Blockchain possesses the potential of transforming global supply chain management. Gartner predicts that blockchain could be able to track $2 T of goods and services in their movement across the ...globe by 2023, and blockchain will be a more than $3 trillion business by 2030. Nowadays, a growing number of blockchain initiatives are disrupting traditional business models in each sector. In this paper, we provide a timely and holistic overview of the state-of-the-art, challenges, gaps and opportunities in global supply chain and trade operations for both the private sector and governmental agencies, by synthesising a wide range of resources from business leaders, global international organisations, leading supply chain consulting firms, research articles, trade magazines and conferences. We then identify collaborative schema and future research directions for industry, government, and academia to jointly work together in ensuring that the full potential of blockchain is unleashed amidst the socioeconomic, geopolitical and technological disruptions that global supply chains and trade are facing.
The role of sustainability in the function of a company and more specifically a food company is pivotal for its financial performance. The environmental issues as well as the potential economic gains ...from the implementation of its principles ask for the use of multiple instruments that have been developed to green supply chains. Moreover, social issues also arise and involve the food companies social responsibility, as this can be realized through the supply of fresh products that meet consumption security standards. On this basis, the strategic design of these companies’ supply chains can assists them towards meeting their sustainability objectives as it may lead to the selection of transportation modes, location of entry points and distribution centers, and flows between the nodes of the networks under cost, environmental and social impact minimization criteria. Under this context the purpose of this manuscript is to develop and employ a multi-objective (namely cost, social-time and emission minimization) mixed integer linear programming decision-making model for the network design of sustainable supply chains of perishable food products. The specific model was implemented in the case of a fruits importer in the North-Eastern European region considering its geographical settings. To synopsize and according to our findings the suggested model is an easy to use decision-making tool that leads to a whole set of possible solutions incorporating trade-offs between three aspects of sustainability.
Freshwater overexploitation and scarcity have led to extensive shifts in demand patterns for water-friendly products. As several agricultural and industrial activities are closely intertwined with ...water consumption, the availability of sufficient freshwater resources constitutes a significant precondition for covering global consumer needs. In this context, the design and management of sustainable supply chains in terms of freshwater resources' preservation have emerged as major challenges in the corporate agenda. As such, the concept of water footprint as a key performance indicator of freshwater utilization has been introduced at national, corporate and product levels. In this manuscript, we first provide a critical literature synthesis concerning product water footprint assessment in order to map the state-of-the-art research related to freshwater consumption and pollution in the agricultural and industrial sectors. Our analysis demonstrates that although water footprint assessment is a rapidly evolving research field, scientific publications focusing on a holistic approach concerning freshwater exploitation at a supply chain extent are rather limited. The findings further verify that the agrifood sector dominates global water use. In this respect, we analyse both corporate and academic literature in order to identify emerging issues on freshwater resources' management for agrifood products. Finally, we propose a first-effort hierarchical decision-making framework that includes water footprint mitigation policies for agrifood supply chains in order to support all stakeholders in developing a comprehensive water stewardship strategy.
•We provide a literature synthesis on product water footprint (WF) assessment.•Research on holistic WF accounting at a supply chain level is rather limited.•The agrifood sector dominates global freshwater utilization.•WF mitigation practices are identified in the academic and corporate literature.•We propose a decision-making framework for WF management in agrifood supply chains.
The increasing exposure of global supply chains to severe disruptions such as the ones related to the COVID-19 pandemic, clearly demonstrated the need for novel data-driven risk management paradigms ...that monetise data from internal and external stakeholders to support supply chain security, resilience, and sustainability. We first motivate the challenges that supply chains are facing under the new realities. We then provide a critical taxonomy of the relevant literature and identify gaps which include: (i) the impact of security on supply chain operations; (ii) cost effective resiliency strategies and practices; and (iii) the social and labour dimensions of sustainability. We then propose a new generalised framework that encompasses all the identified challenges, gaps in literature and in practice, and opportunities in supply chain management research. The proposed framework is validated through a real-world case study of the organic food supply chain. This validation further highlights the need for data-driven digital technologies that enable data collection and management, secure storage and effective data processing towards data monetisation for supply chain security, cost-competitive resilience, and sustainability across end-to-end operations.
Internationalization of markets and climate change introduce multifaceted challenges for modern supply chain (SC) management in the today's digitalisation era. On the other hand, Automated Guided ...Vehicle (AGV) systems have reached an age of maturity that allows for their utilization towards tackling dynamic market conditions and aligning SC management focus with sustainability considerations. However, extant research only myopically tackles the sustainability potential of AGVs, focusing more on addressing network optimization problems and less on developing integrated and systematic methodological approaches for promoting economic, environmental and social sustainability. To that end, the present study provides a critical taxonomy of key decisions for facilitating the adoption of AGV systems into SC design and planning, as these are mapped on the relevant strategic, tactical and operational levels of the natural hierarchy. We then propose the Sustainable Supply Chain Cube (S2C2), a conceptual tool that integrates sustainable SC management with the proposed hierarchical decision-making framework for AGVs. Market opportunities and the potential of integrating AGVs into a SC context with the use of the S2C2 tool are further discussed.
•The use of Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in supply chains (SCs) is discussed.•A critical taxonomy of extant research for utilizing AGVs in SCs is offered.•Direct ramifications of AGV systems on SC sustainability are examined.•A hierarchical decision-making framework for AGVs in sustainable SCs is provided.•The Sustainable Supply Chain Cube tool for promoting SC sustainability is proposed.
