A "design methodology for the recycling of products" is a new request from companies to engineers, though at the moment this is rarely practised. Engineers have to take into consideration a large variety of requirements (costs, etc.), but often have little experience and knowledge about recycling technology (disassembly and mechanical processing, maintenance and modernization). Recycling, the last stage of the product life-cycle, is becoming more and more important for the environment (because, for example, the availability of resources is decreasing). Designers need a methodology that is easy to understand and selected resources which are not time-consuming to use. The five-stage methodology presented here is the result of a research project and is already being used by companies. It can improve product recycling and reduce future costs resulting from recycling.     «

A "design methodology for the recycling of products" is a new request from companies to engineers, though at the moment this is rarely practised. Engineers have to take into consideration a large variety of requirements (costs, etc.), but often have little experience and knowledge about recycling technology (disassembly and mechanical processing, maintenance and modernization). Recycling, the last stage of the product life-cycle, is becoming more and more important for the environment (because,...     »