Sustainable disassembly line balancing model based on triple bottom line

Abstract

End of life (EOL) phase of a product is receiving more attention due to increase in environmental concerns and many studies have been conducted for value creation in EOL focusing on concepts as remanufacturing reuse and recycling in sustainable production manner. This study especially focuses on one of global problem e-waste. To minimise the amount of wastes and maximise recovered materials from EOL disassembly is one of the most important concept associated with reuse and balancing disassembly line in an optimal way is essential for organisations. In disassembly line balancing (DLB) not only precedence of tasks but also risk criteria related to environment and human safety should be considered for sustainability. The aim of this study is to propose a model based on triple bottom line (TBL) dimensions i.e. human safety environmental safety and business criteria. To achieve sustainability in DLB and for risk assessment in sustainable DLB it had been decided to use a multi-criteria method i.e. TODIM acronym in Portuguese of 'Tomada de Decisao Iterativa Multicriterio'. The proposed model included 22 disassembly criteria categorised under TBL dimensions which are derived from the literature. Implementation of the study was conducted for computer disassembly processes and as a result of the study approximately 12% an improvement in cycle time was succeeded. In the long run the integration of sustainability in disassembly operations may contribute to the competitive advantage of the company in terms of differentiation and corporate image by achieving business environment and human targets simultaneously.