Quality evaluation in logistic services

The paper highlights some problems relevant to the quality measurements in logistic services. "Traditional" logistic indicators are compared with the service dimensions defined in the Parasuraman-Zeithaml-Berry model. Furthermore, the problem of service indicators aging is analyzed and discussed. In order to enhance readers' ability to contribute to the development in the field, the authors pose open-ended questions in the articl

Logistics Service Performance: a reference framework. INTEGRATED MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS, vol. 15-n.3, ISSN: 0957-6061

Many companies measure their logistic performances using several methods. As a consequence, various sets of indicators can be found in practice and in the literature. In particular, the same event can be measured in different ways, so that the relative performance is sometimes totally different. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a hierarchy in logistic performance measurements. A referring model for evaluating the logistic performances is also proposed in this paper, together with the definition of a reference framework for the selection of supply chain performance measurement

A decision-making approach for investigating the potential effects of near sourcing on supply chain

Purpose - Near sourcing is starting to be regarded as a valid alternative to global sourcing in order to leverage supply chain (SC) responsiveness and economic efficiency. The present work proposes a decision-making approach developed in collaboration with a leading Italian retailer that was willing to turn the global store furniture procurement process into near sourcing. Design/methodology/approach - Action research is employed. The limitations of the traditional SC organisation and purchasing process of the company are first identified. On such basis, an inventory management model is applied to run spreadsheet estimates where different purchasing and SC management strategies are adopted to determine the solution providing the lowest cost performance. Finally, a risk analysis of the selected best SC arrangement is conducted and results are discussed. Findings - Switching from East Asian suppliers to continental vendors enables a SC reengineering that increases flexibility and responsiveness to demand uncertainty which, together with decreased transportation costs, assures economic viability, thus proving the benefits of near sourcing. Research limitations/implications - The decision-making framework provides a methodological roadmap to address the comparison between near and global sourcing policies and to calculate the savings of the former against the latter. The approach could include additional organisational aspects and cost categories impacting on near sourcing and could be adapted to investigate different products, services, and business sectors. Originality/value - The work provides SC researchers and practitioners with a structured approach for understanding what drives companies to adopt near sourcing and for quantitatively assessing its advantage

Cost and Schedule Monitoring of Industrial Building Projects : Case Study

Performance measurement is a helpful tool for taking corrective actions and controlling a project as far as this enables accurate time and cost forecasts during the first stages of the construction effort when the management team still has opportunities to make adjustments. This paper overcomes the dilemma of practicability and predictability of traditional estimates at completion based on early progress measurement by presenting the empirical results from the construction project of an industrial facility. The case may be a reference practice for assessing time and cost performance measurement of any building, whose layout can be reasonably partitioned into repeatable portions. In such circumstances, an effectively-managed traditional earned value method and appropriate metrics for computing performance provide project managers with accurate forecasts as useful tools for successful project management and contro

Pandemic impact on supply chains: strategies to minimize supply chain disruption

Working Paper del Departament d’Organització d’Empreses de la Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya.Covid-19 pandemic has challenged all the areas of living of people in the last year, supply chains were not excluded by it. Restriction measures, global health concerns and drastic-unreasonable demand changes were the main issues supply chains had and still have to face in the most globalized world ever seen. The aim of this work is to understand how the pandemic impacted in the supply chains, the first reactions of companies to minimize the disruption of the production, logistic and supply shock and finally the measures to be taken in order to prevent future problems. The question of this study is, in fact: how did supply chains react to pandemic and what can they do to be more resilient? To answer this question, in the first section we show the chronological development of the pandemic, starting from China’s outbreak and its expansion to the rest of the world, keeping in mind the economical context in which the event takes place. In the second section we first review literature on natural disasters, since it are the most similar events to a pandemic in terms of their effects. Moreover, in the third section we depict the suggestions to move to a more resilient management of the supply chain and the possible measures to be taken by supply chain managers. The focus will be on the improvements and weaknesses of current supply chain management techniques, such as Just-In-Time methodology, in-shoring possibilities and demand management. At this study publishing, supply chains are still struggling with uncertainty associated with the pandemic situation and need to change some of their features and strengthen others to prevent future disruptions. Future researches could take advantage of more specific and updated information on this topic.Preprin