Low Impact Manufacturing: Electric Motorcycle Circular Economy Report

This report delves into the application of circular economy principles within the electric motorcycle manufacturing sector, using Zero Motorcycles as a case study. It analyzes the various components of electric motorcycles, classifying them into structural, electrical, and miscellaneous parts, and assesses their suitability for reuse and recycling. The report examines the product lifecycle, outlining the stages from development to decline, emphasizing the importance of the circular economy in reducing waste and resource consumption. It also explores the future of sustainable industrial systems, detailing both short-term and long-term steps to develop a sustainable system, including the implementation of policies, standards, and regulations. The analysis highlights the economic and environmental benefits of adopting a circular model, focusing on material and energy flow within the manufacturing process and the potential for reduced import of raw materials through recycling and component reuse.

Low Impact Manufacturing

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
1) Circular Economy....................................................................................................................1
Component Used in Manufacturing of Electric Motorcycle and Their Suitability in Circular
Economy......................................................................................................................................3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................5
2) Future of Sustainable Industrial System & material and Energy Flow...................................5
3) Describe short and long term steps to develop sustainable system.........................................8
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Circular economic is the focused economy system that aims to reduce the quantity of
waste and recycle waste material to reuse to increase the profit. The cycle used in the circular
economy reduce the input of resource and output of waste in the production system. The
products which can be reuse or recycled are used as resource in production. This is different
from linear economy where the flow of resource is unidirectional. Zero motorcycle is an
American electric motorcycle (Electricross) Manufacturing company. The company was started
in year 2006 by Neal Saiki. The company is located nearby Scotts Valley (Stahel, 2016).
This report is explaining different components used in the manufacturing of electrical
motorcycles. The degree of components to affect the sustainability of economic cycle is
explained in study. For each product the degree of impact on sustainability for circular economy
is explained. The sustainable future of motorcycle is explained on the basis of life cycle of
particular components. The long term and short term steps to design a high sustainable system
designed in report. Different policies, standards and regulation are explained for sustainable
economic cycle.
TASK 1
1) Circular Economy
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The different phases of the circular economy are Design & manufacture, Retailer, Consumer or
House Holder, Reuse & repair and Recycling Sector. The circular economy is economy method
followed by private and public companies to
Design and Manufacture
In this phase the focus of company is to design and manufacture the products which can
be reused of recycled in the future (Ghisellini, Cialani and Ulgiati, 2016). Goal of the
manufacturing design is to produce the good with less waste and high sustainability.
Retailer
In this stage the electrical two wheelers are provided to the retailer in the market place
for distribution. In this step the retailer motivate the consumer to help the company in recycling
process.
Consumer or House holder
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Illustration 1: Circular Economy
(Source: WRAP and the circular economy, 2019)

In this step consumer uses the product as long as they can. The consumer uses the
electrical motorcycle until it starts causing trouble in operation.
Repair or Reuse
In this stage the motorcycles are repaired to maintain its continuity in operation. The
purpose of this function is to minimise the defects in electrical motorcycle.
Recycling
This is the last step in the circular economic cycle. The electrical motorcycles which can't
be used by consumer and they are causing a lot problems to the consumer. This bikes are
purchased by the company by calculate the repurchased cost of motorcycle (Lieder and Rashid,
2016). This repurchased products are used for recycling.
Component Used in Manufacturing of Electric Motorcycle and Their Suitability in Circular
Economy
Zero motorcycle is selling the electric two wheelers. The company is manufacturing some
components of electrical motorcycle and some parts are imported from other companies. To
manufacture a motorcycle different parts are needed. Component of electrical motorcycle are
classified in three categories which are structural parts, Electrical parts and Miscellaneous parts.
Structural Parts in Electrical Motorcycle
The structural parts of the motorcycle are required to prepare a strong base. The parts
which are used to prepare the basic design are chassis, Wheels, Suspension and Seat assembly.
Usually this parts are made of metal like standard steel or aluminium (Tukker, 2015). The
chassis is the basic frame of the vehicle. This is the robust part of the motorcycle. The wheels of
the motorcycle are made of alloy material and Spokes of standard steel or iron. The seat
assembly is made of carbon steel and standard steel.
