Integrating Virtual Reality and Digital Twin in Circular Economy Practices: A Laboratory Application Case

TLDR

Increasing customer awareness of climate change, demand instability, and rapid automation and digitalization are forcing companies to rethink business strategies toward Circular Economy and Industry 4.0, yet practical demonstrations of their combined impact remain scarce. This study presents a laboratory case demonstrating how Industry 4.0 technologies can support Circular Economy practices by virtually testing a WEEE disassembly plant configuration. The authors employ dedicated simulation tools to model and evaluate the waste disassembly process in a virtual environment. Results show that service‑oriented, event‑driven processing and information models enable integration of smart and digital solutions into current Circular Economy practices at the factory level.

Abstract

The increasing awareness of customers toward climate change effects, the high demand instability affecting several industrial sectors, and the fast automation and digitalization of production systems are forcing companies to re-think their business strategies and models in view of both the Circular Economy (CE) and Industry 4.0 (I4.0) paradigms. Some studies have already assessed the relations between CE and I4.0, their benefits, and barriers. However, a practical demonstration of their potential impact in real contexts is still lacking. The aim of this paper is to present a laboratory application case showing how I4.0-based technologies can support CE practices by virtually testing a waste from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) disassembly plant configuration through a set of dedicated simulation tools. Our results highlight that service-oriented, event-driven processing and information models can support the integration of smart and digital solutions in current CE practices at the factory level.