Reverse Logistics Network Design for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment ( WEEE ) in China A Shanghai Case Study on Eco-Innovation in Industry

On January 01, 2011, the legal basis paving the way towards environmentally sustainable WEEE recovery and disposal in China has entered into force. Practical eco-innovation policy implementation imposes substantial requirements on infrastructure and infrastructure development however. Against this background, a decision-support system for reverse logistics network design for WEEE recycling in Chinese context is elaborated in the present paper. To this effect, we first investigate the present situation of WEEE recycling in China with special focus on the end-of-life value chain and derive implications for locational decision-making. We then propose a mixed-integer linear programming formulation for determining the physical configuration of the reverse logistics system at minimal costs. The resulting optimization-based warehouse location model is applied to a case study on the development of a formal WEEE recycling infrastructure in Greater Shanghai Area. Based on the computational results, we identify several crucial factors determining the cost-efficient configuration of the reverse logistics system and derive recommendations for integrated network design.

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