Circular-RUL: Giving Machines a Second Life with Measured Trust

The Circular-RUL project pioneers a new approach to the circular economy for railway and heavy machinery. Instead of dismantling and recycling valuable components, we aim to extend their operational life through measurable trust. By combining Residual Useful Life (RUL) scoring, Digital Product Passports (DPPs), and certification frameworks, we create a basis for safe, accredited, and insurable second-life use.

Contact: Professor Diego Galar: diego.galar@ltu.se https://www.b2match.com/e/call-for-circular-value-creation/participants/3121170

Why Circular-RUL?

Recycling, while necessary, destroys much of the embedded engineering and manufacturing value in complex assets. Trust has been the missing piece for reuse: without reliable data on how long components can continue performing safely, OEMs, regulators, and operators hesitate to redeploy them. Today, advances in condition monitoring, AI-based prognostics, and digital twins allow RUL to be quantified and certified. Circular-RUL will embed this capability into DPPs, enabling confidence for reuse and redeployment far beyond traditional recycling.

This project responds directly to EU circular economy policies such as the Sustainable Products Initiative and the Digital Product Passport, while addressing industrial needs for cost efficiency, resilience, and carbon reduction.

Concept and Innovation

Circular-RUL = Residual Useful Life Scoring + Digital Product Passports + Accreditation.

• RUL scoring applies proven Prognostics & Health Management (PHM) and Condition-Based Maintenance (CBM) methods (e.g., vibration analysis, degradation models, AI prediction). Components receive a quantified health score, replacing guesswork with evidence.

• DPP integration embeds RUL scores, usage history, and traceability into a single trusted passport, accessible across the value chain.

• Accreditation and warranty frameworks ensure that certified RUL data is recognized, standardized, and insurable, enabling business models for certified resale, leasing, and extended warranties.

Together, these pillars create a trust architecture for industrial circularity — from recycling to retention, from guesswork to measurable trust, and from pilots to a global blueprint.

Work Packages

WP1 – Rules of the Game: Develop the Circular-RUL methodology linking PHM/CBM with DPPs. Define accreditation frameworks aligned with ISO 55000, RAMS, and EU circular economy policies.

WP2 – Digital Stage: Build a cloud-based platform hosting RUL data, passports, and lifecycle traceability. Ensure interoperability with EU DPP standards and data exchange protocols.

WP3 – Railway Pilots: Validate the framework on bogies, traction motors, and braking systems in Sweden’s demanding railway environment. Demonstrate feasibility for highly safety-critical, regulated assets.

WP4 – Heavy Machinery Pilots: Apply the methodology to hydraulic systems, rotating drives, and motors in mining and forestry. Stress-test under dust, heavy loads, and harsh conditions where downtime is costly.

WP5 – Business Model Spin-offs: Explore RUL-based warranties and second-life markets. Enable OEMs to move beyond “sell and scrap” into new revenue streams based on “certified second lives.”

WP6 – Dissemination and Impact: Share results with EU industry networks, policymakers, and standardisation bodies. Influence European legislation on circularity and digital product passports.

Expected Impact

• Environmental: Extending component lifetimes reduces CO₂ emissions, raw material demand, and premature scrapping, directly supporting the EU Green Deal and net-zero targets.

• Economic: Operators lower lifecycle costs; OEMs gain new revenue from warranties and resale; industries gain resilience against supply disruptions and raw material scarcity.

• Technical: Deliver the first operational framework for RUL certification integrated with EU DPPs. Transferable to automotive, aerospace, offshore energy, and beyond.

• Societal: Builds trust and acceptance of second-life assets, enabling a cultural shift where reuse is safe, measurable, and preferred.

Partners Sought

We are looking for:

• Railway OEMs and operators (bogies, traction, braking systems) for pilots.

• Heavy machinery OEMs/service providers (mining, forestry, construction).

• Digital passport/traceability experts for DPP integration.

• Certification/standardisation bodies for accreditation frameworks.

• Research partners in PHM, CBM, and AI for RUL prediction and validation.

Circular-RUL is not recycling the past. It is scripting a trusted future for industrial circularity.