The New Face of Chinese Industrial Policy: Making Sense of Anti-Dumping Cases in the Petrochemical and Steel Industries

Why have China's petrochemical and steel industries behaved so differently in seeking trade protection through antidumping measures? We argue that the patterning of antidumping actions is best explained in terms of the political economy of economic restructuring in pillar industries and its effect on industry structures. In the petrochemical industry, the shift toward greater horizontal consolidation and vertical integration reduces the collective action problems associated with antidumping petitions among upstream companies. It also weakens downstream companies lobbying in favor of the general protection of highly integrated conglomerates. In the steel industry, by contrast, national industrial policy in the absence of exogenous economic shocks fails to weaken local state interests sufficiently. Fragmented upstream and downstream channels instead persist, with strong odds against upstream suppliers waging a successful defense of material interests.

Does the Institutional Pressure in KSA Affects the Application of Green Supply Chain Business Model

In the  present research, we attempt to provide evidence that having the effect of leadership and institutional pressures role as a moderator, the integration of TQM and supplier relationship management facilitate companies in achieving environmental performance. The literature [1]  has well discussed how institutional pressures play their role in influencing the green supply chain practices adoption. The area which requires understanding is that how supplier relationship management, total quality management and leadership integration process are affected through institutional pressures on the firm’s environmental performance. Additionally, the institutional pressure is one of the key issues which are effecting the green supply chain mamagmnegt impnnetaion, therefore the study has examined the moderating role of institurioal pressure. Many scholars have made the studies on different sectors like manufacturing of electronic goods, gas and oil, automotive and components, whereas according to our knowledge we haven’t find any studies regarding petrochemical sector, which is the one of the main carbon emission source after deforestation, steel and refining of oil, transportation and cement. Secondly for undertaking a research project we got support from one of the petrochemical  industry on Saudi Arabia  , with respect to petrochemical  and its handwork for the practices of green supply chain mamagmnegt. The findings of the study have provided support to the hypotehsied results

The economic and environmental performance of distribution networks: A case study from the petrochemical industry

Designing a company's distribution network is a challenging task that requires the consideration of different aspects. In this respect, especially trade-offs between, for example, operational costs and customer service are the focus of the companies' attention. However, growing concerns of governments and customers about environmental protection have raised awareness towards the environmental impact of operations. Activities associated with the distribution of products, i.e. transportation and warehousing, are not yet subject to strict environmental regulations, but this situation is expected to change soon. Companies must, therefore, start to concentrate not only on economic but also on environmental aspects in the design of their supply chain. Based on a case study from the petrochemical industry, this paper presents a way to combine both, economic as well as environmental criteria, when evaluating (strategic) distribution network design decisions. The results show a trade-off between total (distribution) costs and transport carbon emissions. (author's abstract

Petrochemicals and climate change: Powerful fossil fuel lock-ins and interventions for transformative change

With the risk of climate breakdown, pressure is increasing for all sectors of the economy to break with fossil fuel dependence and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In this context, the chemical industry requires more focused attention as it uses more fossil-fuel based energy than any other industry and the production of chemicals is associated with very large emissions. Beyond the climate crisis, the chemical industry significantly impacts several critical dimensions of sustainability, including the planetary boundaries for novel entities, biosphere integrity, and ocean acidification. In this report, we focus on the petrochemical sector, which represents the largest share of the chemicals industry and is generally understood to refer to the part of the industry that relies on fossil-fuel feedstocks from oil, gas, and coal. The petrochemicals sector produces chemicals mainly used for plastics and fertilisers, but the products also end up in paints, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and other applications. This report provides a critical exploration of the petrochemical sector to strengthen awareness of its relevance to the climate crisis and to provide tools and recommendations for decision-makers in different domains to initiate, support, and accelerate much-needed transformation. The report highlights the rapid expansion of the petrochemical sector as well as the range and growth of economic, infrastructural, and political interlinkages with the fossil fuel extraction sector. It argues that these developments and dynamics are crucial to understanding pathways, strategies, and interventions for a low-carbon transition for petrochemicals

Technological Diversification and Strategic Alliances

This paper examines empirically the relationship between the internal technological profile and the diversification through strategic alliances of the largest 219 industrial firms world-wide. It explores three related issues. First, the paper shows that firms? internal technological diversification is more pronounced than external technological diversification. Second, it confirms the idea that technological diversification is more pronounced than product and market diversification. Finally, by means of multiple correlation analysis, this work studies the relationship between firms? economic performance, internal technological diversification and diversification through strategic alliances. The empirical investigation combines firm level data on US patents, strategic technological alliances, production and marketing alliances, and firms? economic performances.-

Opportunities for Dutch Biorefineries

Deze Roadmap Bioraffinage beschrijft een aantal mogelijke routes naar de ontwikkeling en implementatie van een bioraffinage-gerelateerde Bio-based Economy in Nederland. De Roadmap combineert korte- en middellange termijn mogelijkheden (commerciële implementatie, demonstratie plants, pilot plants en gerelateerd toegepast onderzoek) met strategisch onderzoek voor de langere termijn. Tevens zijn vier z.g. Moonshots uitgewerkt, als voorziene bioraffinagestrategieën met een grote potentie voor de Nederlandse economi

Cluster development: a case of Singapore’s petrochemical industry

This paper rejuvenates the existing discussion on the importance of cluster approach to industry development strategies. There is growing evidence that the shape of economic policy and practice is changing significantly around the world. Governments continually search for new tools and policy formulas to improve economic performance and create economic prosperity for all citizens. In this context a more proactive and strategic role for government in support of the cluster-based economic development model has emerged. This paper uses Singapore’s petrochemical industry as an example to study the cluster approach to industry development. In doing so, there is much optimism to the importance of state and its institutions to play a significant role on industry development

A Perspective on Smart Process Manufacturing Research Challenges for Process Systems Engineers

The challenges posed by smart manufacturing for the process industries and for process systems engineering (PSE) researchers are discussed in this article. Much progress has been made in achieving plant- and site-wide optimization, but benchmarking would give greater confidence. Technical challenges confronting process systems engineers in developing enabling tools and techniques are discussed regarding flexibility and uncertainty, responsiveness and agility, robustness and security, the prediction of mixture properties and function, and new modeling and mathematics paradigms. Exploiting intelligence from big data to drive agility will require tackling new challenges, such as how to ensure the consistency and confidentiality of data through long and complex supply chains. Modeling challenges also exist, and involve ensuring that all key aspects are properly modeled, particularly where health, safety, and environmental concerns require accurate predictions of small but critical amounts at specific locations. Environmental concerns will require us to keep a closer track on all molecular species so that they are optimally used to create sustainable solutions. Disruptive business models may result, particularly from new personalized products, but that is difficult to predict