The Awards honour businesses and technology leaders who have championed the cause of digital engineering within industry. Specifically, the Top Sustainability Initiative showcases the efforts of engineering and R&D teams, whose sustainable products and solutions have the potential to deliver a transformative step towards creating a zero-waste economy. The award recognises initiatives which are driving the evolution and adoption of sustainability across the global business landscape.
Through collaboration with development and production partners, Vanderlande has found a way to remanufacture mechatronic assemblies to an “as new” condition, which can then be used as spare parts without compromising on quality standards. The team also took account of input from one of Vanderlande’s key customers to ensure the project focused on market needs.
“Next to examining technical requirements, the project team assessed business models, return flows, stock management and traceability issues to come up with a complete, scalable and practical solution,” says Joost Vos, who is heading the project team.
“By applying circular design principles and taking inspiration from the cradle-to-cradle philosophy, we have optimised product design for remanufacturing, thereby minimising environmental impact,” says Patrick Wouters, Director Line Sorter Development with Vanderlande. “Remanufacturing these parts is a truly sustainable step up, because fewer resources are being used, and the carbon footprint will be 90% less compared to the parcel market’s traditional approach to disposal and replacement.”
“Sustainability is a strategic priority for Vanderlande, and we are working hard to deliver real impact across all our operations for our customers,” adds Fieke Fleskens, Head of Sustainability at Vanderlande. “The success of this project shows that remanufacturing and reuse is an effective pathway for our company, as well as our valued customers and suppliers.”
This project was originally developed under an initiative overseen by the Province of Noord Brabant in The Netherlands. The Circular Value Center’s (CVC) Fast Forward programme explores ways in which circularity can be realised through collaboration in the value chain.
For more details about the awards go to: www.digitalengineeringawards.com