The metal can be reused by melting process. The parts like chassis wheels and
suspensions and seat assembly are made of metal. The reserves of the metal are limited on earth
so the use of metal should be sustainable for the environment. If the company repurchase the
company product from the customer this parts can be reused to build new metal component. The
metal component of waste products which are purchased from consumer are reused by melting
process. This process reduces the import of raw material in the Zero electrical Motorcycle
company (Murray, Skene and Haynes, 2017). The goal of the circular economy to reduce the
import of resources is achieved by recycling of repurchased metal components. This improves
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the sustainability of circular economy. The lubricants used in the suspensions can be reused by
refining process, this also reduces the import of resources.
Electrical Parts in Electrical Motorcycle
Most of the electrical components in electrical motorcycle are import by the electrical
component manufacturing company. The different component which are imported from the other
company are motors, switches, wires, circuit boards and batteries. The company assembles these
parts in company workshop. Different components are used by Zero motorcycles to maintain the
performance. Batteries used in the motor store the electrical charge after charging and this power
is utilized during use. The circuit allows performing multiple function like indicator, head and
tell lights horn and other operations. Wires are used to maintain the continuous current supply to
the circuit components and switches are used to toggle between the turn on and turn off.
The design of the electrical component can affect the sustainability of the circular
economy. The components like wires, metal in circuit board and motors can be reused or
recycled to improve the sustainability of circular economy. These electrical components are
manufactured by other companies and as per the requirement these electrical elements are
purchased from them. For the sustainability of circular economy is possible by providing the
component which are equipped by repurchased product to the manufacturer and reduce the cost
of electrical components.
The wires used in the assembly of electrical are consists of copper and aluminium this
both metals can be reused in the electrical component manufacturing. The component like
motor, switches, circuit board and batteries cab be used in the breakdown vehicles. Component
which are in good condition can be reused in other motorcycles for repair work. This will be cost
efficient for both company and consumer. The component which can't be used in the repair work
can be recycles to collect metals from it. The motors and circuit boards are consists of copper
and iron this can be resell as raw material to electrical component manufacturer. This how the
Zero Motorcycles can maintain the sustainability of circular economy.
Miscellaneous Parts in Electrical Motorcycle
The miscellaneous parts of the motorcycle are tyres, transmission, bodywork and
upholstery. The recycling of these miscellaneous is most important for the sustainability of the
circular economy. These are the major component of electrical vehicles. Use of this part in the
recycling and reuse process can improve the circular economy of Zero motorcycles company.
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The tyres can not be recycled but it can be reused for different purposes. Fuel used in the heat
ovens of company can be reduced by use the tyre chips as fuel in ovens. The other use of the
waste tyre power is it can be used as raw material in the asphalt. The miscellaneous components
which can be reused or recycle can help a lot to maintain the circular economy cycle. The
manufacturing cost of transmission system, tyres and upholstery is high and the raw material cost
and transportation cost or raw material is too high so the recycling of metal component and reuse
of non metallic component can help to keep circular system sustainable.
TASK 2
2) Future of Sustainable Industrial System & material and Energy Flow
Life Cycle of Typical Product
The product life cycle is consists of five different steps. The steps are development,
introduction, growth, maturity, and decline (Lacy and Rutqvist, 2016). In the circular economy
life cycle is different forms the linear economic system. This life cycle stages of product
explains the flow of raw material and different phases of product utilization.
Product Development
In the product development stage large amount of fund is required to implement the
innovation in the product and test the product before launch. In the product development
different aspects are considered. These aspects are consumer view towards the company product,
performance of product in market and required changes in product. The circular economy is very
helpful in the product development in Zero electrical motorcycle. The resources for the
development are collected from the recycling process which can help to reduce the cost of
product development.
Product Introduction
This stage is consists of the process to introduce innovative product in the market. To
develop market for new product is a difficult process. It is basic need of the company to make
reach to the potential consumer to gain profit from selling. Through the circular economy the
product development cost is low, this helps the company to keep the price of product low and
moderate. This can help to develop market of the Zero motorcycle product.
Product Growth
As the company gain market for the product and the next target of the company is to
improve the market share of product and gain competitive advantage in target market. In this
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stage the company can maintain the p[rice of product optimum to target more consumer to
increase the revenue of the company (Chen, 2019). By circular economy company can focus on
repurchase to reduce the manufacturing cost by managing easy raw material, this can help the
company to work efficiently.
