Background: Establishing closed-loop supply chains is essential for the development of a future circular economy. This concept not only applies to the products within the supply chain but also to their packaging. Presently, traditional packaging follows a linear disposal approach, leading to waste production and a heightened environmental impact in numerous supply chains. Consequently, it is critical to examine the factors influencing current decisions on Returnable Transport Packaging (RTP) and to identify factors that can support its adoption while incorporating its context. Purpose: This thesis aims to explore the barriers, drivers, and enablers of the implementation of RTP in the information and communication technology (ICT) industry. Method: In this research, an interpretivist inductive research approach is employed. The study involves conducting qualitative semi-structured interviews across five distinct cases. These interviews are meticulously analyzed following the methodology outlined by Gioia et al. (2013), dividing the findings into 1st order categories, 2nd order themes, and aggregate dimensions. Conclusion: This study provides a comprehensive analysis of the factors influencing the implementation of RTP in the ICT industry. It identifies a majority of barriers over drivers, with 13 barriers across six categories and seven drivers in three categories. These findings emphasize the need for supply chain managers to address challenges such as process and flow control, environmental issues, cost considerations, company priorities, stakeholder pressure, and decision-making. Additionally, the research highlights the importance of environmental benefits, stakeholder pressure, and competitiveness as drivers for RTP adoption. Key factors for effective RTP implementation include infrastructure, technology, human resources, consistent demand, and appropriate stakeholder engagement. The study underlines the critical role of technological context as a supportive element in integrating RTP within various aspects of the supply chain. This research offers valuable insights for managers seeking to balance environmental, economic, and managerial perspectives in implementing RTP in ICT supply chains.

A company's decisions on how to manage its reverse supply chain (RSC) are important for both economic and environmental reasons. From a strategic standpoint, the key decision a manufacturer makes is whether or not to collect products at their end-of-life (EOL) (i.e., when their useful lives are over), and if so, how to recover value from the recovered products. We call this decision as the EOL option of a product, and it determines how the RSC is designed and managed overall. Many EOL options exist for a product such as resale, refurbishment, remanufacturing and part salvage. However, many factors influence the optimal EOL option. These factors include the product's: (i) characteristics, (ii) design, and (iii) pricing. A product's characteristics are its properties that impact the various costs incurred during its production, residual part values, and customer demand. In this work, the product design is viewed as the choice of quality for each of its parts. A part's quality-level determines, among other things, its cost, salvage value, and the likelihood of obtaining it in good condition from a disassembled used product. Finally, the manufacturer must determine how to price its new and used products. This decision depends on many considerations such as whether new and used products compete and whether competition exists from other manufacturers. The choice of appropriate EOL options for products constitutes a foundation of RSC design. In this work, we study how to optimally determine a product's optimal EOL option and consider the impact of product design and product pricing on this decision. We present a full description of the system that details the relationships among all entities. The system description reveals the use of a production planning type of modeling strategy. Additionally, a comprehensive and general mathematical model is presented that takes into consideration multi-period planning and product inventory. A unique aspect of our model over previous production planning models for RSC is that we consider the product returns as being endogenous variables rather than them being exogenous. This model forms the basis of our research, and we use its special cases in our analysis. To begin our analysis of the problem, we study the case in which the product design and price are fixed. Both non-mandated and mandated collection are considered. Our analysis focuses on a special case of the problem involving two stages: in the first stage, new products are produced, and in the second stage, the EOL products are collected for value recovery. For fixed product design and price, our analysis reveals a fundamental mapping of product characteristics onto optimal EOL options. It is germane to our understanding of the problem in general since a multi-period problem is separable into multiple two-stage problems. Necessary and sufficient optimality conditions are also presented for each possible solution of this two-stage problem. For the two-part problem, a graphical mapping of product characteristics onto optimal EOL options is also presented, which reveals how EOL options vary with product characteristics. Additionally, we study the case of product design under mandated collection, as encountered in product leasing. We assume new production cost, part replacement cost, and part salvage value to be functions of the quality-level of a part along with the likelihood of recovering a good-part from a returned product. These are reasonable assumptions for leased products since the customer is paying for the usage of the product over a fixed contract period. In this case, the two-stage model can still be used to gain insights. For the two-part problem, a method for mapping part yields onto optimal EOL options is presented. Closed-form optimality conditions for joint determination of part yields and EOL options are not generally attainable for the two-stage case; however, computationally efficient methods for this problem are developed for some relatively non-restrictive special cases. It is found that, typically, a part may belong to one of three major categories: (i) it is of low quality and will need to be replaced to perform remanufacturing, (ii) it is of high quality and its surplus will be salvaged, or (iii) it is of moderate quality and just enough of its amount is collected to meet remanufactured product demand. Finally, we consider the problem of determining optimal prices for new and remanufactured products under non-mandated manufacturer's choice of collection. New and remanufactured products may or may not compete, depending on market conditions. Additionally, we assume the manufacturer to have a monopoly on the product. Again, the two-stage problem is used and efficient solution methods are developed. Efficient solution methods and key insights are presented. / Ph. D.

