A Literature Review on The Design of Intelligent Supply Chain for Natural Fibre Agroindustry

Natural fibre is an environmentally friendly raw material that has a great potential to develop, and is abundantly available in nature [1]. Currently, the growth of natural fibre processing industries in the world has been increasingly important [2]. Processing of abundant natural fibre in both upstream and downstream productions requires effective and collaborative supply chain management in terms of information sharing. Thus, an intelligent system would be implemented in supply chain management from upstream to downstream. Based on review of 46 scientific papers discussing on types of natural fibre, process, technology, and methods, as well as application areas of natural fibre in downstream industries. According to review on different aspects in 55 scientific papers, there were 5 aspects mapped, i.e. supply chain analytic, value chain, performance, collaboration, big data, and decision support system. A concept of 4.0 industry underlies utilization of opportunities for application of supply chain analytic [3]. Upcoming research opportunities include mediating relationship in supply chain network by utilizing Internet of things (IoT) and Big data (BD), in a collaborative relationship to use information sharing. The most possibly contributing research is the development of collaboration between supply chain and genetic algorithm [4]. Integration between production and inventory planning becomes an approach that utilizes Particle swarm optimization (PSO) by developing production planning [5], and production and inventory planning [6]. There is a research opportunity in the design of intelligent supply chain for natural fibre agroindustry by implementing IoT and BD as a tool in supply chain analytic, collaboration through Collaboration prediction forecasting and replenishment (CPFR) that occurs between stakeholders with the aim of improving agroindustry supply chain performance in production integration material and inventory, and performance measurement by integrating the Value chain operation reference (VCOR) model developed in supply chain analytic

The pricing of European airbnb listings during the pandemic: A difference-in-differences approach employing COVID-19 response strategies as a continuous treatment

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major shock to the global tourism industry. Given its peculiarity, this paper analyzes one of the most intriguing questions in the Airbnb literature – the pricing of Airbnb listings – by taking advantage of a difference-in-differences methodology that largely draws on variations in country-level policy responses to the pandemic. Relying on a dataset containing weekly information from 130,999 continuously active listings across 27 European countries from 2019 to 2020, this study first investigates the exogenous impact of response policies (proxied by the COVID-19 Stringency Index) on demand. Secondly, accounting for the endogeneity of both demand and prices, this research analyzes pricing responses to demand variations. Results show that: i) increases in the COVID-19 Stringency Index cause significant declines in Airbnb demand; ii) in- creases in demand cause, on average, increases in Airbnb prices; and iii) pricing strategies between commercial and private hosts differ substantially

A refined framework of information sharing in perishable product supply chains

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of the relationship between information sharing and performance of perishable product supply chains (PPSC). Building on transaction cost economics (TCE), organisational information processing theory (OIPT), and contingency theory (CT), this study proposes a theoretical framework to guide future research into information sharing in perishable product supply chains (IS-PPSC). Design/methodology/approach Using the systematic literature review methodology, 48 peer-reviewed articles are carefully selected, mapped, and assessed. Template analysis is performed to unravel the relationship mechanisms between information sharing and PPSC performance. Findings The authors find that the relationship between information sharing and PPSC performance is currently unclear, and there is inconsistency in the positioning of information sharing among constructs and variables in the IS-PPSC literature. This implies a requirement to refine the relationship between information sharing and PPSC performance. The review also revealed that the role of perishable product characteristics has largely been ignored in existing research. Originality/value This study applies relevant multiple theoretical perspectives to overcome the ambiguity of the IS-PPSC literature and contributes nine propositions to guide future research. Accordingly, this study contributes to the refined roles of relationship uncertainty, environmental uncertainty, information sharing capabilities, and perishable product characteristics in shaping the relationship between information sharing and PPSC performance

Advances in Food Processing (Food Preservation, Food Safety, Quality and Manufacturing Processes)

