May 2020

T he desire to keep costs down may become a much more common motivator in the weeks and months ahead, as the country reels from the economic cost of the Coronavirus lockdown. As was seen in the aftermath of the 2008 banking crash, customers will be open to new options for repairs. This could make this remanufacturing’s moment to shine. As customers become ever more cost and environmentally sensitive, a growing number of workshops use remanufactured spare parts. They offer a quality option at a lower price while reducing the energy consumption compared to manufacturing an original product. Extension As well as the economic argument, remanufacturing offers a sustainable model: “We are proud to grow our business using a model that significantly reduces CO2 emissions,” says Kasper Thomsen, Sales Development Director at BORG Automotive. “Remanufacturing is extending the product’s life span by bringing a defective product to the same standard, as it was when it was first manufactured, letting it undergo a process that aims to recover most of the material - without compromising the quality. Consequently, the environmental impact is also minimised. Kasper continued: “The remanufacturing process saves up to 79% of the energy used when manufacturing an original product, and reduces the energy consumption by removing the need to melt and re-melt for new products. It is a far gentler production process and has a leading role in the fight to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and reduce the consumption of natural resources. Remanufacturing is a circular economy strategy; through remanufacturing numerous 'lives' are added to the product, instead of one-time use of products and waste of resources. “According to the Automotive Parts Remanufacturers Association in USA, Europe and Asia (APRA), the worldwide energy saving of remanufacturing yearly corresponds to the same power generated by eight nuclear plants or 16 million barrels of crude oil. The yearly material savings of remanufacturing corresponds to 14 million tons.” Kasper added: “Among circular economy strategies, remanufacturing is the most suitable one to recover products when the following conditions are met; High embedded value, low evolution rate and product re- constructability. For this reason, when it comes to remanufacturing automotive components, the ones matching these conditions have high potential.” Process How does the process work though? Kasper ran through it: “At BORG Automotive, we remanufacture starters, alternators, brake calipers, A/C compressors and EGR valves at our Polish production sites, and steering products which include racks, pumps and electric columns in the UK. “The process of remanufacturing as established for products from BORG Automotive is technically mature and certified after the newest certification; ISO 9001:2015. The production sites in Poland are ISO 14001:2015. It is based on expertise in remanufacturing which stems from many decades in the market. It uses innovative engineering methods invented by the company itself to allow for the best possible quality and quality assurance. Kasper added: “All components the brand remanufactures go through the same process. They are dismantled, cleaned, 36 AFTERMARKET MAY 2020 REMANUFACTURED COMPONENTS www.aftermarketonline.net RE-USE AND REVIVE Many key components can be remanufactured, providing an option and an economic edge for your customer and you in uncertain times Above: Remanufactured products from Borg Automotive Below: Turbocharger, before and after remanufacturing by Borg Warner