Improving Supply Chain Resilience Research Articles

Critical capabilities of improving supply chain resilience in industrialized construction in Hong Kong

PurposeIndustrialized construction (IC) has accelerated the technological advancements of construction supply chains (SCs) in Hong Kong (HK). However, the usually fragmented IC SCs often lead to friction and turbulence that retard their performance. Streamlining these workflows call for resilient SCs that can proactively overcome various vulnerabilities and avoid disruptions. Having identified supply chain capabilities (SCC) as essential precursors to supply chain resilience (SCR), this paper reports on a vital segment of a study on SCC for IC in HK that focused here on critical SCC (CSCC). Specifically, this paper aims at identifying and probing the CSCC for improving SCR in IC in HK.Design/methodology/approachAfter drawing on the plentiful relevant literature, an empirical study using a questionnaire survey and interviews was conducted following the multi-stage methodological framework of this study. Relevant significance analysis of the collected data enabled the selection of CSCC. Next, factor analysis facilitated grouping them under nine underlying components.FindingsThe results reveal 41 CSCC pertinent to achieve resilient SCs in IC in HK under critical capability components of resourcefulness, flexibility, capacity, adaptability, efficiency, financial strength, visibility, anticipation and dispersion.Originality/valueIt is expected that industry practitioners would benefit from prior knowledge of CSCC and their levels of criticalities, so as to prioritize integrating them suitably into SC processes, to develop value-enhanced-resilient SCs. Further, these findings lay the foundations for developing a powerful evaluation model to assess, then improve, SCR in IC in HK by mapping the identified CSCC with relevant critical vulnerabilities, based on study outcomes.

Cybersecurity Assurance in the Emerging Manufacturing-as-a-Service (MaaS) Paradigm: A Lesson from the Video Streaming Industry

Abstract The coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak has incapacitated physical supply chains of various industrial sectors. This has been a call for attention to rethinking innovative methods to improve supply chain resilience. Emerging manufacturing technologies like additive/hybrid manufacturing are enabling small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to transform into cybermanufacturing kiosks that deliver manufacturing-as-a-service by digitizing much of the manufacturing workflow (design, communication, and manufacturing). This transformation is causing a paradigm shift in which major producers and original equipment manufacturers can outsource manufacturing of components to distributed SMEs located near the point of need. The increasing reliance on a digital thread would reduce the burden of resiliency required from the physical supply chains. Although digital threads are reducing the burden on the physical supply chains, they introduce a new class of cyber-resilience requirements, chiefly in ensuring the integrity of the designs and other intellectual properties shared across the digital thread. A novel design-sharing scheme for the digital thread based on video streaming is introduced herein to address the issue of IP theft and tampering. The potential of design-sharing schemes for the improvement of the cyberresilience of digital supply chains is discussed.

Research opportunities for a more resilient post-COVID-19 supply chain – closing the gap between research findings and industry practice

PurposeThe COVID-19 crisis has caused major supply chain disruptions, and these can be traced back to basic supply chain risks that have previously been well identified in literature. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a pathway for closing the gap between supply chain resilience research and efforts in industry to develop a more resilient supply chain.Design/methodology/approachBased upon virtual roundtables with supply chain executives, supplemented with interviews and publicly available datapoints about COVID-19 impact on the supply chain, we explore challenges in industry and suggest opportunity areas where research can support efforts in industry to improve supply chain resilience.FindingsDuring the COVID-19 crisis, participating supply chain executives are experiencing textbook supply, demand and control risks in the supply chain. They also observe a lack of preparedness, shortcomings of current response plans and the need for greater supply chain resilience. Focus areas in improving resilience mirror generic recommendations from literature and provide a rich opportunity to reduce the gap between research findings and efforts in industry.Research limitations/implicationsMore empirical, event-based and less conceptual research into supply chain resilience has been called for several times during the last two decades. COVID-19 provides a very rich opportunity for researchers to conduct the type of research that has been called for. This research may contribute to the structurally de-risking of supply chains. Areas of research opportunity include decision models for supply chain design that avoid overfocusing on costs only, and that consider the value of flexibility, short response times and multiple sources as well as methods for enriching supplier segmentation and evaluation models to reduce a focus on savings and payment terms only.Practical implicationsKey levers for de-risking the supply chain include the need to balance global sourcing with nearshore and local sourcing, the adoption of multiple sources and a greater utilization of information technology to drive more complete and immediate information availability. Perhaps most importantly, talent management in supply chain management needs to promote a focus not just on costs, but also on resilience as well as on learning from current events to improve decision-making.Social implicationsThere is a great opportunity for supply chain managers to grow their contribution to society beyond risk response into the proactive reduction of risks for the future. Researchers can serve society by informing this progress with impactful research.Originality/valueThis article offers initial empirical exploration of supply chain risks experienced in the context of COVID-19 and approaches considered in industry to improve supply chain resilience. Opportunities for empirical, event-based and less conceptual research that has been called for years, are identified. This research can help close the gap between supply chain resilience research and efforts in industry to improve supply chain resilience. Hopefully the research opportunities identified can inspire the flurry of research that can be expected in response to the multiple special issues planned by journals in our field.

