. 2016).
Remanufacturing of textiles and apparel as defined by Re:textiles refers to the EU Waste Framework Directive points ‘Preparing for re-use’ and ‘Recycling’ defined as checking, cleaning or repairing recovery operations for re-use, and reprocessing waste materials into products, materials or substances whether for the original or other purpose, respectively. As seen on Figure 1 below, remanufacturing is defined in three levels of complexity depending on the state of the raw material and wished design for the new product. Starting from the most preferred option, re:furbish entails attaching new labels, or minor fixes to bring the product into on the state of the raw material and wished design for the new product. Starting from the like-new condition. Re:couple refers to updating the garment, for example through added most preferred option, re:furbish entails attaching new labels, or minor fixes to bring the embroidery, prints or dyeing the fabric, while the least preferred option re:construct involves product into like-new condition. Re:couple refers to updating the garment, for example a more complicated process of disassembly and reassembly into a completely new product. through added embroidery, prints or dyeing the fabric, while the least preferred option re:construct involves a more complicated process of disassembly and reassembly into a completely new product.
Figure 1. Levels of remanufacturing. Figure 1. Levels of remanufacturing. 3. Methods
The study was carried out in collaboration with the main actors of the project, and external researchers, practitioners from retailers that work within circular business models and large fast fashion companies, and end-customers interested in remanufactured apparel. The study followed different methods for the three sub-studies. For the first two sub-studies, a mixed Remanufacturing of deadstock and customer claims apparel methods approach was taken, where the qualitative and quantitative data support each other, while in the third sub-study the focus is on analysing quantitative data for economic feasibility analysis.
