<p>  </p> <p>Motor vehicle crashes at represent a major cause of fatalities and injuries. As such, road transportation agencies continue to seek proactive intersection traffic monitoring initiatives to reduce crashes. Proper monitoring and assessment of crash risk can not only help identify and mitigate safety hazards in real time but also enhance the design of safer facilities and promote safe road-user behavior. It has been suggested in recent literature that unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), given their wide visual field and movement flexibility, can potentially help monitor road traffic operations when deployed on the field. In addition, it is recognized that it is still challenging to realize a large-scale ground-based vehicle-to-everything (V2X) network at the current time and in the very near future. In this regards, UAVs can play a critical connectivity role by serving as a hub to facilitate communications among roadway entities (vehicles, infrastructure, and pedestrians). This thesis first presented a methodology that integrates UAVs and V2X connectivity to track the trajectory of intersection users and to monitor potential collisions at intersections. The proposed methodology includes deep-learning-based tracking algorithms and time-to-collision assessments. The methodology was applied using a case study, and the results demonstrated the efficacy of the tracking methodology. Next, the thesis addressed the issue of image quality. During inclement weather, traffic monitoring can be challenging because the video quality is often corrupted by streaks of falling rain on the video image. This may hinder the reliability of characterizing the road environment and road-user behavior during such events. To fully exploit the benefits of video captured by UAVs in traffic monitoring, crash risk assessment, and other safety-related domains, it is critical to ensure high video quality. Therefore, this thesis proposed a two-stage self-supervised learning method to remove rain streaks in traffic videos, where the first and second stages address intra- and inter-frame noise, respectively. The results suggest that the proposed method provides satisfactory performance.</p> <p>  </p>

Much of the existing literature on the social aspects of sustainability in the supply chain has focused on dyadic buyer-supplier relationships. However, supply chains are much more extensive, featuring multi-tiered systems consisting of many interconnected sequential and parallel dyadic relationships; therefore, a more expansive and holistic approach to exploring the management and integration of social sustainability standards across the extended supply chain is desirable. This research attempts to help fill this void and considers the extent to which a series of sequential upstream and downstream supply chain partners, rather than only a focal organization’s immediate suppliers and buyers, influence the formulation process of the social aspects of a sustainability strategy and the deployment of associated practices across the extended supply chain. Findings in the literature indicate that, inter alia, sustainability efforts in the supply chain are likely to be guided by stakeholders’ sustainability desires/requirements, the geographical location of buyers and suppliers and the associated sustainability enforcement regulations and cultural norms, and the volume of trade between the buyer and supplier. This paper uses the results gleaned from a review of the literature to propose a conceptual framework for selection of sustainability strategy across the multi-tiered supply chain. Finally, we introduce a conceptual approach to the process of implementing and deploying the social aspects of sustainability strategies and practices across the supply chain using an integrated social-sustainability information management system (ISIMS).

<p>A significant number of resources are allocated to maintaining the resiliency of pharmaceutical supply chain as failure to do so thoroughly can result in drug shortages of essential medicines. Recently, the effects of COVID-19 exacerbated flaws in the current system causing the pharmaceutical industry and government organizations and to reassess relief strategies that could also strengthen the supply chain. Flow chemistry has become an attractive and prominent platform enabling continuous manufacturing (CM) technologies to synthesize active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) quickly according to demand. Compared to traditional batch chemistry, flow chemistry has demonstrated to be more robust in terms of throughput, scalability, and hazard reduction while maintaining a high degree of control and product quality. This work demonstrates these capabilities in reaction optimization and discovery with the overarching goal of domesticating CM to make essential medicines more affordable. A two-step process for the synthesis in diazepam was developed using a Chemtrix Labtrix S1 and Start microfluidic systems where purities as high as 98% were achieved. The system was successfully scaled up to a larger system that was able to produce 96% pure diazepam at a 91% yield. </p>

