Remanufacturing is gaining ground in modern societies due to theirpursuit of more circular economies. Together with substantial economic andenvironmental opportunities, their closed-loop supply chains incorporateadditional degrees of uncertainties over traditional supply chains. A keysource of uncertainty is that related to the condition of the returns, whichmay significantly affect the profitability of the industrial actors involved. Thisuncertainty is typically accommodated in closed-loop supply chains bypresorting the returned items, i.e., quality grading. This presentation exploreshow these practices impact the dynamic and economic performance of closed-loopsupply chains. To this end, we analyse the effectiveness (customer service) andefficiency (bullwhip effect, inventory levels) of these supply chains throughcontrol-theoretic techniques. From this perspective, we discuss how such supplychains can be dynamically designed to reduce cost, improve productavailability, and create a stable working environment.

Borja Ponte is a Lecturer in Business Administrationat the University of Oviedo (Spain). Before that, he worked as a ResearchAssociate at Cardiff Business School (2017-2018) on a Circular Economy projectwith several organisations, such as the European Remanufacturing Network and BritishTelecommunications, and a Lecturer in Operations Management at The OpenUniversity (2018-2019). His research revolves around the dynamics and economic performance of supplychains. His latest research primarily focuses on closed-loop supply chains, which aregaining strategic importance as stepping stones towards economic,environmental, and social sustainability.