Analysing supply chain risk management capabilities through collaborative and integrative approach

In the era of market turbulence and external uncertainty, supply chain risk management is getting top attention in almost every dynamic business. The study is carried out to empirically investigate relational factors influencing demand side and supply side risk management. A sample of 149 valid responses was gathered through a structured questionnaire from marketing, planning, supply chain and logistics professionals from the textile sector and was analysed using partial least square smart (PLS) structural equation modelling (SEM) using SmartPLS 3.2.4. This research will significantly contribute to the literature of supply chain risks management (SCRM) as well as helping risk management professionals to understand the integrative and collaborative approach to improve supply chain resilience and robustness.

Impact of risk management culture on supply chain resilience: An empirical study from Indian manufacturing industry

The frequency of supply chain disruptions is growing. The recent supply chain disruptions and their costs emphasize the need for resilient supply chains. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to investigate interactions between critical antecedents of supply chain resilience including risk management culture, supply chain connectivity, visibility, collaboration, agility, their impact on supply chain resilience, and finally on firm performance. Using the same antecedents and literature support, an empirical model has been proposed. The proposed model has been tested using rigorous statistical analysis such as reliability, convergent, and discriminant validity tests. Partial least squares-structural equation modelling has been used to validate the proposed model and the interdependencies between the critical antecedents. An important finding of this research is that organizations, using the proposed model, can develop and improve supply chain resilience capability by establishing the risk management culture through improving the risk awareness among employees and conducting periodic risk assessment exercises. In addition, the study suggests that organizations trying to achieve supply chain resilience must develop sufficient supply chain connectivity and visibility through adopting information and communications technologies and visibility tools for quick response and recovery from supply chain disruptions. Data collected from the Indian manufacturing sector are used to validate the model. The holistic view presented by the proposed model describes the inter-relationships between critical antecedents to achieve supply chain resilience. Concluding remarks and future research avenues have been presented.

A discrete-event simulation model to test multimodal strategies for a greener and more resilient wood supply

Increasing occurrences of natural disturbances, including windstorms and high snow cover, and supply chain risks lead to severe irregularities in wood harvest and transport. To overcome resulting supply difficulties, innovative multimodal systems via rail terminals are promising options offering the potential to increase buffer capacity, improve supply chain resilience, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, a train terminal is included in a virtual simulation environment spanning the entire wood supply chain from forest to industry to test, analyze, and evaluate a complex multimodal system in different scenario settings. Furthermore, the simulation model provides intuitive decision support through animation and a cockpit of key performance indicators, facilitating hands-on workshops with supply chain managers. Results show the advantage of a combination of unimodal and multimodal transport in the wood supply chain of the observed case-study region. This combination proves to be resilient and outperforms other tested supply chain strategies by avoiding both bottlenecks and ill-timed plans and reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Furthermore, workshops conducted with industry experts indicate that adapting collaborative supply chain control strategies by means of a participatory simulation environment enhances the development of advanced risk management and therefore improves supply chain resilience, efficiency, and sustainability.

A mixed resilient‐efficient approach toward blood supply chain network design

AbstractUnlike its inherent beneficial attributes, the blood supply chain is very complex due to its uncertain nature and irregular donation besides a high vulnerability to disruptions. In this regard, this study provides a multi‐objective integrated resilient‐efficient model to design a blood supply chain network under uncertainty. To evaluate the efficiency, an augmented form of the data envelopment analysis model is incorporated into the extended model. On the other hand, to improve supply chain resilience, different resiliency measures as optimization tools are introduced and inserted into the considered network. As blood donors have a main role in the blood supply chain, this paper undertakes motivational social aspects to stimulate blood donation for reducing possible shortages. Furthermore, to handle the multi‐objective problem, an interactive fuzzy approach is utilized. Finally, to indicate the applicability of the extended model and its solution approaches, a case study is provided considering realistic data. The results revealed that simultaneously considering all three measures of efficiency, resilience, and cost can assist in improvement of blood supply chain network design and a trade‐off among these three measures can be set by decision maker's preferences.

