The purpose of this study is to examine apparel manufacturers' inventory performance, which is one of the major performance indicators of supply chain management (SCM) with the consideration of company characteristics. The objectives of the study are (a) to identify the level of SCM activities of apparel manufacturers, (b) to examine the differences of apparel manufacturers' characteristics (i.e., product characteristic, production system, fabric suppliers, retail customers) according to the level of SCM activities, and (c) to illustrate how the SCM activities and apparel manufacturers' characteristics relate to the inventory management performance in terms of levels within the type (i.e., raw material, work-in-process, finished goods). Through an intensive literature review six SCM dimensions and 26 SCM activities were identified and four company characteristics selected for the study were found to influence the company performance. Inventory levels within the type were compared as a result of levels of SCM activities and company characteristics. Data were collected via a self-administered mail questionnaire sent to a random proportional stratified sample of 1,195 US apparel manufacturers in SIC 231 to 234. In the data analyses, 93 returned surveys were used with the adjusted response rate of 9.49%. Cluster analysis was used to identify the SCM activity groups who showed different levels of SCM activities. Factor analysis was used to determine the number of SCM dimensions and SCM activity scales, and to identify the SCM activity level of each cluster. ANOVA, Chi-square, Tukey-test, matched sample t-test, t-test, regression, and correlation were employed to determine the relationships between SCM activity level, company characteristics and inventory levels within the type. Statistical analyses supported the research hypotheses. Apparel manufacturers' SCM activity level differs and company characteristics are significantly related with the SCM activity level. Company characteristics and SCM activity level are significantly related with the inventory performance. Findings imply that basic goods manufacturers are more likely to see the benefits of SCM activity implementation in inventory performance. Lead-time for fashion goods procurement, production, and delivery takes longer than basic goods and is hard to be shortened. Limitations of the study and suggestions for future study were discussed. / Ph. D.

No / The intention of this paper is to promote the model of knowledge-based collaborative supply chain management (KBCSCM) system as an alternative strategy for organisations to resolve the problems in their current supply chain management (SCM) in the era of collaborative commerce (c-commerce).

No / Reverse e-auctions are increasingly being used in business-to-business procurement and have been reported to yield significant price reductions for buyer firms. However, the adoption of online auction formats has raised many concerns among suppliers, often being criticized for damaging supplier-buyer relationships and for being antithetical to what is currently regarded as good supply chain management. Against this background this paper aims to examine the reverse auction phenomenon in the UK packaging sector. Data were collected from the direct experiences of one large food-packaging supplier, using case studies of reverse e-auctions, and from exploratory interviews with other suppliers in the sector. While buyers are reaping significant short-term price reductions, the benefits to suppliers are less obvious. In fact, little reference was detected to the often-quoted reductions in overall transaction costs for either buyers or suppliers. However, most respondents were not able to specify their transaction costs and associated risks and did not appear to have adequate costing systems to enable such quantification.

No / This paper presents issues associated with the needs of collaborative supply chain management (CSCM) and proposes a planning stage of a CSCM framework. The proposed planning stage of a CSCM framework incorporates issues of organisation profile, internal functional strategy and supplier-customer strategy. The gauging absence of prerequisites (GAP) analysis technique which embedded in the knowledge-based system is proposed in the planning stage to analyse the gap between the current and the desirable position (benchmark) for an effective implementation in organisation. The planning stage framework provides information specifically for designing a CSCM by focusing on the organisation capability and business processes and discussed the important issues in planning a CSCM for business organisations, specifically for a manufacturing environment. Further research could be carried out to capitalise the framework for improving the CSCM. Practical implications ¿ The proposed planning stage of a CSCM framework enables the chain members to identify key factors or issues for CSCM development.

