Supply Chain Operations Management Research Articles

Unlocking the Role of Language and National Culture: Effects on Supply Chain Operations in a Global Context

We investigate how language, an essential part of culture, affects manufacturing firms’ supply chain operations management practices, including the cash conversion cycle and its components. Based on the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis, which theorizes that a language's structure may affect how its speakers think, prior studies have established that using the future tense to describe future events increases one's mental distance from the future, reducing a person's concern about it. Building upon this foundation, we hypothesize that firms in weak future-time reference countries are likely to be better prepared for future volatility in demand for their products and therefore carry higher inventory to avoid potential stockouts. We also hypothesize that firms in weak future-time reference countries are more apprehensive about long-term relationships with their customers and hence extend longer credit terms to them. Finally, we hypothesize that firms in weak future-time reference countries have longer operating and cash conversion cycles due to carrying higher levels of inventory and extending longer credit terms to customers. The empirical results using a large global sample of 193,625 firm-year observations from 45 countries support our hypotheses. In terms of economic significance, on average, the cash conversion cycle of firms in weak future-time reference countries is ∼ 11% longer than that of firms in strong future-time reference countries. We also find that the effect of language is dominant over the influence of traditional cultural dimensions. Together, the results suggest that time encoding in the language of a firm is a determining factor in its supply chain operations.

EVALUATION OF SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE RELATED CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN EXPORT AND IMPORT

The world has now evolved into a single global market, making it imperative for companies to excel in international trade. Special Economic Zones (SEZs) have emerged as crucial tools for countries to attract foreign investment, enhance export-oriented growth, and foster employment opportunities. SEZs offer tax benefits and preferential treatments to units operating within their confines. This study seeks to assess the challenges and opportunities related to international trade for SEZ companies. It conducts a survey to gather insights from various stakeholders, including employees, logistics partners, and customs housing agents of SEZ companies, regarding international trade operations within SEZs. A questionnaire is administered to collect opinions on the challenges and opportunities in international trade within SEZs. The gathered data is then analyzed and interpreted to offer valuable suggestions for SEZ companies. While SEZ units are presented with numerous opportunities for achieving rapid and sustainable growth, they also encounter specific challenges and constraints. These challenges may encompass documentation hurdles, stringent customs regulations, coordination with customs departments, and management of logistics and supply chain operations. The objective of the study is to assist companies in managing SEZ-related challenges effectively within the MEPZ (Make in India Economic Zone) while capitalizing on opportunities for balanced and sustainable growth.

MAPPING THE LANDSCAPE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT: A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS

Industry 4.0 concepts and technologies, which focus on interconnectivity, digitalization, and automation, are critical to the long-term success of both micro and macroeconomic entities. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a critical enabler for effective Supply Chain Management (SCM) within this framework. This research study conducts a thorough examination of the current literature to investigate the role of AI in SCM. The study attempts to identify research trends, appraise the present state of knowledge, and provide insights on management implications through a systematic review and the use of bibliometric analytic methodologies. The management implications of this study provide light on the potential benefits and possibilities that AI may provide to SCM operations. The research findings provide firms with the means to improve their supply chain operations, elevate decision-making processes, and achieve a competitive advantage in the changing business landscape by properly using the potential of AI.

Optimizing Supply Chain Management Operations in Construction: A Systematic Review of SCM Trends, Challenges, and Innovations

Optimizing Supply Chain Management Operations in Construction: A Systematic Review of SCM Trends, Challenges, and Innovations

IoT-BIM and blockchain integration for enhanced data traceability in offsite manufacturing

