All of us know about logistics from the point of purchasing of raw material, transportation to the manufacturing facility, delivering of goods to wholesaler and further more to retailer, but what about the “reverse” process? The “Reverse Logistics” process starts from the point when the consumer returns the product to a retail store from which he/she purchased it from. Most of the time, this is due to a problem with a product itself. From that point on, if the product is still under the warranty, it will go to the repair department. Some merchandise may be beyond repair or there is a chance that manufacturers no longer make the parts for it. In that case, the company has procedure set in the place where this type of product should go.
Product repair and product refurbishment
As earlier mentioned, majority of the products that go back to the retail store go to repair department if they are still under warranty. Extended warranties can be purchased by the consumer. Many consumers feel that extended warranty is beneficial especially if the item is expensive. The consumer may also consider extended warranty if he/she is planning on using the product for many years. Besides repairing, it is also worth it to mention that refurbishment of products is common thing, especially in auto industry. Recently more and more practiced in technology world. Most of the time these types of products are returned on shelves with a label of being refurbished and the price is usually lower in comparison to brand new – never used products. Warranties for refurbished products can also be purchased.
Recycling
Now, what happens if it is not possible to repair or refurbish the product due to variety of reasons? Almost everything can be recycled these days; plastic, still, glass, paper, and so on. There are specific companies that handle this type of business. They are recycling things that are no longer usable and transferring them back to raw material. They are well known these days as “e-waste” businesses.
Reverse Logistics Association
We are lucky to have a Reverse Logistics Association that brings together many professionals and Companies involved in Reverse Logistics process together. Established in 2002 in the United States, the Reverse Logistics Association’s main focus is providing a forum for OEMs, ODMs, branded and Retail companies to find Third Party Service Providers to be outsourced. The Reverse Logistics Association monitors thousands of 3SPSs on global market level, which are known as Aftermarket Supply Chain service providers; while at the same time supporting the outsourcing needs to OEM, ODEM, branded and Retail companies. Reverse Logistics Association helps its members to stay up to date with what is going on in the Reverse Logistics world by providing variety of sources such as: webinars, magazines, News Letters, events and much more.
