Improving the efficiency of the remanufacture of complex mechanical assemblies with robust inspection of core units

This paper presents the findings of experimental research carried out at a Caterpillar Remanufacturing facility in the UK into core inspection at the initial stage of remanufacture – Receive Core. The initial analysis of results shows an increase in productivity with increase of inspection but that this increase is finite and over-inspection leads to an overall decrease of productivity and an increase in costs. However the results also show that the amount of viable inspection can be more closely linked to the cost of the component rather than the facility operating costs. This is important because remanufacturers traditionally base their pricing and product recovery on their operating costs. The new knowledge concerning the factors affecting the efficacy of core inspection is being used to develop a generic decision-making methodology for core inspection at component level to improve the overall efficiency (in terms of increased productivity and cost reduction) of the remanufacturing operation.