We propose generic single period (newsvendor-type) inventory models for capturing the trade-off between inventory policies and disruption risks in a dual-sourcing supply chain network both ...unconstrained and under service level constraints, where both supply channels are susceptible to disruption risks. The models are developed for both risk neutral and risk-averse decision-makers and can be applicable for different types of disruptions related among others to the supply of raw materials, the production process, and the distribution system, as well as security breaches and natural disasters. Analytical closed-form solutions are obtained and interesting managerial insights on the merit of contingency strategies in managing uncertainties and risks in dual-sourcing supply chains are discussed.
This paper quantifies the emission contribution of motorcycles and mopeds in Europe, in the period 1999–2012. Projections show that these vehicles will emit more than 7% and 20% of total road ...transport CO and HC, respectively, by the year 2012, if no additional regulatory measures are taken. In contrast, they will continue to be negligible NO
x
(0.7%) and CO
2 (<1%) emitters, while their particulate matter (PM) emission contribution is expected to decline to below 1% in the future. The relative importance of their emissions, however, increases in urban environments, especially in southern European countries, which host large fleets of small two wheelers. Hence, further regulatory measures are being considered which include durability requirements for the emission controls, in-use compliance and roadworthiness procedures, on-board diagnostics, control of evaporation emissions, PM specific measures and new steps for emission standards. The study quantifies the environmental benefits and the costs associated with each measure, and calculates cost-effectiveness figures which may be used to evaluate each policy option. Results show that for the reduction of HC emissions, both evaporation control and roadworthiness tests are cost-effective while a further tightening of the emission standards for mopeds will bring the largest benefit. Additionally, on-board diagnosis for motorcycles is found to be an expensive measure with questionable effectiveness, while the replacement of mineral with synthetic lubricants would bring clear benefits with respect to PM of 2-stroke engines.
Product recovery operations in reverse supply chains face continually and rapidly changing product demand characterized by an ever increasing number of product offerings with reduced lifecycles due ...to both technological advancements and environmental concerns. Capacity planning is a strategic issue of increased complexity importance for the profitability of reverse supply chains due to their highly variable return flows. In this work we tackle the development of efficient capacity planning policies for remanufacturing facilities in reverse supply chains, taking into account not only economic but also environmental issues, such as the take-back obligation imposed by legislation and the “green image” effect on customer demand. The behavior of the generic system under study is analyzed through a simulation model based on the principles of the system dynamics methodology. The simulation model provides an experimental tool, which can be used to evaluate alternative long-term capacity planning policies (“what-if” analysis) using total supply chain profit as measure of policy effectiveness. Validation and numerical experimentation further illustrate the applicability of the developed methodology, while providing additional intuitively sound insights.
Freshwater sustainability has been emerging as a critical corporate social responsibility issue for leading businesses worldwide. An increasing number of companies disclose and evaluate their water ...footprint, embracing an end-to-end supply chain perspective. In this work, we first propose a strategic system dynamics model for capturing the long-term impact of various water management policies on consumptive water footprint and supply chain profitability under diverse scenarios of consumers' demand patterns depending on blue water-related efficiency (i.e. green market behaviours). We apply the proposed simulation model on a specific wine supply chain and demonstrate that, under specific green market behaviour conditions, technological interventions in agriculture (e.g. drip irrigation) are more environmentally and economically sustainable compared to industrial water recycling and reuse, while the combined application of both policies is even more effective. Additionally, the impact of water-efficient policies on supply chain financial performance is even more potent under increased consumers' environmental sensitivity. Based on the managerial insights obtained from our analysis, as well as current corporate drivers and goals, we finally propose a supporting methodological framework for the ex-ante evaluation of eco-efficient supply chain water management policies, considering the impact of the green market behaviour on water-related and economic sustainability.
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•A system dynamics model for assessing water management policies is developed.•The impact of alternative green market behaviours is investigated.•A supporting methodological framework for supply chain planners is proposed.•The green corporate image is considered for the ex-ante evaluation of the policies.
Globalisation, along with rapid demographic changes and evolving regulatory and legislative interventions, dictates the increasing demand for high quality, value-added and customised agrifood ...products. In this context, the design, development and operation of efficient agrifood supply chains (AFSCs) have begun to be met with increased interest in modern management science. Furthermore, the volatility of weather conditions, the perishability of goods, the complex food safety regulatory environment, the changing consumers' lifestyle trends, the environmental concerns and the plethora of stakeholders involved pose significant challenges towards the development of robust supply chains within the agrifood sector.
In this manuscript, we provide a comprehensive hierarchical decision-making framework and a critical taxonomy that apply to all stakeholders involved in the design and management of AFSCs. More specifically, we first present the generic system components along with the unique characteristics of AFSCs that differentiate them from conventional supply chain networks. We then recognise the natural hierarchy of the decision-making process for the design and planning of AFSCs and provide a taxonomy of existing research efforts as these are mapped on the relevant strategic, tactical and operational levels of the hierarchical decision-making echelons. Our critical analysis demonstrates that the agrifood supply chain management is a rapidly evolving research field, focussing more on addressing case-dependent problems related with distinct supply chain echelons, and less on developing integrated methodological approaches for the optimisation of the entire supply chain. Our analysis further allows for the identification of gaps and overlaps in literature, as well as of future research areas.
•Agrifood Supply Chain (AFSC) management is a rapidly evolving research field.•An integrated hierarchical decision-making framework for AFSCs is given.•Critical taxonomy of existing research for designing and managing AFSCs is offered.•The critical issues for the design and planning of AFSCs are defined and discussed.•The analysis identifies gaps and overlaps in the AFSC literature.
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