Yes / Medicines management is only one part of NHS (UK) procurement and management, but essentially a very expensive part. In December 2012 the Department of Health issued an action plan to improve the use of medicines and reduce waste. There is an onus therefore on the NHS to ensure that they are as efficient in the medicines management as possible in all aspects of the supply chain in order to ensure sustainability (economically and operationally). To do this consideration must be given to medicines optimization, from procurement, through to storage, dispensing, compliance and finally waste prevention and reduction and waste retrieval. As part of the larger National Health Service (UK), hospital pharmacy places strong emphasis on contributing to the efficiency targets through reductions in waste and drug spending, and best practice. The purpose of this study is to examine medicines reverse logistics practice within the NHS hospital pharmacies, and the operational strategy which drives such practices. The overarching aim is to explore through qualitative analysis the variance and commonality in strategy and practice in what is a standard logistical activity. The outputs offer transparency of medicines RL as practiced by NHS professionals and contribute to ongoing discussions within the Department of Health (NHS UK) on best practice governing waste medicines recycling processes. A qualitative approach was adopted in undertaking this research study, utilizing a purposive study sample. The survey examined practice in 45 hospitals as individual cases across all stages in the medicines reverse logistics system. The findings indicated there is some commonality in the strategy employed in conducting medicines recycling, and all 3 drivers are prevalent in undertaking recycling and encouraging a more sustainable approach, i.e., economic, corporate citizenship, and legislation. However, the means by which the same objective was achieved differed, such as resource utilisation, training etc. / The full-text of this article was released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo on 3 Nov 2015.

Yes / The National Health Service (UK) is wholly accountable and heavily scrutinised for its strategy, activity, performance and spending (Appleby, 2016; NHS Confederation, 2016; Parliament UK, 2010), and much research has been undertaken as to its effectiveness at managing its operations and its competency in doing so (Gov.Uk, 2016; National Audit Office, 1999)). The impact of not performing adequately combined with threats such as funding cuts (King’s Fund, 2016), government intervention and private sector competition; has led to uncertainty and disillusion with the sustainability of the service (Hunter, 2016). Based on current economic concerns, this paper chooses to focus on the area of Medical Equipment Loans Services where products are released to patients to aid therapeutic rehabilitation and physical mobility. The aim of this study is to examine the process of product retrieval in a multi-case study analysis and consider how value-added technologies can be used to improve retrieval success rates.