Product Maturity
It is the stage where the product is performing good in the market and competing to the
other competitors. In this stage all the company need to do is to improve the features of the Zero
Motorcycle. The changes in price of the product is declining in this to stay competitive in the
market. In this stage the company can generate optimum profit even after decreasing price of
Zero Motorcycle. The cost efficiency achieved by circular economy can reduce the load on
company economy.
Decline
In this stage due to the market saturation and changing consumer demand, high
competition the profit of the company reduces. In this stage company have different option like
stop the production of old product and sell the manufacturing right to other seller who can
maintain sell of the product by introducing different changes in the product and introduce the
innovative product to new target market.
This is how the life cycle works for the particular company product. By the circular
economy the better results can be obtained by Zero Motorcycle.
Circular Economic Cycle of Zero Motorcycle
For the better performance and stable economical condition circular economic cycle is
most suitable. The implementation of circular economy reduces the resource's importation and
reduces the quantity of waste process. Less importation and less waste improves the economical
condition of company by saving cost. The implementation can maker the company operation
efficient and sustainable for economy (Dixon, 2017). In the linear economic system the company
imports raw material, manufacture product and sell it to consumer and provide the services
related to it. After this the role of company is over. Linear economic system of company is less
stable and less cost efficient.
The circular economic cycle is the circulation of company product and services. This
circle starts from the import of raw material in company and start manufacturing of motorcycle
component to produce electrical motorcycle through the assembly line. The raw material which
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are used in the motorcycle manufacturing are metals like iron, aluminium and unprocessed
rubber and other resources. The different stages for circular economic cycle are manufacturing of
motorcycle, distributor of company product, consumer & house holders, repair and reuse and
recycling.
Role of Manufacturing in Circular Economic System
The implementation of circular economy system can make the procedure of production
cost effective for the company. In circular economy system the process of production is consists
of recycled raw material. This recycled raw material is obtained from the repurchased company
product. By this the overall cost of manufacturing is reduced with certain percentage. The
effective and efficient designing of component can reduce the wastage and this can improve the
resource handling of company (Arunachalam and Karmakar, 2018). The different components
are manufactured in the company and some of electrical component are purchased from other
manufacturers. The whole product is assembled on the company assembly line. This how the
complete product comes in the market.
Role of Retailer in Circular Economic System
In this part of the circular economy the retailer sell the company product and provide
relevant services to consumer. For the better implementation the company can promote the
retailers to provide the information of recycling to the consumer. This can help the company to
repurchase the used motorcycles for reuse or recycle purpose. For repurchase company can
provide authority to the retailer to repurchase the company product on behalf of company. This
can improve the recycling and reuse procedure of company. In the future sustainable industry the
company communicate through the local retailer to maintain communication to the consumer.
Role of Consumer in Circular Economic System
The role of the consumer in the circular economy is to stay in the touch of company and
take the suggestion and services of company continuously. This can maintain the relation
between consumer and company. The behaviour of the consumer makes this level successful.
For the repair work consumer is depended on the company and retailer. The consumer uses the
company product and ask for help of company when in need.
Recycling and Reuse
After the decline of product the recycling and reuse is performed. In the process of reuse
the working components like circuit board, batteries and wires are reused in the repairing of
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other products which are come for fixing in company. In this process the usable equipments of
products are reused in other produce, that reduces the cost to consumer and company and help to
sustain the raw material for longer time (Stewart, 2016). In the recycling product the completely
damaged product are dismantled in the company to recover some raw material from it. The
different components are recycled in the classified form to obtain the raw material from it.
Through the recycling process in the circular economy the waste products are minimised
to reduce the importation of raw material in Zero Motorcycle. This circular economy helps the
industry to work with better financial condition. The flow of energy and raw material is also
circular in the operation. Most of the raw material is recovered from repurchasing, reuse and
recycling process.
