The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) did a study of how federal agencies decide whether to use remanufactured parts of not when repairing their fleet vehicles.
GAO reviewed 14 agencies and discovered that they generally don’t keep records as to whether a part used is remanufactured or not. Of the fleets, the General Services Administration (GSA) does track whether it uses remanufactured parts but only when agency-owned and managed facilities handle repairs. When outside private businesses provide repair services, they don’t generally indicate whether a part is remanufactured or not.
The GAO report found that agencies consider remanufactured parts on a case-by-case basis in order to get the most effective outcome for the agency’s fleet and the federal government.
The report listed the main criteria federal agencies use when deciding to use remanufactured parts include the following: how long it will take to receive the part; the cost of the replacement part (including shipping costs); the expected remaining useful life of the vehicle; the reliability of the remanufactured part; and the length of warranty on the same kind of new or remanufactured part.