The transformation of dynamic supply chains within the realm of offsite manufacturing presents a unique and compelling opportunity to effectively respond to shifts in market demand. However, this paradigm shift also entails novel challenges and prospects for streamlining processes, augmenting efficiency, and ultimately driving success across production workflows and logistical operations. Dynamic supply chains necessitate unimpeded access to high-quality, dependable data to facilitate real-time, data-driven decision-making. Furthermore, owing to their inherently intricate nature, these supply chains are subject to a heightened vulnerability to disruptions and delays, surpassing those encountered in traditional supply chains. Against this backdrop, this paper proposes a framework that synthesises the convergence of the Internet of Things (IoT), Building Information Modelling (BIM), and blockchain technology (BCT) into a cohesive and integrated system, thereby optimising the efficiency and transparency of supply chain management operations. The proposed framework takes cognisance of the challenges inherent in ensuring information traceability, mitigating fragmented information, enhancing interoperability, and fortifying reliability throughout the design, production, and implementation phases of assets within dynamic supply chains operating in the offsite manufacturing domain. To illustrate the efficacy of our proposition, we present a framework that exemplifies the seamless integration of a permissioned, open-source distributed ledger, which forms the bedrock of our support infrastructure for IoT and BIM integration.Through rigorous analysis, we showcase the effectiveness of the developed framework in the form of a designed Supply Chain Management Model (SCMM-PDO), which harmonises the physical, digital, and operational layers within a robust system architecture (BCT.IoT-BIM). The integration of these technologies provides a decentralised solution, reinforcing supply chains with improved security, reliability, and quality control mechanisms, thus enhancing the efficiency of the supply chain network. It is anticipated that this transformative integration will yield substantial improvements in key performance indicators (KPIs) such as operational efficiency, cost reduction, and the cultivation of trust and accountability across supply chain activities.The research proposes an IoT and BIM conceptual framework that simulates the dynamic supply chain operations, facilitating real-time analysis and prediction of supply chain participants' behaviours from resources, processes, and assets. Furthermore, the integration of IoT-BIM (digital twinning) with a blockchain-based system, such as Hyperledger Fabric, engenders a secure and transparent framework for the diligent tracking of assets and information throughout the supply chain. The findings of this study offer an all-encompassing conceptual framework for the secure and transparent tracking of asset information by integrating Blockchain-based technologies with IoT and BIM. This research endeavour thus expands the existing body of knowledge, establishing a foundation for future investigations within this proliferating field.

Analyzing rational decision‐making's effect: Empirical evidence from Green supply chain

AbstractUnder the global environmental degradation and intense competition, firms are increasingly resorting to green supply chains to achieve sustainability, and rational decision‐making by managers is unprecedented desired in management supply chain operations management. This study investigates the effect of rational decision‐making in green supply chains on environment, social welfare, and sustainability. Based on a sample of 856 firms that disclose green supply chain, we established a supply chain game theory model consisting of manufacturers and retailers, where retailers are risk averse, and used regression analysis to test hypotheses. We find that the micro‐level empirical evidence on rational decision‐making in green supply chain does exist—namely, rational decision‐making not only has a beneficial effect on the environment and social welfare, but also can improve the sustainability of the supply chain. The results give valuable insights to supply chain management in rational decision‐making and provide application recommendations for managers by constructing a strategic initiative for sustainable development.

Research on the Improvement of Supply Chain Operation Management under the Supply Chain Goal of World-Class Enterprises

Research on the Improvement of Supply Chain Operation Management under the Supply Chain Goal of World-Class Enterprises

Circular economy implementation in operations & supply chain management: Building a pathway to business transformation

Our aim is to understand the circular economy (CE) transformation challenge and the synergies with operations & supply chain management (OSCM). CE represents a major industry transformation from linear production to circular value creation where products, components and resources are maintained at the highest value for the longest period. Yet despite OSCM’s long association with reverse logistics, the practical means of CE implementation is lacking where business transformation means systemic innovation not incremental change. Our method is to adopt a longitudinal approach where rich data from over 1000 senior practitioners on interactive events identifies 3 stages comprising of identification, initiation, and implementation, and reveals why some companies move between the stages and others become stuck. We illustrate these stages and the successful pathways used in 5 industry cases: Philips, Schweizer Bundesbahn, Renault, Ricoh, and Steelcase. Rather than develop new tools, we present a framework for implementing CE using business elements which are grounded in everyday practice and part of a taxonomic process that is continuously tested over time. We find successful CE implementation requires attention to product design, underlying business models, reverse flow management and enabling conditions (e.g. policy, finance), unlocking new sources of circular value creation and capture. There is no one-size-fits-all model for successful initiation and implementation of CE, but rather a continuous process of identifying value leakage and creation opportunities, progressive initiation of pilots, evaluation of business outcomes, and ability to manage risks associated with complexity and scaling. Our contribution views the challenge as a complex pathway consisting of configuring CE building blocks whose business transformation hallmarks are reflected in architectural change and systemic innovation.

