Simultaneous remanufacturing and government incentives in remanufacturing systems

Remanufacturing has been receiving a growing attention in both academia and industry due to its economic and environmental benefits. This study investigates the effects of simultaneous remanufacturing, i.e., the effects of entrance of an actor to remanufacturing business when there is already one actor making remanufacturing. To this end, three remanufacturing systems are considered as only the manufacturer remanufactures (case 1), only the retailer remanufactures (case 2) and both the manufacturer and the retailer simultaneously remanufacture (case 3) the used products. Stackelberg Game models are proposed for each of these cases and the performances of the actors are compared. The role of the government in remanufacturing systems is also investigated and the question, to whom should the government provide incentives in order to maximise the remanufactured product quantity, is discussed. Computational results bring various managerial insights regarding the simultaneous remanufacturing decisions of the actors and the role of the government. [Submitted: 1 May 2021; Accepted: 4 October 2021]