The forest industry has become more complex due in part to increasing global competition. The highly fragmented nature of the forest industry supply chain and lack of interaction between industry segments can cause major supply/demand inequalities. This fragmented nature can lead to unnecessary lead time and costly inefficiencies for business transactions. The objective of this research project is to develop the concept of using an Internet-based, Geographic Information System (GIS)-supported, optimized wood supply chain management system to overcome some of the current inefficiency problems. Currently many different forms of relevant supply chain management information can be found on the World Wide Web. Through review of Internet-related material, this project identified three classes of existing web resources relevant to the development of a forest industry supply chain management system: resource, market, and e-commerce sites. Internet information provides many of the basic data attributes needed in a supply chain management system. This project demonstrated that linking this data with geographic/spatial location (georeferencing) could add an extra dimension in the planning and decision making processes and will be a key development to push the boundaries of supply chain optimization. Within the forest industry, georeferencing of supply chain business entities can easily be done with GIS. Using GIS, members of the forest industry supply chain can be visually and spatially allocated to form a grand forest industry supply chain overview and specific business opportunities using this geo-referenced data platform can be developed. Although the technology exists to produce a high quality Internet-based supply chain network system, there are challenges in producing a system that is truly integrated among all industry partners. Technology obstacles, anti-trust regulation, reluctance to use the online platforms, and inaccurate information input and dispersal are some of the major issues facing a supply chain management tool that are discussed in this report. To demonstrate how a GIS-based supply chain management system could be implemented, three case studies have been presented to show how the proposed system would benefit the current industry in realistic situations. These include (1) a simple location-based search of consulting foresters, (2) a trucking logistic optimization, and (3) a quantitative resource assessment within a manufacturing facility procurement area. Case 1 demonstrates how geocoded landowner and consulting forester information can add efficiency in communication and services provided. Case 2 demonstrates that GIS paired with geocoded information gives a logger increased decision-making power by choosing the most profitable option in a choice between sawmills that includes transportation costs. Lastly, case 3 shows that by analyzing geocoded resource information, a manufacturer can make the proper decision of whether to expand or contract operations. In each case, added value was given to market players that were able to have analysis power through geocoded information. This information is not readily used at the present time and could potentially add value along many steps of the forest industry supply chain. / Master of Science

Purpose of this paper: The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the factors that enable or aggravate the implementation of a GSCM strategy for textile and fashion companies. Moreover, it shall be investigated how textile and fashion companies perceive their incentives of implementing GSCM and what their organizational responses regarding the perceived barriers and enablers look like. Design/methodology/approach: The report combines a literature study on previous research in the field of supply chain management, Green Supply Chain Management and the drivers and barriers of implementing a GSCM strategy, with an empirical study consisting of an online survey, a semi-structured interview and two case studies that are based on literature review. In order to analyze the survey results, a method to calculate a company’s GSCM incentive score has been developed. Findings: The factors that have been identified as the strongest or most important ones by many companies of the survey, as well as the interviewee and the case studies are supplier collaboration, the lack of supplier commitment, customer demand for more sustainability, customer desire for lower prices and top management commitment. Some companies also perceived the alignment of their company’s strategy as strong GSCM enabler. However, the calculation shows that the overall incentive score of most participants is in the neutral level; meaning that they in total perceive neither significant incentives nor barriers to implement GSCM. With mostly internal enablers and external barriers, more than half of the survey participants can be categorized as Agenda Setters. Research limitations: Due to the low response rate, the sample size of this study is very small. Moreover, the results strongly depend on the personal opinion and experiences of the interviewee and the individual situations of the companies. This means that the results of this study give an indication, but are not generalizable. Therefore, another study with a different sampling method and a larger sample size is needed. Practical implications: The outcomes of this study show that GSCM concerns every aspect of a supply chain. A company that wants to engage in GSCM needs to have good relationships with and control over its suppliers in order to ensure that they fulfill the sustainability requirements, and deal with pressure from NGOs. Additionally, the company needs to balance customer demands for low prices and sustainability, expect some (one-time) investments and sacrifice short-term profit in order to ensure sustainable production. Originality/value: This report identifies the most important GSCM barriers and enablers for textile companies. By evaluating how companies within the textile and fashion sector perceive their incentives of implementing GSCM and investigating their organizational behavior towards barriers and enablers of GSCM, this study indicates what the current situation in the textile industry looks like; shows where improvements are necessary and gives insight for companies that aim to engage in green practices. The development of the so called GSCM incentive score; a method to calculate a company’s perceived incentives to implement a GSCM strategy, can be useful for future studies within this field.