A graph-based model to measure structural redundancy for supply chain resilience

Globalisation and lean initiatives increase the vulnerabilities of the supply chains (SC), where disruptions in any plant in a supply chain network (SCN) can propagate throughout the whole SCN. Redundancy is part of the SC re-engineering to improve supply chain resilience (SCRES). This paper presents a conceptual model of an SCN using graph theory, considering the relationships between plants and materials. Based on the model, the structural redundancy of the SCN is measured, which is used to assess SCRES. This assessment approach focuses on the resilience of the SCN against disruptions. Case studies are discussed to illustrate the applicability of this model and show that increasing structural redundancy of the SCN improves SCRES against disruptions.

Flexibility evaluation of multiechelon supply chains.

Multiechelon supply chains are complex logistics systems that require flexibility and coordination at a tactical level to cope with environmental uncertainties in an efficient and effective manner. To cope with these challenges, mathematical programming models are developed to evaluate supply chain flexibility. However, under uncertainty, supply chain models become complex and the scope of flexibility analysis is generally reduced. This paper presents a unified approach that can evaluate the flexibility of a four-echelon supply chain via a robust stochastic programming model. The model simultaneously considers the plans of multiple business divisions such as marketing, logistics, manufacturing, and procurement, whose goals are often conflicting. A numerical example with deterministic parameters is presented to introduce the analysis, and then, the model stochastic parameters are considered to evaluate flexibility. The results of the analysis on supply, manufacturing, and distribution flexibility are presented. Tradeoff analysis of demand variability and service levels is also carried out. The proposed approach facilitates the adoption of different management styles, thus improving supply chain resilience. The model can be extended to contexts pertaining to supply chain disruptions; for example, the model can be used to explore operation strategies when subtle events disrupt supply, manufacturing, or distribution.

A hybrid FCM-AHP approach to predict impacts of offshore outsourcing location decisions on supply chain resilience

The on-going offshore outsourcing processes have resulted in complex, global and more vulnerable supply chain to disruptions. However, a good supplier choice would preserve or even improve supply chain resilience. Despite this critical potential effect, this topic remains relatively underdeveloped in the literature. Accordingly, this study proposes a coupled method based on Fuzzy Cognitive Maps (FCM) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The final model shows the impact of locational decision in offshore outsourcing process on supply chain resilience. Moreover, it allows simulating locations scenarios over time through an inference process. The simulations foresee the impacts of three alternative locations on capabilities required in a resilient supply chain. The sensitivity analysis of the findings reveals that one location would improve supply chain resilience meanwhile the others would damage it. This FCM-AHP analysis enhances the understanding of academics and practitioners about the importance of locations criteria and their influence in the supply chain resilience capabilities.

Achieving supply chain resilience: the role of procurement

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to understand the role of procurement in identifying and managing the intra- and inter-organisational issues which impact supply chain resilience. Achieving resilience along the supply chain in today’s turbulent business environment requires efforts from both internal and external elements of the extended enterprise.Design/methodology/approach– The systematic literature review was conducted between 2000 and 2013 with the objective being to answer the single research question proposed. To do so, a content analysis based on the literature was applied to 30 selected papers.Findings– The study revealed that procurement activities do make a significant contribution to creating supply chain resilience. Emerging from the literature review, certain intra- and inter-organisational issues were identified that could impact supply chain resilience. Also the possible actions that procurement could take to enable the enhancement of supply chain resilience were identified.Research limitations/implications– This study is limited, in that it is exploratory and focuses only on the body of knowledge presented in two databases over the past 13 years. It has also been restricted to the procurement function and the consequent implications for the upstream supply chain.Originality/value– The originality of this paper lies in the identification of intra- and inter-organisational issues from a procurement perspective specifically as they relate to improving supply chain resilience. This raises further questions on the role of procurement in creating supply chain resilience, which has not been well-explored in the current literature.

A supply chain disturbance management fuzzy decision support system

This paper presents a supply chain disturbance management fuzzy decision support system model developed to support managers in their decision-making process of selecting the best operational policy (e.g., mitigation and/or contingency plans) to counter supply chain disturbances, thus improving supply chain resilience. The selection of such operational policies is based on the calculation of performance indexes that reflect the supply chain performance in different scenarios (e.g., normal operation, affected by disturbances, implementation of mitigation plans or implementation of contingency plans). The developed system lays on two pillars: first, on the use of fuzzy set theory to model the uncertainty associated with disturbances, their effects on the supply chain and the computation of the referred performance indexes; second, on the simulation of the supply chain under the effect of disturbances or operational policies, by coupling the system with a simulation software.