A novel integrated approach based on best–worst and VIKOR methods for green supplier selection under multi-granularity extended probabilistic linguistic environment

With consideration for the extensive resources consumption and environmental degradation being on the rise today, implementing green development strategy to pursue both socioeconomic growth and the coordinated of environment sustainability, has become an increasingly important issue in modern enterprise supply chain operations management. Hence, the appropriate green supplier selection (GSS), viewed as a core issue in green supply chain management (GSCM), requires continuous research in this field to obtain a complete perception on GSS practices. It can be regarded as a multi-attribute group decision-making (MAGDM) problem that involves many conflict and unmeasurable evaluation criteria. In view of the superiority of multi-granularity extended probabilistic linguistic term sets (MGEPLTSs) in modeling such issues on potential ambiguity, complexity and uncertainty in actual GSS practices, we propose a novel integrated MAGDM methodology for GSS problems, by integrating the BWM (best–worst method) with the VIKOR (VIšekriterijumsko KOmpromisno Rangiranje) technique under the MGEPLTSs environment. First, by introducing the multi-granularity and probabilistic linguistic term sets, the MGEPLTSs are proposed to represent and quantify the decision information of GSCM practitioners. Then, the BWM is introduced to the MGEPLTSs environment to compute the weights of decision-making panels and evaluation attributes in GSS problems, by building the fuzzy mathematical programming model, respectively. Finally, we extend a multi-granularity extended probabilistic linguistic VIKOR method to calculate the compromise measure of alternatives considering the group utility maximization and the individual regret minimization, thereby achieving the full ranking of alternatives. A GSS case is conducted to illustrate the feasibility of the proposed approach, and the sensitivity analysis and comparative analysis with other similar approaches are presented to demonstrate its effectiveness and advantages.

Supply Chain Management: A Structured Narrative Review of Current Challenges and Recommendations for Action

Background: By examining the recent advancements in technology, particularly the transformation of material into digital flows and its impact on customer demands, the aim of this paper is to investigate supply chain management (SCM) by analyzing seven key constructs: uncertainty, perspective, topicality, coordination, flow, job to be done, and connection. These constructs were chosen since they reflect evolving SCM practices that motivate this study. Methods: We conducted a broad, structured narrative review to comprehensively address the extensive SCM literature. This approach allowed us to evaluate the current state of SCM research and offer recommendations for overcoming prevailing challenges. Results: Our findings reveal the significant impact of technological advancements on SCM operations, requiring companies to adapt and remain competitive. We envision future supply chains as dynamic networks of networks, necessitating the adoption of a value architecture concept that extends a firm’s business model to an ecosystem business model. Conclusions: Considering these changes, our study recommends exploiting uncertainty, adopting demand-driven systems, offering on-demand customized services and products, utilizing prescriptive analytics, prioritizing information flows and services, and embracing open systems with high interoperability. Summarizing these opportunities and challenges that arise with changes in SCM provides interesting venues for future research and valuable insights for practitioners.

Effect of Blockchain Technology for Sustainable Performance in Supply Chain Management

This article discussed the major effect of blockchain technology for sustainable performance in Supply chain management (SCM). Blockchain technology is a technology that performs several operations without letting the information get lost. This digital technology of blockchain will show the potential to reshape the management of supply chain operations in various companies. We will investigate the impact of blockchain technology in relation to efficiency and sustainability. As an example recently the operations in the airport industry have been improving due to technological advances as blockchain technology is handling all the information in the warehouses about product delivery and services in SCM. This technology allows companies to track all types of transactions more securely and transparently and blockchain technology shows benefits, especially in terms of improving Operational Management. The technological disruptions that have an effect on operations must include A-CDM (Airport collaborative decision-making) disruption management and there should be a collaborative network where everyone shares mutual trust and common culture in order to avoid disruption. Airports are still under research in terms of managing blockchain technology efficiently and effectively. The database which is decentralized causes the transactions to be transparent, reliable, traceable, and efficient to supply chain management. This article will be useful to understand the importance of blockchain technology for maintaining sustainability in the operations of SCM along with that we will take an example of SCM in the airport industry to understand how this technology is used there.

Information technology in supply chain management: Perspectives from key actors in the Nigerian petroleum sector

This research examines the potential impact of information technology (IT) on supply chain management (SCM) in the Nigerian petroleum industry. Specifically, the study seeks to identify the IT systems utilized by the key actors in the industry, the challenges facing SCM operations, and the potential benefits of IT for addressing these challenges. The field survey used 266 individuals, comprising regulators, production units, transporters, vendors, and customers. The study employed inferential statistics, and hypotheses were tested using the chi-square statistical test. The findings reveal that enterprise social networks, real-time track and tracking systems, warehouse management systems, and electronic invoice and fund transferring systems are the IT systems most commonly utilized by the key actors in the Nigerian petroleum industry. However, monitoring and evaluation remain the most challenging area for IT development in SCM operations. The study recommends that the government implement policies that encourage the adoption of IT in SCM operations, as well as incentives to encourage industry players to digitize data. The original contribution of this research is that it identifies the key IT systems utilized by the actors in the Nigerian petroleum industry and the challenges facing SCM operations, as well as proposing policy recommendations.

