Right to repair in two industries

Boeing and Tesla saw two interesting developments in the aftermarket or post-sale world. In case of Boeing, two 10-year-old Boeing 787 Dreamliners are already being scrapped. These are the first Dreamliners to be retired. The disassembly team has a “harvest list” of material — essentially where most of the value is. The value of the parts then may be more than the value of the aircraft.

As components are removed, they are sent for repairs or overhaul, to get them back into shape. “The dismantling process resembles a production line, but it’s reverse engineered, and in the end we aim to recycle about 95% of the aircraft,” says Ken Fitzgibbon, CEO of EirTrade, the Dublin-based aviation trading company that is managing the operation.

In case of Tesla, a new antitrust class action has been filed, accusing the company of unlawfully curbing competition for maintenance and replacement parts, which the lawsuit claims has resulted in exorbitant prices and long wait times for repairs. The lawsuits, filed in federal court in San Francisco, allege that Tesla designed its electric vehicles, warranties, and repair policies to discourage owners and lessees from using independent shops outside of Tesla's control.

In this Infosys Knowledge Institute article written a year back, the right to repair was seen as an evolution from a consumer rallying cry to an inevitability in a growing number of markets. As legislation passes and regulations arrive, manufacturers need to redesign their products and rethink supply chains and customer service. However, this also offers companies an opportunity to create new business models and demonstrate sustainability in their offerings.

Right to repair, with cost effective ease of repair will continue to be a topic for complex products, from a sustainability perspective along with other perspectives like faster, cheaper, high quality maintenance.