Development of products embedded disassembly process based on end-of-life strategies

This paper surveys end-of-life strategies currently used in the electronics and appliances industries and identifies product characteristics that define feasible end-of-life strategies. The authors' survey indicates that two key characteristics serve as factors to categorize appropriate products' end-of-life path: product life and technology cycle. The categorization leads to a methodology that guides product developers to specify, end-of-life strategies, to seek environmentally friendly designs, and to identify opportunities for developing new recycling technologies. The goal of disassembly differs depending an each product category, however, efficient disassembly is a key to carry out the ideal end-of-life strategies for every product category. To enhance disassemblability, the authors propose the concept of the product embedded disassembly process. The fundamental idea is to embed a separation feature inside a product during manufacturing and activate it at disassembly.