Stellantis–the global automaker with brands including Chrysler, Fiat, Jeep, Maserati and Peugeot– has inaugurated a Circular Economy Hub at its manufacturing complex in Turin, Italy, demonstrating its commitment to a “360-degree approach” to automotive production, involving a strategy of remanufacturing, repair, reuse, and recycling (4R‘s.) Stellantis says it is adopting capabilities and facilities “to change its consumption model to reduce the environmental impact and better manage the company’s aggressive decarbonization target of reaching carbon net zero by 2038.”
“Circular economy,” a topic in Supplement 5 of your Heizer/Render/Munson text, describes an economic concept for production and consumption that preserves the value of energy, materials, and labor as products move from design through to end-of-use handling and recycling. The Hub represents a $40 million investment, covering 785,000 sq. ft. The site will employ 550 workers by 2025.
“The Circular Economy Hub brings together a powerhouse of skills and activities aimed at creating a high-performing center of excellence in Europe,” stated Stellantis in American Machinist (Nov. 28, 2023). “We are industrializing the recovery and sustainable reuse of materials, building new technologies and advanced capabilities as we grow in this area.”
The primary objectives for the Hub are to extend the life of parts and vehicles, ensuring that they last for as long as possible; or, failing that, to recycle those materials and others from end-of-life vehicle dismantling for remanufacturing as new parts and/or vehicles. The goal for the first operation, “Reman,” is to manage over 50,000 remanufactured parts annually by 2025, rising to 150,000 by 2030. For the Hub’s Sorting Center, the target is to process an estimated 2.5 million worn parts annually by 2025, increasing to 8 million by 2030.
The Vehicle Reconditioning activity will undertake aesthetic and/or mechanical repair of remanufactured or used parts and then reintroduce those to the supply chain through Stellantis’ manufacturer-certified used-vehicle program and services network. Last, the Vehicle Dismantling activity will convert end-of-life vehicles into resources for parts to be remanufactured, reused, or recycled.
Stellantis intends for the Hub to generate “efficiencies and synergies” among these activities, and through vertical integration of materials and processes. Here is a 3.5-minute video showing the 4R process in action.
Classroom discussion questions:
- What is meant by “circular economy?” Give an example with an iPhone as the product.
- What auto parts will be hard to repurpose?
