The growing interest in used products and materials is one of the consequences of the increasing number of companies involved in their management and environmental protection. Waste reduction has become one of the main areas of scientific interest in industrialized countries. Due to legal, economic, and technical constraints, companies are looking for new solutions that would enable the reuse of used products and the recovery of value from them. Therefore, solutions are being implemented in the sphere of production and logistics, aimed at restoring the value lost during the operation of used products and reintroducing them to the market. Creating a green image has become an important element of corporate strategy. Product reuse is economically attractive due to limited resources and new opportunities for value creation. The emerging opportunities in this area constitute a specific area of interest for reverse logistics, which provides methods and techniques for recovering products and materials withdrawn from circulation and managing their flow.
Logistics networks are a concept frequently appearing in literature. However, the concept of a reverse logistics network, which functions similarly to a logistics network, appears rarely. The difference lies in the reversal of the material flow vector, which is opposite and focuses on collecting used products from customers, or products that did not meet their expectations, or that have lost their value due to use. The collected products will be examined at the waste processing site and divided into three streams:
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a stream of high-quality products that can be repaired and sent to a distribution center for resale
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a stream of products containing parts for reuse, which can be dismantled and sent to a factory for reuse in the production process
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a stream of remaining products, excluded from circulation, constituting useless waste.
The reverse logistics network can be extended with further processes, such as segregation and dismantling, where, after examination, rejected and unusable products are disposed of, while recoverable ones are sent to a dismantling point before reaching a distribution center or factory. Figure 1 shows a model of a reverse logistics network.
When analyzing reverse logistics networks, the scope of the served market and the number of companies dealing with used products (known as the reverse logistics market – the market of companies involved in waste collection and disposal) and the market of recovered products (defined as the market for reused products) are taken into account. Based on this, groups of activities that repeat in all reverse logistics networks, regardless of the type of stream, can be distinguished:
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collection, which refers to all activities related to handing over used products and their physical movement to a given point where they will later be processed. It may also include activities such as procurement, transport, or warehousing, and it is to some extent imposed by legislation
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selection means all operations allowing to determine whether a given product is actually suitable for reuse and in what way. The result of inspection and separation is the division of used product streams into those intended for reuse and those for disposal. Controlling and separating are operations that may also include dismantling, shredding, testing, sorting, and storage
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reprocessing is an activity that means the actual transformation of used products into products that can be reused. This transformation can take various forms, including recycling, repairs, and remanufacturing, as well as activities such as cleaning, replacement, and reassembly
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disposal is the final action and is required for those products that cannot be reused for technical or economic reasons. It is applied to products rejected at the segregation stage that require repairs exceeding economic viability, or for obsolete products. Disposal may also include logistics processes such as transport and landfill storage
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reverse distribution refers to directing reprocessed products to a potential market and physically moving them to future users. It may include sales (leasing, service contracts, etc.), transport, and warehousing activities.
Modeling the shape of a reverse logistics network is carried out to visualize the processes occurring within it and to present the subject structure of the network. Knowledge of the reverse logistics network structure allows for the development of a set of activities enabling the management of this network. The goal of the emerging model is to provide every participant, and above all logistics service companies that strive to develop a reverse logistics network, with tools that will enable the discovery and acquisition of new markets and allow for strengthening their position in existing markets. The shape of the reverse logistics network is primarily influenced by logistics service companies. These companies play the most important role in shaping flows in the network, which is revealed, for example, by connecting subsequent links in the network. The activities of logistics operators in the reverse logistics network are carried out in stages and include ventures that are ultimately intended to lead to an increase in market share.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 5/2009.