Eco-efficient based logistics network design in hybrid manufacturing/ remanufacturing system in low-carbon economy

Purpose: Low-carbon economy requires the pursuit of eco-efficiency, which is a win-win situation between economic and environmental efficiency. In this paper the question of trading off the economic and environmental effects embodied in eco-efficiency in the hybrid manufacturing/remanufacturing logistics network design in the context of low-carbon economy is examined. Design/methodology/approach: A multi-objective mixed integer linear programming model to find the optimal facility locations and materials flow allocation is established. In the objective function, three minimum targets are set: economic cost, CO2 emission and waste generation. Through an iterative algorithm, the Pareto Boundary of the problem is obtained.Findings: The results of numeric study show that in order to achieve a Pareto improvement over an original system, three of the critical rates (i.e. return rate, recovery rate, and cost substitute rate) should be increased.Practical implications: To meet the need of low-carbon dioxide, an iso- CO2 emission curve in which decision makers have a series of optimal choices with the same CO2 emission but different cost and waste generation is plotted. Each choice may have different network designbut all of these are Pareto optimal solutions, which provide a comprehensive evaluation of both economics and ecology for the decision making.Originality/value: This research chooses carbon emission as one of the three objective functions and uses Pareto sets to analyze how to balance profitability and environmental impacts in designing remanufacturing closed-loop supply chain in the context of low-carbon economy

Predicting Public Bicycle Adoption Using the Technology Acceptance Model

Bicycle sharing programs provide a sustainable mode of urban transportation. Although cities across the globe have developed these systems for their citizens and visitors, usage rates are not as high as anticipated. This research uses the technology acceptance model as the basis to understand one’s intention to adopt bicycle sharing programs. Using survey data derived from 421 participants in Beijing, China, the proposed covariance-based structural equation model consisting of perceived quality, perceived convenience, and perceived value is found to predict 50.5% of the variance in adoption intention. The findings of this research contribute to theory and practice in the burgeoning literature on public bicycle systems and sustainable urban transportation by offering a theoretical lens through which to consider system adoption, and providing information to practitioners as to what factors might contribute most to adoption

Impact of Perceived Uncertainty on Public Acceptability of Congestion Charging: An Empirical Study in China

Severe traffic congestion is now a common problem in major cities worldwide, causing huge economic, environmental, and social losses to overall welfare. Governments are now considering congestion charging as an effective way to manage congestion. However, since congestion charging has not yet been implemented widely, the public remains uncertain about it. Few scholars have explored public uncertainty about congestion charging. This paper examined how the public perceived uncertainty toward fairness and efficiency affects willingness to accept congestion charging. Through an experimental study of stated preference, this paper analyzes the influence of observable variables and unobserved latent variables on public acceptability and compares the results with a traditional discrete choice model. The results indicated that the public’s perceived uncertainty about congestion charging will have significant negative effect on acceptability and that the perception of fairness has an even larger effect. As for uncertainty about the effectiveness of congestion charging on alleviating congestion, the implementation efficiency of the government is the most significant. For uncertainty about fairness, whether charge collection and revenue allocation are reasonable is the most significant. These findings provide an empirical basis for reducing public uncertainty and increasing public acceptance of congestion charging

Examining the influence of social norms on orderly parking behavior of dockless bike-sharing users

With the rapid global expansion of dockless shared bicycles, disorderly parking has not only generated convenience to users but also negative consequences to enterprises and urban management. We proposed an integrated model and recruited 1722 participants from diverse professions and geographic locations in China, examining the influence of individual and social environmental factors on orderly parking behavior. It was shown that descriptive social norms played an important role in shaping user’s attitudes toward orderly parking directly and indirectly via personal norms, and thus influence the behavioral intention of orderly parking. Cultural tightness-looseness further moderated the effect of descriptive social norms. At the individual level, antecedents of personal norms (moral awareness, awareness of consequences, and ascription of responsibility) were investigated based on Norm Activation Model. This study indicates that descriptive social norms can act as a complimentary policy and regulations of dockless bike-sharing, which provides valuable insights on urban operation and policy making concerning shared bicycles

Understanding peak avoidance commuting by subway: an empirical study in Beijing

Congestion is a major problem for peak-hour commuters in the Beijing subway system, as it leads to long queuing times and overcrowded vehicles. This paper explores to what extent peak travel can be reduced by providing incentives for peak avoidance. In a stated preference study, travellers’ responses to two financial and two non-financial incentives were measured, and factors increasing or limiting the response were identified. Our results suggest that all four incentives can be reasonably effective tools and the financial incentives seem to have a slightly stronger effect than the services and credit-for-gifts-based scenarios. Ordered logit models indicate that various factors influence people’s receptiveness of incentives for peak avoidance which relate to the ease of change or presence of alternatives and receptiveness to incentives. Both theoretical and policy implications are concluded that the proposed factors and incentive system can help solving the subway congestion in Beijing

Understanding the purchase intention towards remanufactured product in closed-loop supply chains

Purpose – The paper aims to explore the reasons underlying the key assumption in the closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) literature that consumers' purchase intention is lower for remanufactured products than for new products. It aims to complement the predominantly operation-focused CLSC research by examining consumers' perception of and behavior relating to remanufactured products. Design/methodology/approach – A theoretical model is developed by integrating the concepts of perceived benefits and product knowledge with the theory of planned behavior and the theory of perceived risk. Then the model is examined through an empirical study in the Chinese automobile spare parts industry involving 288 respondents and using structural equation modeling. Findings – The results indicate that purchase intention is directly influenced by purchase attitude followed by perceived behavioral control and indirectly influenced by perceived risk, perceived benefit and product knowledge via attitude. Therefore, effective measures to promote consumers' purchase intention rely on coordinated policies built on multiple pillars instead of single factors. Originality/value – This is one of the first empirical studies to explore the factors that underpin consumers' purchase intention regarding remanufactured products. The results can be used to validate the key assumptions in operational models and foster new research in the context of CLSCs

DRIVERS AND OBSTACLES OF THE REMANUFACTURING PRACTICES IN CHINA: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

Remanufacturing is one of the prioritized sectors that pushes sustainability forward, and has been vigorously promoted by two rounds of pilot programs in China. Using a survey conducted in 7 Chinese pilot remanufacturing enterprises involving 190 respondents, we empirically identify the current situation and explore the influential factors of the remanufacturing industry in China. The results of principal component factor analysis indicate that enterprise strategy factors as well as policy and technical factors are the major drivers to the development of the remanufacturing industry while the policy, economic factors and industry environmental factors are the major barriers. This is the first empirical study to explore the influencing factors of the remanufacturing industry in China. The results provide preliminary reference for government and industry to further develop mechanism to promote remanufacturing practice in China.&nbsp