A Comprehensive Review of the Integration of Blockchain Technology in Supply Chain Management

This paper reviews the concept of Supply Chain Management (SCM) and provides an introduction to the use of blockchain technology in SCM. SCM involves the coordination and control of operations related to the production and delivery of goods and services to clients. The traditional SCM model has been facing challenges, including a lack of transparency, inefficiency, and increased costs. Blockchain technology offers a promising solution to these challenges by providing a secure, decentralized, and transparent platform for the management of supply chain operations. This paper highlights the key features of blockchain technology and how it can be applied in the SCM business model. The use of blockchain can improve the efficiency of supply chain processes, reduce costs, increase transparency, and enhance trust among supply chain partners. The paper also discusses the challenges and limitations of implementing blockchain in SCM and provides recommendations for future research.

Methodology combining industry 4.0 technologies and KPI’s reliability for supply chain performance

ABSTRACT In the context of internationalization, the supply chain (SC) becomes complex with a profusion of decisions to take. SC modeling and performances have been widely discussed by researchers. The emergence of new technologies impacts the running and key performance indicators (KPI) of SC. There are several models of SC but none of them are oriented towards SC operations management, given importance of Industry 4.0 technologies. This paper presents a research methodology using a reference model called GRAILOG to capture decisions and related KPI’s to control the SC. Then, the methodology PPTechIP is described and applied to accompany the company on the relevant digital transformation to improve performances. PPTechIP is based on a set of radars divided into different decision levels and SC functions based on the GRAILOG model. The calculated potential of progress helps in decision-making. This complete method was applied to PSA which is entering the Industry 4.0 era. The obtained results provide several interesting insights into PSA's control indicators. Big Data, augmented reality, collaborative robots and Cloud Computing are receiving a lot of attention from PSA and are considered as priorities for the control of its processes.

Artificial intelligence applied to supply chain operations management: a systematic literature review

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been a key driver to reduce operational uncertainty and improve performance in supply chain management. Due to the advent of new data gathering technologies (IoT) and greater storage capacity, big data analytics (BDA) is rapidly growing as one of the main fields within AI research. We examined a representative sample of AI works applied to SCM from 2000 to 2020 and analysed them considering the main areas of the SCOR model framework of operations. The systematic literature review was based on a meta-synthesis methodology. The main research questions addressed were: 1) What are the main research methodologies used in AI SCM literature? 2) In what areas of SCM operations is AI (including BDA) mostly applied? 3) What are the most used AI models? The discussion addressing these three questions reveals a number of research gaps, which leads to future research directions.

The intersection of blockchain technology and circular economy in the agri-food sector

A transition towards a circular economy within the agri-food sector requires the improvement of efficiency in resource utilization, the prevention of food loss or waste, whilst adopting regenerative agricultural practices. In addition to the technical challenges, the agri-food industry needs to address the food safety concerns resulting from biomass recycling processes. Increasingly, blockchain technology is gaining traction, moving towards more sustainable and precision agriculture. The blockchain is a decentralized, immutable, and shared database that records the provenance of digital assets, making it a suitable platform for traceability and food supply chain management. Despite its growing importance, the existing literature regarding these themes and the empirical evidence of blockchain-based solutions for a circular economy is rather fragmented. This paper offers a scoping review regarding the role of blockchain technology in the transition towards a circular food system. A total of 44 papers published in peer-reviewed journals were reviewed to identify new scientific insights into the application of blockchains within the agricultural sector. The results indicate that blockchain technology has a great potential in reducing food loss through optimized eco-efficiency (e.g., digitalization and integration with the Internet of Things) and by alleviating asymmetric information (by increasing transparency and reducing dependence on intermediaries). However, in the case of recycling efficiency, despite its potential, there remains a paucity of evidence regarding the use of blockchain technology in improving the residual valorization processes. Furthermore, there is a stream of literature focusing on the ability of blockchain-enabled traceability (e.g., for organic production or supply chain management). Yet, the role of blockchain traceability in the monitoring of risks from recycled biomass and the reporting of the sustainability performance in the supply chain has received scant attention within research literature. These results provide insights for supply chain management operations with the view of shifting towards a circular economy whilst also suggesting an agenda for future research areas.

