A methodological framework for end-of-life management of electronic products

A growing number of regulatory interventions such as the European Union's Extended Polluter Responsibility Policy hold manufacturers accountable for the damage inflicted to the natural environment by their products. However, not all components of an industrial product have an equitable role regarding their overall burden to the environment. In this context, it is of great interest to manufacturers to identify and rank those components with the highest potential value at the end of their useful life, employing an array of economical and environmental criteria. In order to assist manufacturers on their decision-making for the optimal end-of-life alternatives for their products, the “Multicriteria Matrix” methodology has been developed. The methodology relies on multicriteria analysis and takes into consideration the residual value, environmental burden, weight, quantity and ease of disassembly of each component. With the developed methodology only those components that do not have any residual value end up in landfills, while the majority of the components are either reused or recycled. The application of the developed methodology is demonstrated employing a real-world case study; that of an ISDN network terminal. Finally, the paper is concluded by presenting interesting managerial insights that were obtained.