Remanufacturing Strategies under the Carbon Tax Policy

随着人们对环境问题关注的提升，尤其是开始普遍关注碳排放对大气影响的问题，各个国家出台了一系列控制碳排放的法规。面对政策环境的变化，许多类似于再制造策略的绿色环保策略已经被越来越多前瞻性的企业所重视，并逐渐将之作为企业生产运营过程中可选择的市场策略。因此，本文受此启发并选择侧重研究碳税背景下企业的再制造问题。 首先，本文探究企业如何在统一碳税政策背景下合理选择再制造策略并最优化其生产定价决策。基于此，本文在考虑企业新产品和再制造品碳排量的不同特点后，引入一种创新性的碳税形式，即基于产品碳税政策，本文尝试研究不同碳税形式对企业再制造策略的影响。研究发现根据再制造品成本特点和排放特点可将企业分为四...With increasing concerns over environmental problems, especially prevalent concerns on the influences of carbon emissions on climate change, a number of carbon regulations aimed to reduce carbon emissions of the firms, have been carried out. As a result, green strategy, such as remanufacturing, is becoming an attractive production strategy for many forward-looking firms. Therefore, we focus on the...学位：管理学硕士院系专业：管理学院_技术经济及管理学号：1772013115110

Effects of government subsidies on production and emissions reduction decisions under carbon tax regulation and consumer low‐carbon awareness

To promote low-carbon production, the government simultaneously provides some subsidies under carbon tax regulations. Two government subsidies are widely adopted: one is based on emissions reduction quantity and the other is based on emissions reduction investment cost. Additionally, consumer low-carbon awareness has also been enhanced. Considering the aforementioned circumstances, this paper investigates the effects of different government subsidies on production and emissions reduction decisions under a carbon tax regulation by formulating three decision-making optimization models. The results show that (1) although the carbon tax regulation cannot guarantee further improvement of emissions reduction levels, government subsidies could make the corresponding conditions of improving emissions reduction investments wider; (2) a heavy carbon tax or stronger consumer low-carbon awareness would make the positive effect of government subsidies more apparent; and (3) subsidy policies may also be selected by the government from different perspectives, such as manufacturer development, consumer surplus, environmental damage and social welfare. Especially, from the perspective of maximizing social welfare, investment cost (IC) subsidy is not always advantageous, while emissions reduction (ER) subsidy can always bring higher social welfare compared with the case under no government subsidy

Towards a Circular Economy in Sweden - Barriers for new business models and the need for policy intervention

In order to halt current resource depletion and minimise environmental destruction, we need to reduce our dependency on virgin raw materials. There is a growing political consensus in the EU that we have to move away from our current linear economic system to one that is based on closing material loops, a circular economy. There is therefore a great need for new business models based on for example sharing, reusing and remanufacturing. A small portion of frontrunner companies are leading the way in Sweden and internationally, however the current political and societal trajectory impose numerous barriers for such businesses to scale up. New and revised policy intervention is therefore needed to pave the way for circular business models. In Sweden, a lack of policies which promote such development is apparent, and the interrelations between barriers for certain business models and the need for policy intervention is highly unexplored. This study identifies barriers and the need for policy intervention to overcome them, based on input from representatives from companies currently practicing business models based on circular economy thinking. It further maps relevant environmental policies in Sweden, in order to understand how the current political landscape addresses elements related to circular economy and make suggestions for how to further support circular business models in Sweden via policy intervention. Findings show that barriers are first and foremost institutional and market based related to price signals and consumer behaviour. But they are also political in terms of lack of ambition and long-term thinking, technological in terms of product design, and organisational in terms of lack of funding and lack of integration of the concept into core business. Policy intervention therefore needs to be multi-dimensional. A mix of measures based on regulations, economic instruments, information spreading and demand stimulations need to be placed within an overall governance framework based on enabling infrastructure, national targets and broad, long-term agreements