Resilience through flexibility in transportation operations

This paper discusses a logistics strategy which can improve supply chain resilience against transportation disruptions. This strategy is based on incorporating flexibility in transportation operations through the use of multiple transportation modes. A transportation model is used to find shipment routes which balance the efficiency and flexibility considerations in the form of two-connected paths in a multi-mode logistics network. The feasibility of this flexible logistics strategy is evaluated through a case study of US multi-mode transportation networks.

Aligning product design with the supply chain: a case study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the alignment between product design and the supply chain and to identify how this alignment impacts on a firm's supply chain responsiveness and resilience.Design/methodology/approach – An in‐depth case study methodology was adopted to uncover the strategies undertaken by one of the UK's fastest growing fashion retailers to create a competitive advantage through its management of the product design/supply chain alignment.Findings – The findings of this case illustrate that not only is the alignment of product design with the supply chain important in improving competitive advantage for the focal company, but it also has a significant impact in improving supply chain resilience and supply chain responsiveness. This case illustrates how fundamental shifts in the organisation, particularly in integrating product design and supply chain have enabled the repositioning of the company from a low priced fashion store to becoming a leading global fast fashion r...

Supply chain redesign for resilience using simulation

Supply chains are facing numerous changes that are contributing to increasing their complexity and vulnerability to disturbances, therefore, to survive, supply chains must be resilient. The paper presents a supply chain simulation study for a real case concerned with the Portuguese automotive supply chain. The subset automotive supply chain involved in the case study is a three-echelon supply chain, composed by one automaker, two 1st-tier suppliers, two 2nd-tier suppliers, and one outsource entity. The purpose of the study is to evaluate alternative supply chain scenarios for improving supply chain resilience to a disturbance and understanding how mitigation strategies affect each supply chain entity performance. Two strategies widely used to mitigate disturbance negative effects on supply chains were considered and six scenarios were designed. The scenarios differ in terms of presence or absence of a disturbance in one hand and presence or absence of a mitigation strategy in other hand. To evaluate the scenarios designed, two performance measures were defined per supply chain entity, Lead Time Ratio and Total Cost.

Emergence of security in supply chain management literature

The topic of security for supply chains and logistics functions has risen in importance both in practice as well as in the research and has emerged as its own area of research within SCM and logistics. This paper presents a review of the development of the topic of security in supply chain management literature. The article aims to categorize the main security issues dealt with in the literature on supply chain security, enumerate the theoretical approaches applied to these issues and present a discussion of the emergent solutions coming out this research. The article considers three benefits for the supply chain security that form a core set of research goals in the literature on SCS: improving security, making supply chain processes more efficient, and improving supply chain resilience. While operationalization of supply chain security is still not well developed in the literature, some findings of particular interest relate logistics planning to supply chain security. Improving responsiveness of supply chains is still an area that requires a lot of research attention. Underlying the proposed and experienced supply chain security measures is the requirement for integration of security measures in strategic and operational activities across the supply chain.

Staying Healthy to Avoid Illness

Given the global sustainability challenges facing humans and nature today, this theoretical paper aims to propose a supply chain view of sustainability management and thereby contribute to elevating the sustainable supply chain management field to the level of theory. This is done by identifying supply chain stakeholders and related sustainability challenges, which reveal the inherent paradoxes and tensions in global consumption and production networks. This perspective supports the urgent need for all supply chain stakeholders to understand sustainability challenges and adopt a sustainability mindset. The focus on reducing supply chain disruptions, improving supply chain resilience, and improving supply chain sustainability performance has neglected and even undermined broader sustainability challenges, such as climate change. Therefore, this paper first provides a discussion on the complementarity between stakeholder theory and sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) from a systems perspective; and, second, develops a novel supply chain theory to enhance sustainability management by identifying supply chain stakeholders and related sustainability challenges. Linking stakeholder theory and SSCM facilitates a holistic understanding of sustainability challenges, making it possible to identify opportunities to improve one's decisions, actions, and current consumption and production patterns. Instead of perpetuating a firm- or client-centred perspective, the supply chain view places the product/service at the center of the stakeholder identification process. It clearly identifies stakeholders upstream, within the focal firm, downstream, or outside the supply chain (SC), as well as the related sustainability challenges. It encourages all organizations and individuals to practise their systems thinking skills in order to improve their sustainability mindset and enhance their subsequent ability to solve sustainability and ethical challenges. The proposed supply chain view supports managers, policymakers, educators, consultant, consumers, and individuals in identifying stakeholders and understanding sustainability challenges related to production and consumption effectively. This extends existing knowledge on sustainability management from a supply chain perspective and opens new research areas, particularly for ethical decision-making and behavioural sciences.