December 2020

W hen it comes to replacing car parts, many people consider two options: OE parts or the traditional aftermarket component. But there is a third option: Remanufacturing. For more than 45 years, BORG Automotive has delivered remanufactured automotive parts for the European aftermarket. Today, the organisation remanufactures starters, alternators, brake calipers, AC compressors and EGR valves at its Polish production sites, and steering products – which include racks, pumps and electric columns – in the UK. In addition, the company has recently acquired the Spanish turbocharger company, TMI, which has added a ninth product group to the portfolio. To remanufacture automotive parts, used products, namely cores, should be retrieved. BORG Automotive sells their remanufactured units with a deposit, which is returned to the customers if they send BORG the unit they are replacing. The core BORG is getting in exchange for a remanufactured unit is sent to their core warehouse in Poland the largest core warehouse in Europe with more than one million units – ready for remanufacturing. As a remanufacturer, BORG Automotive controls the entire remanufacturing process from parts and production to sales and service. This total control of every process gives BORG Automotive an advantage when it comes to quality control and testing. All units are individually tested according to BORG’s remanufacturing and factory standards and the production has been certified according to ISO standards 9001:2015 and 14001:2015. The remanufacturing process is carefully executed, and thus needs special attention throughout the entire process. This is due to the advanced and challenging remanufacturing process, which each product demands. Process The remanufacturing process takes place in BORG’s own production sites in Poland and the UK and consists of six steps: Disassembly: Defective units undergo a complete disassembly process and parts that cannot be reconditioned are disposed of Cleaning: The individual parts are given a thorough cleaning with several cleaning treatments, such as hot water and sand blasting, ultrasonic cleaning, etc. Inspection and sorting: Cleaned components are subject to an intensive inspection to determine if they are in a reuseable condition. This is done both visually and with test equipment measuring if the tolerances are within the acceptable limit Reconditioning and replacement: At this stage reuseable parts are reconditioned, e.g. through galvanising and grinding of the parts. Parts that in the previous stages have been disposed are replaced with new parts Reassembly: The remanufactured units are reassembled Final testing: Each remanufactured unit undergoes a 100% performance test to ensure that the unit match OE standards Quality Every unit is tested both at high and low pressure. This is because different errors show and occur at different pressure levels. “Our products must be able to last in a stressful environment,” said Edin Elezovic, Product Manager at BORG Automotive. “Quality is therefore very important for us and is our primary focus through-out all the different, often challenging, remanufacturing steps.” Only OE cores are remanufactured and all critical components are fully replaced. During the quality check, all cores and parts are visually examined. After dismantling, the parts will undergo the multi-stage washing process to ensure the cleanliness of all internal and external parts. After assembly, the units are subject to our electronic end- of-line testing using real-world simulation to ensure their func-tional performance is at OE level. Furthermore, the company established its own research and development department in 2015. “For us, a remanufactured product must have the same characteristics and meet the same customer requirements as a new original product; that is why we can confidently offer a two-year warranty period for all our products,” added Edin. In addition to this, the energy used for remanufacturing is reduced by up to 80% compared to manufacturing of a new part, and the environmental impact of scrapping is also significantly reduced. This makes remanufacturing an important part of the circular economy. BORG Automotive remanufactures more than 2 million units per year and sells its products throughout most of Europe. 24 AFTERMARKET DECEMBER/JANUARY 2021 TECHNICAL www.aftermarketonline.net REMANUFACTURING WITH BORG AUTOMOTIVE According to BORG Automotive, remanufactured parts offer quality equal to that of OE Below: Remanufacturing in process