This e-book aims to compile advances in the area of food manufacturing including packaging to address issues of food safety, quality, fraud, and how these processes (new or old) could affect the organoleptic characteristics of foods, with the aim to promote consumers’ satisfaction. Moreover, food supply issues are explored. New and improved technologies are employed in the area of food manufacturing to address consumer needs in terms of quality and safety. The issues of research and development should be taken into account seriously before launching a new product onto the market. Finally, food fraud and authenticity are very important issues, and the food industry should focus on addressing them

Analysis of the Project Supply Chains: Coordination and Fair Allocation

This research investigates how project contracts can coordinate the supply chain between a project manager and contractor and if the solutions can be ensured as equitable. The main features of this type of supply chain are the trade-offs between the selection of a higher rate of resource consumption with a consequent higher cost to the contractor and a lower rate of resource consumption leading to later delivery and a reduction of the project-reward to the project manager. This broader problem could lead to a coordination problem for the overall supply chain. This research proposed a solution to this broader problem in two different scenarios: Take it or leave it scenario and negotiation scenario. Finally, the fair allocation of the risks and benefits and the related decision-making issues are addressed as one of the behavioural barriers to the supply chain coordination. The coordination issues in a take it or leave it scenario are addressed using time-based and fixed price project contracts using Stackelberg games. Models of coordination were proposed with time-based contracts, but the fixed price contracts failed to coordinate. The coordination problems in negotiation scenario are addressed with the Nash's bargaining, the Kalai Smorodinsky bargaining, and the utilitarian approach. A cost plus contract has been found to dominate the solutions over any cost sharing contract and fixed price contract for Nash's bargaining and Kalai Smorodinsky bargaining cases. Finally, the issues of fairness of allocation of risks and benefits as one of the challenges of supply chain coordination, have been investigated. The fixed price contracts were found to coordinate the supply chain under consideration alongside the time-based contracts if the members had fairness concern. Some of the key features of this research include the incorporation of various probability distributions for the project completion time and cost, the inclusion of various forms of risk preference, and addressing the challenges of fair allocation in project supply chains

A decision support system for selection and risk management of sustainability governance approaches in multi-tier supply chain

Lower-tier suppliers' sustainability noncompliance and focal company's failure at meeting the expectations of the stakeholders to extend sustainability towards lower-tier suppliers carry multiple risks, tangible and intangible, to the focal company. It is expected that extending sustainability to suppliers at lower tiers through effective sustainability governance approaches (SGAs) can reduce these risks for focal companies. The existing literature lacks research on decision support tools using management science techniques to help decision makers choose the most suitable SGA/SGAs in a given situation and the risk management of SGAs in multi-tier supply chain. The present study develops a model-driven decision support system (DSS) using Bayesian network (BN) that can assist operations managers in selecting the most effective SGA/SGAs in multi-tier supply chain considering each situation. The developed DSS includes contingency factors and risk variables and their relationships which are identified through a systematic literature review and is applied to the multi-tier, sustainable supply chain of a multinational company operating in China to demonstrate its practical applicability. The DSS is then used in the risk management of the SGAs in multi-tier supply chain, which includes core steps such as identification of the contingency factors and risk variables, the prioritisation of the contingency factors and risk treatment. By Prioritising the basic contingency factors, ‘‘Focal company's sustainability knowledge’’ and ‘‘The specific nature of the materials sourced from lower-tier supplier’’, and ‘‘First-tier supplier's possession of internal resources'’ and ‘‘First-tier supplier's sustainability training’’ were identified as the two most important factors regarding their impact on the effectiveness of the direct and indirect approaches respectively. Detailed managerial implications related to the development and implementation of the DSS and the risk management process are also provided

Hybrid Simulation Modelling to Support the Development of Recycling Infrastructures