<p>This study examines several emerging topics in supply chain management including the dynamic product substitution, the joint optimization of price and order quantity with demand ambiguity, and the implementation of the environmental and social responsibility (ESR) programs.</p>

Digitaliseringen har vuxit mer än någonsin de senaste åren och är något som även beräknas fortsätta att utvecklas. Ny teknologi och nya möjligheter dyker upp på marknaden och företag står inför skiftande trender hela tiden. E-handeln har på grund av det aldrig sett ljusare dagar och handeln som sker online är större än någonsin, men detta leder även till att kundernas krav på flexibilitet ökar. Detta är något som företagen måste anpassa sig efter för att kunna fortsätta utvecklas och möta de utmaningar som den växande marknaden skapar. Det finns tidigare forskning om just e-handel, men där fokus istället har legat på digitaliseringens utveckling. Detta gör att det finns ett forskningsgap på hur framgångsrika svenska företag arbetar för att ligga i framkant inom e-handel, samt hur den ökade digitaliseringen påverkar logistikens roll och dess funktionalitet i en växande marknad. För att genomföra denna studie har en förankrad teori tagits fram för att utveckla en modell som är anpassad efter studiens syfte. Modellen somt tagits fram är baserad på en kombination av teorier för att möjliggöra syftet och har sedan varit utgångspunkten vid insamling av empiri. Därför vill vi svara på dessa frågor: <ul type="disc">Hur arbetar framgångsrika svenska företag med e-handeln i dagsläget och dess utveckling och vad är det som prioriteras för att nå en lyckad e-handel? Hur nyttjas logistiken inom dessa företag och hur är den sammankopplad med e- handeln? Insamlingen av empirin skedde genom kvalitativa intervjuer där respondenterna fick möjlighet att förmedla vad de ansåg vara viktigt inom sitt arbetsområde och vilka prioriteringar som de arbetade med. Resultatet har visar att det finns samband mellan företagen vad de fokuserar på samt att logistiken anses bli mer komplex med digitaliserad utveckling. Studien grunder sig i två teorier som är relevanta för dagens digitalisering och e- handelsutveckling. Dessa teorier presenterar viktiga delar i att skapa en fungerande e-handel och hur du ska arbeta för att skapa det ultimata resultatet för din organisation. Teorierna har fokus på relationer och värdeskapande, för företag och kund, och är något som måste has i åtanke idag vid utveckling av onlinehandel. Resultatet, som är baserat på semi-strukturerade intervjuer, är något som visar att samarbete är det första steget för att nå en utmanande e-handel. Resultatet visar dock även andra faktorer som man måste ta hänsyn till för att skapa en utvecklas och kundorienterad e- handel. Avslutningsvis bidrar studien till en reviderad modell av E-handelns Framgångsfaktorer. Denna modell visar rekommendationer för framgångsrika företag som arbetar med e-handel över hur de bör strukturera sin utveckling för att nå bästa resultat. Studien kan även bidra till forskningen som finns idag genom att ge en djupare kunskap i över hur e- handelsutveckling och arbete ser ut i dagsläget.

Environmental pollution is the major problem that mankind faces in present state, the major emission of toxic gases is from vehicles and manufacturing industries. The thesis study focuses on three different types of Small Scale Industries (SSI) in India that are bumper manufacturing industry, dyeing industry and food processing industry. The product life cycles of the process for each industry are identified and their final green waste disposal methods are investigated. The industries are identified with more lean wastes within their product life cycle process. The major green wastes from their disposal methods have high influence on environment. These wastes have to be reduced or eliminated by practicing a suitable supply chain. In present the companies doesn’t practice any supply chain in their organization. The implement of supply chain could reduce the environmental pressures and wastes of the companies to some extent. The lean wastes identified in the process could be eliminated by practicing suitable lean tools and methods. The final disposal wastes are considered to be the green wastes. The method of disposal practiced by the SSIs in India shows an evidence of how much they concern towards the environment. The research tries to explain some suitable waste management techniques for the industries and discusses about importance of government role on making this techniques possible. The small scale industries experiences both wastes, so it has to integrate lean for practicing green supply chain, the implementation of lean would pay a way for green supply chain management. As a result of it a comprehensive lean and green model is suggested for the industries because the model is composed of both lean and green waste reduction techniques and it also helps in achieving both lean and green business results.

My research probes into the supply chain strategies and real conditions to develop a collaborative supply chain management model. And, based on the processes and strategies, the research investigates the applied model and architecture in the TFT-LCD industry supply chain. First of all, the research analyzes the real situations in the supply chain and finds out the information flow. Then, my research investigates the supply chain model to set up the supply chain development strategies and applied model. Finally, my research utilizes the expert interview method to evaluate the usability and feasibility of supply chain applied model. Keywords¡GSupply Chain Management, Vertical Division Industry, Competitive Advantage, Collaborative Supply Chain Management.