This thesis investigates the supply chain of Vancomycin and Piperacillin/Tazobactam in order to understand why the two antibiotics have been exposed to back orders during recent years in Sweden. The health economical consequences due to these back orders of the two antibiotics was also examined. The used methods were literature search and elementary calculation methods. The supply chains for the two antibiotics consists of multiple manufacturing actors, both primary and secondary. The manufacturing actors are mostly located in low and middle income countries, which increases risks for the supply chains. The Swedish market is unattractive due to its small size and ineffective purchasing system, which also increases risks of shortages. The unattractive market is a probable cause of the lower amount of market authorisation holders which sell the antibiotics in Sweden. Furthermore, a financial model was created to assess the health economic impacts of shortages. The costs were calculated as the sum of the additional labor required to deal with shortages along with the costs of the alternative medicines. It was estimated that a shortage of Vancomycin can cost up to SEK 1 600 000 in fixed costs followed by up to SEK 202 997 per additional day of shortage and that a shortage of Pipetazo can cost up to SEK 1 600 000 in fixed costs followed by up to SEK 923 650 per day. There are also other negative aspects of these consequences, such as worsening of patient health and contributions to increased AMR.

The purpose of this research is to investigate and understand the current situation of the suppliers in the textile and apparel industry, who are located in Asia, towards the Digital Product Passport (DPP). In particular, this research intends to assist in understanding if the suppliers of this industry are aware of the DPP legislation, which is their attitude regarding this topic, and how prepared they are to follow its prerequisites. Design/methodology/approach: This study adopts an exploratory qualitative research approach. The goal is to explore and gain further knowledge about the current attitude and preparedness of the Asian suppliers regarding the DPP and finally to lay the groundwork for further studies. An inductive approach was followed since this research was conducted by interrelating relevant literature with new findings with the purpose of providing the existing literature with new empirical data. Data were collected through interviews and new knowledge and discussions were produced as a result of the research process. Findings: The findings of this research show that the suppliers’ attitude towards the DPP is positive rather than negative. There is a willingness to learn more about this topic and follow the prerequisites. However, several difficulties were encountered that should be taken into account carefully. In addition, with regard to their preparedness, the suppliers are considered not ready. However, it was noted that for some of them, the implementation might be easier than for others. Originality/value: In the literature, there is a gap with regard to the current situation of the suppliers in the textile and apparel industry, who are located outside the European Union, and particularly in Asia, towards the DPP. Studies have been focused on the DPP, but not with an explicit focus on the suppliers in Asia and in the textile industry. Therefore, this research is considered original and valuable since it is regarded as one of the first to describe the current situation of the Asian suppliers regarding the DPP and with a specific focus on the textile industry. Paper type: Master Thesis

<p>As the economy recovered with the winding down of the pandemic, businesses with complex supply chains could not bring their inventories back to optimal levels as their production was susceptible to disruption due to supply outages. Deriving optimal ordering policies as a way to mitigate the impact of production disruption represents a challenge in multi-stage decision problems given the complexity of the network and the uncertainty in the demand.</p> <p><br></p> <p>In the first part of the thesis, we formulate a stochastic inventory control problem for a general supply network model. Using the Bellman’s recursion and properties of the cost function at each stage, we characterize the optimal request decision as a threshold policy where the threshold computation is based on the marginal cost. Lastly, we validate that the policy developed minimizes the inventory cost and meets an exogenous random demand. However, the policy does not guarantee that the inventory level for each firm satisfies the constraints when a supply disruption occurs in the network.</p> <p><br></p> <p>In the second part of the thesis, we consider a serial network in which firms engage in production subject to disruption risk and they look to maximize their profit. We propose an algorithm to characterize a stationary optimal policy based on the closed-form solutions obtained from a discounted finite horizon problem for profit maximization. Finally, by computing the policy proposed as a function of the tier’s location and its disruption probability, we provide simulation results of the disruption effect in the supply network.</p>