Background: Sustainability has become increasingly significant in both contemporary societyand the business landscape. The rise of sustainable supply chain concepts necessitates areassessment of business process management. Central to this shift is the adoption of circulareconomy principles, which play a pivotal role in businesses' pursuit of environmentalsustainability. As companies transition towards a circular economy model, it becomesimperative for manufacturers to reorganize their logistics systems, with reverse logisticsassuming a critical position. Reverse logistics encompasses the process of collecting productsand materials from their usual endpoint in order to extract their value, which would otherwisebe unattainable, or ensure their proper disposal. Purpose: The purpose is to explore drivers of and barriers to the implementation of reverselogistics in the context of the pharmaceutical supply chain. Method: The research uses a qualitative embedded single case study approach. Thirteen semi-structured interviews were conducted, involving representatives from four distinct actors withinthe Belgian pharmaceutical supply chain. Data analysis employs an inductive approach.Additionally, 6 websites and papers are reviewed to complement the knowledge and deepeninsights. The outcome is a framework with theoretical and practical implications. Conclusion: The findings of this study reveal the challenges associated with implementingreverse logistics in the pharmaceutical sector. The results are categorized into drivers andbarriers. Firstly, the drivers identified include education, regulations, resources, economicconsiderations, social responsibility, immediate recalls, bulk systems, charity, and goodcompany image. Conversely, the barriers encompass educational gaps, regulatory constraints,resource limitations, economic considerations, hygiene concerns, and issues related toresponsibility. These findings highlight the complex landscape within which all stakeholdersoperate, underscoring the difficulties they face, particularly within the pharmaceutical industry,in achieving effective reverse logistics implementation.

Background: In recent years during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, consumers' purchasing behavior has changed and e-commerce has taken an increasingly large part of total consumption in Sweden, as well as in the whole world. The significant increase of online purchases has resulted in a large number of returns, and it has become a challenge for companies to manage them.  Purpose: The purpose of our study is to identify which strategies and digital solutions home furnishing e-retailers can implement to streamline return logistics and manage its challenges.  Method: In order to fulfill the purpose and answer the research question, our study is based on a qualitative method and an abductive approach. We have done a literature review and conducted a case study and semi-structured interviews.  Conclusion: Our conclusion is that several factors are critical when considering strategies in reverse logistics. The company must understand its customers and the problems they experience during the return process. Which strategies a company should implement also depends on how far in the development of return logistics they have come and whether they have previously focused on it. After that, they can apply other strategies depending on the need at the time.

逆物流(reverse logistics)代表了將使用過的產品從消費者手上收回、並將此資源重新在市場上再利用的一連串物流活動。其配送成本往往比正向物流高，對於回送之產品，在運送、儲存、處理、管理方面亦無規律通路，較正向供應鏈增加許多的複雜性和不確定性，企業往往選擇將逆向物流之活動外包給專業物流服務商。 / 對逆向物流服務商來說，既以營利為目標，便有營運範疇內法規、利潤、運輸成本、營運成之考量。過去逆向物流方面之研究主題，多以逆向供應鏈上的廠址設置為主，本研究針對同時具有多個處理廠的逆物流服務供應商進行探討，建立適合的營運模式，考慮多時期、多個逆物流處理廠、多種型態的退回商品，建立一數量決策模式，以逆物流服務商的最大營運利潤為目標，探討逆物流之下的最適合再生物料接受訂單數量、以及個別逆物流處理中心之最適合當期處理量，考慮可能因退回商品回收量之不確定性、處理產出比率的不確定性影響處理廠之中再生物料的實際產量。對於模式當中的不確定因子，本研究建構以情境為基礎的穩健最佳化之模式求得穩健解。 / Reverse logistics reflects a serial of activities including collecting return products from consumers, recycling, reusing, and reducing the amount of materials used. Implementing reverse logistics is complicated and costs more than forward logistics to a firm. Furthermore, there is not a regular way to handle those transportation, storage, processing and management process. In order to reduce cost and focus on core business, industries choose to outsource those processes to third-party reverse logistics provider. / Previous literatures used to focus on the topic of facility location allocation or designing the infrastructure of reverse logistics distribution channels. From a reverse logistics provider perspective, this research concerned about the operational profit of the reverse logistics service provider who has multiple collection sites and refurbishing processing facilities. This research attempts to maximum the net-profit and presents a multi-period, multiple processing facilities, and multi-type return products to optimize the solution of the quantity of processing return products in each refurbishing processing facilities and the quantity of used material ordered by industries. The formulation uses a scenario-based robust optimization approach to solve those uncertainty factors such as the volume of product collection, the usage rate of return product in this model.

