Key design elements for the inverse manufacturing

Sustainable production cannot be achieved just by encouraging energy and material recycling of wastes. Rather we should establish closed-loop product life cycles. To do so, it is critical to develop new methodologies for designing products. In this paper, the author identified key design elements for the environmentally conscious design in the context of inverse manufacturing (he calls them design for inverse manufacturing (DFIM) as a whole). Inverse manufacturing (IM) is the concept to reduce production and consumption of products with maintaining profits of companies and quality of individual life. Identified key design elements include upgradable design, design for reuse, design for cleaning and inspection and design for transportation and collection. By relating the key design elements to the key concepts of the IM and required social systems, he clarifies that remanufacturing and reuse, maintenance with upgrading and life cycle services are the most effective means for realizing the IM and the major bottlenecks include awareness of consumers, preparation of social infrastructures and additional costs of companies.