Essays on product return management and closed loop-supply chain network design

This dissertation focuses on managerial and operational challenges associated with product return management and CLSC network design. The possibility of product return plays an important role in consumer\u27s purchase decisions. It also motivates firms to extend their forward-only supply chain network structures to a Closed-Loop Supply Chain (CLSC) network and handle both forward and reverse flows of products. While the configuration of the CLSC network is a complex problem comprised of the determination of the optimal locations and capacities of factories, warehouses and collection centers, this problem becomes even more complex under the potential regulations on carbon emissions. This dissertation follows a three-paper format. With a focus on product return management, the first paper studies the roles that pricing and return policy play in the product exchange process for refurbished products. We first apply netnography to study consumer attitudes, general opinions and experiences concerning refurbished electronics purchases, and then propose an analytical model that considers customers\u27 purchasing and return behavior as a result of the firm\u27s decisions regarding the pricing and return policy for refurbished products. The numerical results suggest that sellers should deliberately consider the market segmentation conditions, consumer valuation, and cost factors when choosing the appropriate price and return policy for refurbished products. The second and third paper focus on different aspects of CLSC network design. The second paper investigates a problem to design facility configurations that are robust to variations in possible carbon regulations and their cost and constraint implications. We establish a two-stage, multi-period stochastic programming model to include uncertain demand and return quantities and then extended it to incorporate the uncertainties in carbon regulation policy by the robust optimization method. We propose a hybrid model to account for either carbon tax or cap-and-trade regulatory policies and derive tractable robust counterparts under box and ellipsoidal uncertainty sets. Implications for network configuration, product allocation and transportation configuration are derived. We also present computational results that illustrate how the problem formulation under an ellipsoidal uncertainty set allows the decision maker to balance the trade-off between robustness and performance. The third paper formulates and solves an integrated model for product return management and CLSC network design considering uncertain carbon cost. We build a robust optimization model to address the carbon cost uncertainty, and develop a piecewise linear approximation for the nonlinear profit as a function of the refund. The results of the robust model are compared with those of deterministic models where no or only nominal carbon cost is considered. Extensive parametric analyses illustrate the impact of the cost, revenue and consumer profile parameters on the optimal refund, profit and network topology

A systematic review of decision-making in remanufacturing

Potential benefits have made remanufacturing attractive over the last decade. Nevertheless, the complexity and uncertainties associated with the process of managing returned products make remanufacturing challenging. Since this process involves enormous decision-making practices, various methods/techniques have been developed. This review is to specify the current challenges and opportunities for decision-making in remanufacturing. To achieve this, we perform a systematic review over decision-making in remanufacturing by classifying decisions into different managerial levels and areas. Adopting a systematic approach which provides a repeatable, transparent and scientific process, 241 key articles have been identified following a multi-stage review process. Our review indicates that most studies focuses on strategic-level(48%) and tactical-level (34%)with only 5% focusing on operational-level and the rest on two levels(13%). Regarding decision-making methods, most studies propose mathematical models (60%) followed by analytical models (31%). Furthermore, only 36% of the studies address uncertainties in which stochastic approach is mostly applied. A total of 21 knowledge gaps are highlighted to direct future research work

Best Environmental Management Practice for the Car Manufacturing Sector Learning from frontrunners

The European automotive industry is one of the EU's largest manufacturing sectors, and the automotive value chain covers many activities largely carried out within the EU, such as design and engineering, manufacturing, maintenance and repair, and end-of-life vehicle (ELV) handling. This Best Practice report describes Best Environmental Management Practices (BEMPs), i.e. techniques, measures or actions that are implemented by the organisations within the sector which are most advanced in terms of environmental performance in areas such as energy and resource efficiency, emissions, or supply chain management. The BEMPs provide inspirational examples for any organisation within the sector to improve its environmental performance. The report firstly outlines technical information on the contribution of car manufacturing and end-of-life vehicle (ELV) handling to key environmental burdens in the EU, alongside data on the economic relevance of the sector. The second chapter presents best environmental management practice of interest primarily for manufacturing companies (car manufacturers and associated manufacturers in the supply chain) covering cross-cutting issues related to key environmental impacts (such as energy, waste, water management, or biodiversity) before exploring best practice linked to specific topics, such as supply chain management. Subsequently, specific information concerning actors in the treatment of end-of-life vehicles is presented in the third chapter, focussing in particular on best practice applicable to processers of ELVs. This Best Practice Report was developed with support from a Technical Working Group of experts from the car manufacturing and ELV sector and associated fields. The report gives a wide range of information (environmental benefits, economics, indicators, benchmarks, references, etc.) for each of the proposed best practices in order to be a source of inspiration and guidance for any company of the sector wishing to improve environmental performance. In addition, it will be the technical basis for a Sectoral Reference Document on the car manufacturing sector, to be produced by the European Commission according to the EMAS Regulation.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi

The Circular Economy: What, Why, How and Where

This paper was prepared as a background document for an OECD/EC high-level expert workshop on “Managing the transition to a circular economy in regions and cities” held on 5 July 2019 at the OECD Headquarters in Paris, France. It sets a basis for reflection and discussion. The background paper should not be reported as representing the official views of the European Commission, the OECD or one of its member countries. The opinions expressed and arguments employed are those of the author(s)

Multi-dimensional Circular Supply Chain Management: A Comparative Review of the State-of-the-art Practices and Research