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No. of bitstreams: 1 DissRAF.pdf: 2193707 bytes, checksum: 63dca582b5c1aabc4bf032eec3a3ae62 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-08-17 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / The National Policy of Solid Waste (NPSW), instituted by the federal law nº 12.305/2010, establishes the guiding principles, legal instruments and objectives to order the actions and practices of waste management in Brazil. Among the proposed principles and instruments, the shared responsibility for the products life cycle and the reverse logistic are inducers of a new management model and a great challenge as well. To assist in its operationalization, the NPSW institutes the Sectoral Agreements (SA) and, in São Paulo State, the SA were established by the Commitment Terms of Reverse Logistics (CTRL). Seeking to bring this scenario to light, the current research proposes to present and analyze the implementation of CTRL in São Paulo State. For this, it is presented the historical of the 12.305/2010 law approval process and the waste management scenario post-NPSW. The data and information collection occurred through bibliographic and documentary review, and the CTRL case study was developed with an application of questionnaires and interviews. The State of São Paulo presents 10 signed CTRL, with 08 sectors participating in this research. Inconsistencies were identified regarding the definition of targets and the results obtained by the sectors, which adopted, in most, different metrics. The Secretariat for the Environment of São Paulo State played a fundamental role in stimulating and directing the terms, being the main responsible for establishing them juridically in a legal instrument, acting also in the definition of targets. The participation of different actors in the realization of shared responsibility is still deficient, with a greater accountability to manufacturers. The involvement of cooperatives and public authorities is not a reality yet, which have importance and role beyond the perception of CRTL subscribers. Most of the sectors use support tools (software and GIS) and affirm to have reached the established targets, having as the main difficulty the low interest and participation of the others chain members. It is concluded that the NPSW, despite the slow evolution, should stimulate new and necessary solid waste management practices in Brazil, having the sectoral agreements as a pillar for the reverse logistics and shared responsibility effectiveness. / A Política Nacional de Resíduos Sólidos (PNRS), instituída pela Lei federal nº 12.305/2010, estabelece os princípios norteadores, instrumentos legais e objetivos para ordenar as ações e práticas de gestão de resíduos no Brasil. Dentre os princípios e instrumentos propostos, a responsabilidade compartilhada pelo ciclo de vida dos produtos e a logística reversa apresentam-se como indutores de um novo modelo de gestão, e também um grande desafio. Para auxiliar sua operacionalização, a PNRS institui os acordos setoriais (AS) e, no Estado de São Paulo, os AS foram estabelecidos por Termos de Compromisso de Logística Reversa (TCLR). Buscando trazer à luz esse cenário, a presente pesquisa se propõe a apresentar e analisar a implantação dos TCLR no Estado de São Paulo. Para tanto, é apresentado o histórico do processo de aprovação da Lei 12.305/2010 e o cenário da gestão de resíduos pós-PNRS. A coleta de dados e informações ocorreu por meio de revisão bibliográfica e documental, e o estudo de caso dos TCLR se desenvolveu com a aplicação de questionários e entrevistas. O Estado de São Paulo apresenta 10 TCLR firmados, sendo que 08 setores participaram desta pesquisa. Foram identificadas inconsistências referentes ao estabelecimento de metas e os resultados obtidos pelos setores, os quais adotam, em sua maioria, métricas diferentes. A Secretaria do Meio Ambiente teve papel fundamental no estimulo e condução dos termos, sendo o principal responsável por estabelecê-los juridicamente em um instrumento legal, além de atuar na definição de metas. A participação de diferentes atores na efetivação da responsabilidade compartilhada é deficiente, havendo maior responsabilização aos fabricantes. O envolvimento de cooperativas e do poder público ainda é insuficiente, os quais têm importância e papel que vão além daqueles percebidos pelos signatários de TCLR. A maioria dos setores faz uso de ferramentas de suporte (softwares e SIGs) e afirma ter alcançado as metas estabelecidas, tendo como principal dificuldade o baixo interesse e participação dos demais membros da cadeia. Conclui-se que a PNRS, apesar da lenta evolução, deve estimular novas e necessárias práticas de gestão de resíduos sólidos no Brasil, tendo os acordos setoriais como pilar para efetivação da logística reversa e responsabilidade compartilhada.

