How refurbishment can work, even when safety and performance matter the most: DLL Group

When it comes to being responsible in regards to waste, an important part of that process revolves around not just taking waste and creating new products with it, but also mitigating how much becomes waste in the first place. In regards to sustainability practices, this is often seen in medium-to-large bulky consumer items, which are made to be modular, replacing parts only when needed. This concept of “made to be modular” is successful for sustainability models for reducing waste, but what about products that already existed? Could they also become modular?

DLL Group, a financial service group that helps fund the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK, noticed that many ambulances were being returned after 5-7 years, and that this was a huge source of waste within the system.

The main reason was high maintenance costs, especially for chassis components like the engine and gearbox. The rear box, on the other hand, was often in working order. As a result, DLL identified remounting ambulances as a means of maintaining and even increasing vehicle life.

 By mounting the most valuable part of the existing ambulance on a new chassis (with new engine, gearbox and manufacturer warranty), investment costs for the end customer can be reduced by more than 20% and life of the vehicle is extended by a further five to seven years.

Applying this sort of modularity after the fact might seem easy enough, but a huge barrier into this process actually becoming implemented lies in concerns of quality, safety, and reliability associated with the ambulance's place in health care.

DLL contracted an external testing company to conduct a series of driving tests on the refurbished ambulance. It passed all tests and has been concluded safe and compliant, which makes the performance of the refurbished ambulance as good as a new one. Particularly in a regulated market like the healthcare sector, this “certificate” is crucial in scaling up remounting activities in the UK.

If a new refurbishment opportunity can deliver economic benefits in this challenging context, it’s likely that there are similar untapped sources of value in other sectors.

Review

When it comes to creating a circular economy, this innovation by DLL is a seemingly small loop. They front the cost of actually refurbishing the machines, but in the end, it saves them money by reducing the amount of totally new vehicles that they have to purchase, and additionally costs associated with transportation, selling at an auction, etc. The NHS also benefits from this cost reduction, which, as a publicly funded system, has huge impacts. This “small” loop is a successful one in how it creates value while also reducing the amount of waste that is being created. However, in agreement with the original poster, this innovation has also set a precedent in the world of sustainability. It is an effective case study into how volatile sectors that may not be currently as sustainable as they could be, have the potential to get there. In addition, I think an important thing we are seeing within this loop is the power of communication and connection. This innovation was only made possible because they had a number of individuals, from the mechanics working on physically remounting the chassis, safety inspectors, NHS Trusts, and even ambulance drivers, who contributed to this community effort.

Reference

Ellen MacArthur Foundation. (2021, October 5). How refurbishment can work even when safety and performance matter the most. https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/circular-examples/how-refurbishment-can-work-even-when-safety-and-performance-matter-the-most