This webinar will provide an introduction to the fundamentals of Design for Re-X. Product recycling, remanufacturing and reuse (Re-X) can be very difficult, both technically and economically.

Many of these difficulties are created during the original product design stage, where important design decisions such as material choice, product configuration, component geometry and assembly methods are specified. Some of the technical and economic difficulties associated with Re-X can be prevented by making different decisions during product design.

This webinar addresses the problem of how to prevent Re-X difficulties by considering recycling, remanufacturing and reuse during the original product design process. You will learn how to structure a design analysis to simultaneously consider Re-X impacts along with other design performance elements such as cost, reliability and environmental impact. Overviews of several examples will be provided.

Deborah L. Thurston, Gutsgell Professor of Industrial and Enterprise Systems Engineering @University of Illinois

Deborah L. Thurston serves as REMADE’s Design for Re-X Node Lead and is a Gutsgell Professor of Industrial and Enterprise Systems Engineering at the University of Illinois. She serves as Interim Head of the Department of Industrial and Enterprise Systems Engineering, as Director of the Decision Systems Laboratory and co-director of the Hoeft Technology and Management Program. She earned an M.S. and Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After obtaining the B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Minnesota, she worked for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Her work integrates environmental impacts, cost and quality into design and manufacturing engineering. This helps designers anticipate and prevent environmental impacts while improving product quality. Her research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, Environmental Protection Agency, Chrysler, General Motors, Ford, Motorola, and numerous other industries.

*This webinar replay is available for a limited time to non-members of the Institute. If you are interested in learning more about member benefits or becoming part of our consortium, please visit the membership page.