The returns management (RM) process has traditionally been seen as a value recovery process, which has resulted in an efficiency focus in the returns flow. This thesis present, the effects on a fashion e-commerce organisation, which is underprioritising or neglecting RM in general and consumer returns specifically. In the reported and described single-case study and through a real-life experiment, performed with the case organisation nelly.com, it is shown that the consumer returns rates are not only influenced by the product itself. They represent a complex problem that has its reasons and causes, whereby the product (size, fit, quality, et cetera) together with consumer buying and returning behaviour ultimately have a combined effect on the organisation. The results from the thesis are based on previous research and rest heavily on the research performed since the start of the research journey. Consumer returns form part of the value creation in e-commerce and therefore returns management is a strategic part of the business as such. Handling consumer returns in a traditional or efficient returns system without knowing the reason for return and the state of the returned item is nothing other than gambling with resources. The proposed returns information system (RIS) framework in the thesis addresses this issue and facilitates the downstream application of the gatekeeping activity, near or at the end-user location; managerial attention is required at the strategic process level to build a proper returns system that is partly, and quite likely, decentralised. Products, suppliers, customers and internal processes cause consumer returns and therefore a returns manager needs to address these with other functions and SC partners. This result is partly new and the proposed alignment of RM as a strategic process is new in the sense that RM is part of value creation. This thesis empirically supports the conclusion that “one size fits all” is outdated and does not fit with ecommerce business. The results imply that managers need to gain a profound understanding of consumers’ buying behaviour and also to create differentiated delivery and returns processes to be able to grow within the existing customer segments and possibly to attract new or non-customers who are out of reach at present. Seeing the RM process as strategic in e-commerce, as proposed in the thesis, facilitates the development of the process to become both effective and efficient. Returns management has the potential for revenue creation and cost reduction. / <p>Dissertation to be defended in public on 15th of February 2013, at 10.00 in lecture room Vasa C, Vera Sandbergs Allé 8, Göteborg, for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy</p>

Background:   The demand of textiles and clothing is constantly increasing; as a result the post-consumer textile waste increase as well. This point is bringing the focus on creating the value from waste by recycling. Sweden, municipalities are responsible for handling the textile waste that is currently categorized as the household waste. The post-consumer textile when disposed is mixed with the other household waste, which eliminates the commercial value of the material Purpose:          The purpose of this study is to explore the current system in Nässjö municipality to manage post-consumer textiles and identify the possibilities for value creation through reverse logistics processes.  Method:          To fulfil the research purpose a qualitative study employing single case is used. Study caters multi-perspectives from different actors i.e. municipality, logistics service providers and consumers. Purposive sampling is used to select the respondents from each actor seeing their position in the companies and knowledge on the subject. Primary data is gathered by conducting 11 semi-structured interviews and field visit to the waste collection site. Secondary data is obtained using web sources and also from different project reports from government and other agencies. The empirical data is categorized and then analysed by thematic analysis with the developed theoretical framework of systems’ theory. Findings:         Legislation to collect textiles as the separate entity and put it in the reverse logistics system is on the way. Today, input in the system is very low due to the unawareness of consumers about the available options. Municipality is processing the waste as a normal household waste and it is incinerated to produce energy for the residents.  LSP are coordinating with municipality and tend to increase their resources for effective participation in the new system. Municipality requires strategic changes to meet the coming legislative requirements. Conclusion:     A sub-system could be developed for post-consumer textile in Nassjo municipality. Input in the system has to be determined by consumers education and convenience. Municipality has to define their roles for manage sub-system effectively. The study has provided the rich description of potential possibilities in this context.