An enormous amount of waste material arises internationally due to linear economic structures in which natural materials are converted into products which are discarded after use. This problem could be addressed by a shift towards a circular economy, whereby products are kept in use for longer and the material is recovered at end-of-life as a valuable resource. Recycling is therefore central to the development of a circular economy. However, recycling levels are low in many countries, often due to lack of recycling infrastructures. This research aims to support the development of waste management and recycling infrastructures by developing a model to experiment with new systems, particularly looking at the balance between centralised and delocalised systems for collection, sorting and recycling. The model utilises hybrid simulation modelling due to the accuracy and flexibility that the method provides. The model was developed using an agent-based architecture which includes three submodels to describe the process, logistics, and communication. With this architecture, the model has the capability to simulate a wide range of waste management systems. The frameworks developed in this research provide a new approach to using hybrid simulation modelling. Moreover, the frameworks can be used as guidelines for the development of future tools and models. The model was implemented into two case studies, in different geographic locations. The first case study investigated the waste management structures in Singapore and compared the performance of centralised and distributed systems. The results showed that the facility processes are more favourable in a centralised system due to economies of scale. On the other hand, the logistics perform better in a distributed system. The balance between centralised and distributed structures can be analysed using the model developed in this research, informing decision-making processes for future developments. The second case study applied the model to analyse the potential for introducing new waste management infrastructures in Indonesia, working with a company currently tasked with reducing waste mismanagement in small cities and rural areas. The results validated the model capability in experimenting with new systems and offered insights into the relative performance of centralised and distributed waste management systems. The work has provided a valuable additional dimension to the feasibility studies and contributes to the recommendations. Both case studies have demonstrated the viability and applicability of this hybrid simulation model as a tool that can be adapted to optimise waste management infrastructures in different environments.Jardine Foundatio

Use of Audit Data to Improve the Supply Chain Performance

Dissertation presented as the partial requirement for obtaining a Master's degree in Information Management, specialization in Knowledge Management and Business IntelligenceIn the last decades, globalization and digitalization were two of the main reasons for the increase of complexity in supply chains, altering the industries due to the massive amount of information available. This complexity started to become harmful for the companies that do not understand how to use data and information as their competitive advantage, increasing the risk and costs associated with their processes, and decreasing effectiveness and efficiency. We look for the concept and area of internal auditing and process mining techniques as a solution to revert this situation. While research has focused on different and mostly narrow aspects in these areas and solution-oriented and more practical approaches can be found and applied to a broader environment, a practical solution that incorporates these areas into the supply chain are hard to find. Therefore, following a design science research methodology, this study proposes an iterative framework that consists of a guide for an organization that wants to incorporate new technologies into their processes in the supply chain while making the best out of the massive amount of information available using internal auditing and focus on process mining techniques. The framework provides a chain of steps that can be adapted by the company during the transformational process, guaranteeing a smooth transition away from the traditional systems to a more modern and flexible architecture

Ten-tier and multi-scale supplychain network analysis of medical equipment: Random failure and intelligent attack analysis

Motivated by the COVID-19 pandemic, this paper explores the supply chain viability of medical equipment, an industry whose supply chain was put under a crucial test during the pandemic. This paper includes an empirical network-level analysis of supplier reachability under Random Failure Experiment (RFE) and Intelligent Attack Experiment (IAE). Specifically, this study investigates the effect of RFA and IAE across multiple tiers and scales. The global supply chain data was mined and analyzed from about 45,000 firms with about 115,000 intertwined relationships spanning across 10 tiers of the backward supply chain of medical equipment. This complex supply chain network was analyzed at four scales, namely: firm, country-industry, industry, and country. A notable contribution of this study is the application of a supply chain tier optimization tool to identify the lowest tier of the supply chain that can provide adequate resolution for the study of the supply chain pattern. We also developed data-driven-tools to identify the thresholds for breakdown and fragmentation of the medical equipment supply chain when faced with random failures or different intelligent attack scenarios. The novel network analysis tools utilized in the study can be applied to the study of supply chain reachability and viability in other industries.Comment: 47 page