It is believed that the critical next step from examinations of operations and the environment is the study of sustainability and supply chains (Linton, Klassen, and Jayaraman (2007)). Environmental quality and preservation as well as meeting the stress of emission reductions is rapidly becoming an important issue for public policy (Wilkinson, Hill, and Gollan (2001)). However, Lambertini and Mantovani (2007) note the disregard, unrelated to regulatory requirements, of research practitioners to the potential benefits of appropriate competition policy measures and consumer pressures (Srivastara (2007)). In addition, a firm’s success, notably, in terms of financial and/or environmental practices, has been tied, in part, to the strength of its ability to coordinate and integrate activities along the entire supply chain (Spekman, Kamauff Jr., and Myhr (1998)), and to effectively implement multicriteria decisionmaking tools to aid in their strategic decisions. I present five essays in this dissertation. For each model I utilize the theory of variational inequalities, derive the formulation, present qualitative properties, and provide numerical examples. The first essay develops the multitiered sustainable supply chain network model with multicriteria decision-making. In the second essay I construct a modeling and computational framework that allows for the determination of optimal carbon taxes applied to electric power plants in the context of electric power supply chain (generation/distribution/consumption) networks. The third essay considers electric power supply chain networks and develops a model of tradable pollution permits in the case of multiple pollutants and spatially distinct receptor points. In the fourth essay, I quantify and assess, from a system-optimized sustainable supply chain network perspective, the environmental effects resulting when a horizontal supply chain integration occurs. In the fifth and final essay, I extend the work of Nagurney (2009) to the multiproduct supply chain network domain to quantify the impacts. This dissertation is heavily based on the following papers: Nagurney, Liu, and Woolley (2006), Nagurney, Liu, and Woolley (2007), Woolley, Nagurney, and Stranlund (2009), Nagurney and Woolley (2009) and Nagurney, Woolley, and Qiang (2009).

Yes / Inclusive growth is contested yet adopted by the World Bank to reduce poverty and inequality through rapid economic growth. Research has tested inclusive growth in sectors including agriculture, but few studies apply it to tourism which is significant for many developing countries. The paper interrogates tourism-led inclusive growth: supply chains, economic linkages/leakage, ownership, employment and expenditure. It draws from fieldwork in Vietnam where tourism has rapidly developed with partial economic benefits for local communities, but does not appear to fall within the inclusive growth paradigm. It is unclear if tourism-led growth will become any more inclusive in the short-to-medium term. / British Council's UK-ASEAN Knowledge Partnership Fund, and Kent Business School

No / This paper aims to identify a wider holistic view of the inter-relationships relating to food security from a people, process and policy perspective. This is so that decision and policy makers can identify relevant alignments between disparate and conflicting priority elements in the field. Noting the complexity of inter-related challenges posed by food security, food supply chains and growing concerns over food waste, this paper also seeks to identify cross-cutting themes relative to shared energy and water security objectives also. The authors develop and adapt an existing food security framework to encapsulate the above culminating in a systems archetype that defines the intimate feed-forward relationship. As a viewpoint piece, there is no empirical work to report in this paper. An exploratory review of the literature has allowed for the extraction of food security concerns that need the attention of stakeholders across the enterprise to ensure robust food supply chains can be created, maintained and sustained through a better understanding and usage of information, knowledge and data. The authors present an adaptation of an existing food security framework to include dimensions of people, process and policy through the inclusion of a number of broad thematic areas including (amongst others): management best practices; sustainable business operations; consumption rights, behaviours and trading policies; lifecycle management; recovery and extraction; regulatory changes and policy reform; environmental and climate change impacts. The authors outline an overarching systems archetype based upon a combination of the Limits of Growth, Tragedy of the Commons and Attractiveness Principle archetypes. In doing so, providing decision and policy makers to identify and explore a range of food security scenarios and potential outcomes. This paper is a position paper that provides strategic directions on the impact of people, process and policy aspects on the development of food security policies from the perspective of local and central government decision makers. This paper provides a holistic worldview on key aspects of the global and national food security debate that seeks to assist decision and policy makers frame their decisions and policy interventions across dimensions of people, process and policy. Noting the impact of securing and maintaining the production, supply, consumption, health benefits and waste recovery aspects of food this paper provides a perspective on the inter-relationships that exist within the topical area and the socially mediated inter-relationships which exist and should be considered when engaging with the food security and food supply chain topical area. The paper raises awareness and highlights inherent inter-relationships within the food debate for the benefit of decision and policy makers present at the organisational level, specifically around people, process and policy.

Yes / Given that the probability of extreme weather has been dramatically increasing, this study contributes to the existing literature by bridging the relation between weather risks and global commodity prices with a secondary dataset (e.g., weather risks of Canada and the United States, agricultural raw materials price, gold price, and crude oil price). The results from the vector autoregression model and impulse response functions show that rising weather risks increase the price of agricultural raw materials and gold. However, the negative impact of weather risks on the crude oil price is found. Finally, the paper discusses the findings' potential implications (e.g., developing decarbonised supply chains) for decreasing weather risks' effects on commodity market uncertainties.