The circular economy (CE) concept has gained wide attention in practice as well as in academia in recent years. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art practices and research in “circular supply chain management” (CSCM), i.e., the integration of CE thinking into supply chain management (SCM) with the goal of achieving “zero wastes”. The review covers 68 real-life CE implementation cases collected by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and 124 publications in well-established, high-ranking academic journals in operations and supply chain management. The comparative review shows that CSCM encompasses multiple dimensions, including closed-loop SCM, reverse SCM, remanufacturing SCM, recycling SCM, and industrial symbiosis. A multi-dimensional CSCM (MD-CSCM) framework is developed to synthesize their interrelationships and to categorize academic publications into multiple research themes. Based on the identified research-practice gaps and pressing research needs, this study discusses important directions for future studies to advance supply chain circularity

Circular economy and eco-innovations: a taxonomy of policy instruments

Recently, amidst increasingly pressing environmental concerns, the Circular Economy (CE) concept has been defended, by both scholars and practitioners, as an alternative to the ‘take-make-dispose’ economic paradigm by emulating the naturally occurring, selfrenovating cycles. The CE is enabled by and depends on various technological and nontechnological eco-innovations (EIs), i.e., innovations that cause a net positive environmental impact. The complex and systemic interrelations and feedback mechanisms implicated have attracted attention to the role of innovation policy in driving EIs. However, the circular economy – eco-innovation – innovation policy nexus is only now beginning to emerge in academic literature and more research is needed to detail the instruments involved and understand their interplay towards promoting an EI-mediated CE transition. In the present work, we analysed data collected through systematic literature review to propose and characterise an evidence-based, goal-oriented taxonomy for policy instruments. Thus, six core categories of policy instruments are explored: 1) R&D increase, 2) Non-financial capabilities, 3) Network capability, 4) Increase demand, 5) Regulations and Standards, and 6) Foresight activities. Our results highlight the complexity underpinning the design of innovation policy mixes. We conclude that an approach that, on one hand, targets the various stages in material cycles and on the other hand, considers policy instrument features and their complementarity seems to benefit the creation of ‘circular’ innovations and the CE transition.Recentemente, no meio de preocupações ambientais crescentes, o conceito da Economia Circular (EC) tem sido defendido, tanto por académicos como praticantes, como uma alternativa do paradigma económico ‘extrair-transformar-descartar’ emulando os ciclos naturais de autorregeneração. A EC é incitada por e depende em diversas EI tecnológicas e não-tecnológicas, i.e., inovações que causam um impacto ambiental líquido positivo. As inter-relações complexas e sistémicas e os mecanismos de reforço implicados têm vindo a chamar à atenção para o papel das políticas de inovação na incitação das EIs. No entanto, a conexão entre a economia circular – eco-inovações – políticas de inovação só agora começa a emergir na literatura académica e são necessários mais estudos para detalhar os instrumentos de política envolvidos e compreender os mecanismos que levam à promoção da transição para a EC mediada por EIs. Neste trabalho, analisámos dados recolhidos através de uma revisão de literatura sistemática de modo a concretizar e caracterizar uma taxonomia para instrumentos de política focada em diferentes objetivos e baseada em evidências da literatura. Seis categorias de instrumentos centrais são exploradas: 1) Aumento de I&D, 2) Capacidades não-financeiras, 3) Capacidades de rede, 4) Aumento da procura, 5) Regulação e padrões, e 6) Análise tendências futuras. Os resultados obtidos reforçam a complexidade subjacente ao desenho de políticas de inovação. Conclui-se que uma abordagem por um lado direcionada para as diversas etapas dos ciclos de materiais, por outro intencional nas características dos instrumentos de política e das suas complementaridades, parece beneficiar a criação de inovações ‘circulares’ e a transição para a EC

Creating a circular EV battery value chain: End-of-life strategies and future perspective

The rapid uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) will be vital to decarbonise the transport sector and achieve climate change targets. However, this transition is leading to an increased demand for key battery materials and associated resource challenges and supply-chain risks. On the other hand, discarded EV batteries create business opportunities for second life and recycling. This study presents scenario-driven material flow analysis (MFA) to estimate the future volume of EV battery wastes to be potentially generated in Sweden and future demand for key battery materials, considering potential EV fleet, battery chemistry developments, and end-of-life strategies of EV batteries. Further, we combine MFA with a socio-technical approach to explore how different socio-technical developments will affect both EV battery flows and the underlying systems in the future. Recycling has the potential to reduce primary demand by 25–64% during 2040–2050 based on projected demand, meaning that waste streams could cover a considerable part of the future raw material demands. Second-use of EV batteries can promote circularity yet postpones recycling potentials. From a transition perspective, promoting recycling, second-life use of EV batteries and advanced battery technologies entail system disruption and transformational changes in technology, markets, business models, policy, and infrastructure and user practices. Demand for high-capacity batteries for grid decarbonisation and aviation applications may contribute to the emergence of niche battery technologies. Each scenario highlights the need for effective policy frameworks to foster a circular EV battery value chain