Funding has been awarded to nine projects intended to help Scottish remanufacturing businesses explore how to make the most efficient use of materials – furthering the Government’s circular economy ambitions.
The Scottish Institute for Remanufacture has awarded a total of £238,360 between nine companies. These include Cummins Diesel ReCon, ACS Marine, Campers Scotland and WEEE Scotland. Projects involve areas such as logistics in recovering products for remanufacture, material wear, cleaning technologies and end-of-life assessment.
Hosted at the University of Strathclyde and said to be the only facility of its kind in the UK, the institute supports industries looking to increase reuse, repair and remanufacture in their manufacturing operations.
Remanufacturing describes a range of activities, whereby used products or components are rebuilt and returned to at least ‘as new’ quality and specification and are given the same or similar guarantees as equivalent new products. This is in keeping with the concept of a ‘circular economy’ model which means re-using products and materials continually.
National strategy
Last month the Scottish Government unveiled its first ever circular economy strategy entitled ‘Making Things Last’. The strategy identifies four priority areas, including remanufacturing, where Scotland is believed to be in a position to make rapid progress and where there is scope to deliver the most significant environmental and economic benefits.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also announced a new £70m programme to develop and grow the circular economy in Scotland, as one part of a package of measures to boost manufacturing in the country.
Richard Lochhead, Cabinet Secretary for the Environment said: “Remanufacturing already contributes £1.1 billion to annual economic activity with potential to add an additional £620 million by 2020. I welcome these projects and hope to see these companies start to fulfil some of that growth potential.
Iain Gulland, Zero Waste Scotland Chief Executive said: “This funding will play a vital role in helping circular economy businesses to develop and thrive in Scotland.
“Remanufacturing presents tremendous opportunities for creating jobs, businesses and a sustainable economy in Scotland built on a circular model, where we keep increasingly scarce resources in productive use for as long as possible.
“I wish all the companies the best of luck in their endeavours and look forward to hearing more about the projects on completion.”
Dr Jacqueline Balfour from the Scottish Institute of Remanufacture said: “The Scottish Institute for Remanufacture was established to enable collaborative projects between industry and academia that would advance remanufacturing in Scotland. We are delighted to see the first projects under way across a range of sectors.
“Looking forward we have very exciting projects in the pipe-line and invite companies to bring their ideas and opportunities to the institute where we can match them with the right academic expertise.”
EXAMPLES OF CURRENT PROJECTS
Cummins Diesel ReCon
Among those granted funding is Cummins Diesel Recon in Cumbernauld. The company remanufactures engines ranging from 3.9 to 19 litres and components for mid-range, heavy duty and high horsepower markets within European, Middle Eastern and African regions.
The company wants to develop and implement a cost effective process for cleaning carbon deposits from high horsepower cylinder heads, which must also be in keeping with HSE guidelines for chemical safety.
The Advanced Forming Research Centre at the University of Strathclyde is working with the Cummins team to investigate potential cleaning methods for the removal of carbon residue, conduct testing on the proposed methods and perform a detailed analysis on the results achieved. The idea behind the project is to find a new process which can be deployed at the Cummins site.
ACS Marine Risk Control
ACS Marine Risk Control is a marine consultancy offering a series of services related to hazardous materials, asset management and end of life options to the Maritime and Offshore Oil and Gas industries.
They are currently partnering with the University of Strathclyde to investigate a circular economy approach towards end-of-life shipping assets in terms of re-use and remanufacture.
Campers Scotland
Campers Scotland, based in Grangemouth, is Scotland’s leading campervan conversion company, manufacturing a wide range of hand-built leisure vehicles.
They are partnering with the University of Strathclyde to investigate how to predict the longevity and extend the life of greener energy campervan components and other key high-tech features.
WEEE Scotland
WEEE Scotland is a waste management service provider based in Govan which is very focused on remanufacturing and promoting zero waste. They currently remanufacture various commodities used in automated coffee machines and bespoke medical devices.
In conjunction with the University of the West of Scotland, WEEE Scotland has been awarded a project which will introduce an additional remanufactured product to its portfolio.
The Scottish Institute for Remanufacture is open for project applications, for more information visit www.scot-reman.ac.uk/what-we-do/funding/.
