MERA

 
MERA - The Association for Sustainable Manufacturing is the remanufacturing and sustainability division of MEMA. With roots in the transportation industry, MERA represents the interests of the broader remanufacturing community across multiple industry sectors. The organization is a network of manufacturers, suppliers, universities, and professional services firms that promotes the economic, environmental, and product performance benefits of remanufacturing and similar forms of sustainable manufacturing.
 
Sustainable manufacturing can be simply defined as “manufacturing with reuse.” It is a manufacturing process that restores original products in a factory setting, yielding goods that are like new, but better than the originals. The finished goods have like-new quality, they offer better value, and they are better for the environment. As an eco-friendly process, sustainable manufacturing conserves materials and embodied energy, and it reduces landfill waste.
 
Different industry sectors use different terms to identify the remanufacturing process. For instance, in the automotive and commercial vehicle sectors, the term is remanufacturing; in aviation and aerospace, the reference is maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO); and for medical devices, consumer goods and electronics, the term is refurbishing. (All of the above italicized terms are forms of sustainable manufacturing.)
 
Examples of goods that can go through the sustainable manufacturing process include vehicle parts, aircraft engines, MRI machines, electronic modules, and mobile phones.
 
New Symbol for Remanufacturing
 
 “Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.” has been in the public lexicon for years, yet it does not fully capture one very viable solution to today’s environmental challenges. In response, MERA introduced a new symbol for remanufacturing. It looks familiar because it is the recycling symbol with an extra arrow. Remanufacturing is destined to play a more vital role in advancing a global circular economy, and the remanufacturing of existing products should occur before traditional recycling. “Reduce. Reuse. Reman. Recycle.” Learn more at SustainableManufacturing.com.
 

Manufactured Again Certification
 
MERA is the home of Manufactured Again Certification, where new manufacturing and sustainable manufacturing are held to the same international quality standards. The program – based on ISO 9001 and IATF 16949 – also promotes corporate social responsibility, particularly environmental stewardship. The program has a presence in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, as well as Brazil, China, India, Italy, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates.




To learn more, contact info@mera.org or 248-750-1280.

To apply for membership, click here.