Policy of Government Subsidy for Supply Chain with Poverty Alleviation

Government subsidy is a common practice in poverty alleviation. We used game theory and the mathematical model of operations management to investigate the efficiency of subsidy with different poverty scales when the firm owns the decision power of the wholesale price. Comparative analysis of the equilibrium solutions demonstrated the following results: Exclusive subsidy has a significant effect on the payoff of the poor farmer, but the dilemma is that the increase in the payoff of the poor farmer is against the payoff decrease of the regular farmer. Sharing subsidy has a counterbalancing effect on the payoff of the poor and regular farmers. Co-subsidy is the best for consumer surplus and social welfare, but it has little effect on improving the poor farmer’s payoff. Generally, when the poor farmers are in the majority, sharing subsidies or co-subsidy is more reasonable than exclusive subsidy. When the poor farmers are in the minority, exclusive or sharing subsidies will be more economical for the government than co-subsidy. Our research helps the government recognize that spending more money may achieve a poor result in poverty alleviation and help the firm realize that it is better to give more subsidies to the poor farmer than to itself. The highlights of the paper are as follows. Firstly, our work provides a new perspective in supply chain operations management with poverty alleviation by considering the participation of the poor and regular farmers together; secondly, the poverty scale is introduced into the mathematical model; thirdly, we pay attention to the impact of government subsidy to enterprise on the payoff of the poor farmer.

Evaluating Competitiveness in the Supply Chain Management of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises

This research investigated Supply Chain Management (SCM) in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Thailand, Slovakia, and Poland and compared the SCM practices among the three countries. The sole purpose was to first determine the various factors that influence SCM operations and SCM practices in each of the countries and then find out whether there is a difference among the three countries in terms of SCM operations and practices. The study was conducted using primary data collected from SME management personnel from the three countries. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data using a 5-point Likert scale. The data was analyzed using multi-group Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results of the study indicated that supply chain management practices and operations adopted by the small and medium enterprises in Thailand, Slovakia, and Poland were invariant. The environmental sustainability elements in SCM and the social aspects of sustainability in SCM have positively influenced SCM practices in all countries. The study recommended that SMEs in the countries should consider adopting the factors that support SCM, operationalizing the SCM through enhancing the capabilities of the end-user, and vitally taking into consideration the environmental sustainability elements in SCM, such as environmentally-friendly production processes, taking action towards waste management, and adopting production processes that inhibit the emission of harmful substances into the atmosphere by encouraging the implementation of policies that foster the use of renewable energy sources in production.

Revolutionizing Supply Chain Management: The Impact of IoT on Efficiency and Transparency

The digital age has brought us numerous advancements in technology, and the Internet of Things (IoT) is one of the most transformative. IoT, a network of interconnected devices and sensors that collect and exchange data, has the potential to significantly improve supply chain management (SCM). This article will explore some great IoT innovations and examine how they enhance SCM operations in terms of efficiency, visibility, and transparency.

Supply chain operation evaluation and management decision by fuzzy cognitive map model

AbstractThe components of the logistics and supply chain are analysed to meet the needs of supply chain management and decision support, aiming at the complexity and uncertainty of the supply chain system. First, the characteristics of logistics demand and logistics service types of some enterprises are analysed. The factors affecting supplier selection are obtained through the questionnaire survey of some enterprises. Second, the mutual feedback relationship between the influencing factors of logistics service demand is analysed, and a fuzzy cognitive graph model of the selection process of enterprise logistics service providers is established. Finally, the fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) model is used to conduct an empirical study on the choice of logistics service providers. The results show that the ranking results of the three candidate logistics service companies based on FCM are WL1 (0.7233) > WL3 (0.6823) > WL2 (0.6764). When each node of the concept does not affect each other, the ranking result of the three candidate logistics service companies based on analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is WL1 (0.7265) > WL2 (0.6949) > WL3 (0.6920). The final evaluation result will be affected by the mutual influence relationship between the concept nodes. Overall, the lowest evaluation score is WL2, and the highest is WL1. The most suitable logistics service provider for the enterprise is WL1. The FCM model selected by the manufacturing enterprise logistics service provider is reasonable and feasible. The mutual feedback between evaluation factors affects the selection of logistics service providers in a company. The FCM can get a more accurate evaluation weight value and can realize the optimal choice of logistics suppliers. It provides reference and decision support for other enterprises.