3) Describe short and long term steps to develop sustainable system
The development of sustainable system will enable in reducing wastage and reusing of
waste materials in Zero motorcycle. Also, it will be help in maintaining standards through which
parts are manufactured. So, the standards can be followed for sustainable system and conserving
energy (Caputo, Marzi and Pellegrini, 2016). In addition to it, there will be change in process
and methods of manufacturing parts and recycling materials. Beside this, by establishing short
and long term goals changes can be implemented in overall organization. Moreover, several
policies and standards can be formed in order to develop sustainable system. The short and long
term steps are as described below :-
Short term steps
Usually, in structural parts usage of metal is high. Also, there are many other things
where metal components are used. Therefore, efforts can be made in order to reuse metal that is
considered as wastage. Short term steps will benefit in minimising waste and reusing. It will be
beneficial in bringing small changes at each stage to reuse parts as much as possible. The steps
that can be taken are as follows :-
Chassis - For chassis part the metal sheets can be cut via using plasma technique. In this cutting
is done according to design and reducing waste management. By using technique in metal
cutting wastage can be minimised.
Wheels – Here, short term steps taken is by changing design of wheel and setting an angle in
which less metal is used. So, by continuously changing design of wheel metal consumption can
be reduced (Zhang and Haapala, 2015).
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Suspension – The suspension can be reused in similar way as by using plasma technique in
metal sheet cutting.
Seat assembly- In this the design of seat can be modified that uses less metal and wastage is
minimised as well. This short term change will also help in lowering consumption of energy.
Miscellaneous parts – Here, short term steps that can be taken in developing a sustainable
system to recycle all waste materials.
Tyres – Here, synthetic rubber can be used in tyre to reduce its wastage. It will make new tire
degradable that can be composed easily in long term. For this a policy can be formed where there
must be certain amount of percentage use of synthetic rubber.
Body work- Here, mostly carbon fibre can be used instead of metal part of body. So, once it is
broken the parts can not be reused. Hence, plastic and fibre can be recycled by degrading.
Upholstery- This part is completely made of rubber and leather. So, short term step is the
damaged part can be repaired and reuse in other motorcycles.
Long term steps
After successful implementation of short term steps, efforts can be made to develop
sustainable system for long term. Here, circular economy concept can be applied. It will benefit
in reusing of resources at maximum level and reducing waste. So, at each stage of product
changes can be made to implement sustainable system.
Structural parts
Chassis- Long term steps that can be taken is separating damaged and repaired part. In this steel
and iron can be recycled through shredding (Faludi and et.al., 2015). They can be purified by
process of electrolysis. It will be useful in reducing scarp. Here, plasma technique can be used in
cutting of steel, aluminum, etc.
Wheels – Here, number of spokes in wheels can be reduced. Also, spokes can be reused in
wheels. Moreover, design of wheels can be transformed to alloy wheels. It will reduce use of
metal and develop sustainable system.
Suspension – The parts of suspension such as locking nuts, U bolts, etc. can be reused. These
parts can be repaired and reused. In this metal can be melted and recycled.
Seat assembly- In this the metal parts like nut plate, bar, etc. that is used in seat assembly can be
reused. Alongside it, cushion and other rubber components can be repaired by using technology.
This will maintain quality as well as minimizing wastage in seat assembly.
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Miscellaneous parts
Tires- A technique can be used such as cryogenic grinding or pyrolysis to degrade tire and reuse
rubber. It will be beneficial in reusing tire and rubber in some other parts. In long term recycling
of tire will benefit in reducing cost.
Body work- The various steps that can be taken is recycling scarp part of metal wastage. The
materials can be sprayed or sterilized in some solution to remove dust particles. In this way it
will be easy to minimize waste in bodywork.
Upholstery – Similar steps can be taken that is applied in body work. Also, the design of seat
can be modified so that waste can be minimized (Chen, Luo and Wang, 2017). For this
technological development can be done. New software and applications can be installed for
automation.
Thus, by taking both short and long term steps within sustainable system Zero
Motorcycle will be able to reduce waste and recycle scrap metal. Eco design regulation can be
followed to develop eco friendly design of parts that can be recycled easily. However, company
can follow BS 8001-2017 standard of circular economy. Moreover, through innovation and
implementation of technology in process sustainability can be maintained. The innovation can be
made in both short and long steps benefiting organization.
CONCLUSION
The report is concluding the importance of circular economy for Zero Motorcycle. The
different stages of circular economy are evaluated in the report. This is obtained that how can an
organization achieve sustainable circular economic system. Suitability of different component is
explained in the study. The life cycle of product is obtained in the circular economic system. The
long term and short term steps are evaluated to get a sustainable circular economic system.
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