Agent Based Simulation Optimization of Waste Electrical and Electronics Equipment Recovery

Abstract

The profitability of electronic waste (e-waste) recovery operations is quite challenging due to various sources of uncertainties in the quantity, quality, and timing of returns originating from consumers' behavior. The cloud-based remanufacturing concept, data collection, and information tracking technologies seem promising solutions toward the proper collection and recovery of product life cycle data under uncertainty. A comprehensive model that takes every aspect of recovery systems into account will help policy makers perform better decisions over a planning horizon. The objective of this study is to develop an agent based simulation (ABS) framework to model the overall product take-back and recovery system based on the product identity data available through cloud-based remanufacturing infrastructure. Sociodemographic properties of the consumers, attributes of the take-back programs, specific characteristics of the recovery process, and product life cycle information have all been considered to capture the optimum buy-back price (bbp) proposed for a product with the aim of controlling the timing and quality of incoming used products to collection sites for recovery. A numerical example of an electronic product take-back system and a simulation-based optimization are provided to illustrate the application of the model.