Change is coming

Big data, core takeback and rising consumer demands are changing the reman industry, according to representatives from SRC Holdings, GE Healthcare, BBB Industries and Wabco - who all participated in an executive panelon the show’s first morning.

According to Michael Schmidt, GE Healthcare has embraced Big Data strategies for its reman operations, using the processing power of the cloud and machine learning to better understand the journey a piece of core has undergone over its lifetime. Where an MRI machine has been deployed, how many scans a tube has undertaken and how often a part has been replaced all contribute to the company being able to build a digital twin of the product to help predict when it will fail and to put a value on the core that is being returned. These insights allow GE Healthcare to optimize its reman processes and drive value back to the customer.

Jeff Stukenborg talked about how new technologies are making Wabco a more agile business. Products are often operating 24/7 and break down more quickly, contributing to a shorter product lifecycle. In response, Wabco has introduced remanufacturing requirements into the engineering process so products can be designed with reman processes in mind. The result, Stukenborg said, are products that are safer and more sustainable.

BBB Industries, a car part remanufacturer that partners with major automotive companies, also designs for reman, according to senior director of strategy and business development Mark Nugent. Design principles that may streamline a process or save costs downstream can be implemented at the beginning of a product’s lifecycle, ensuring that remanufacturing continues to make sense economically.