We consider a two-level supply chain involving a manufacturer and a retailer who serves as the quality gatekeeper. The manufacturer determines a wholesale price and a defective rate and announces his decisions to the retailer, who then makes her decisions on the retail price and identification rate that means the percent- age of the defects identified by the retailer and reflects the retailer’s gatekeeping effort on her quality assurance. We accordingly develop a leader-follower game and solve it to find Stackelberg equilibrium for the manufacturer and the retailer. In order to examine whether or not the supply chain benefits from the retailer's quality gatekeeping effort, we also develop and solve another leader-follower game where the manufacturer still announces its wholesale pricing and defective rate decisions but the retailer only decides on the retail price. We show that the manufacturer’s equilibrium defective rate for the game with the retailers gate-keeping is higher than that for the game without the retailer’s gatekeeping. The ratio of the manufacturers profit to the retailer’s profit is increased when the retailer serves as the gatekeeper. Moreover, the retailer reduces her price when she acts as the gatekeeper, if and only if the supply chain-wide cost decreases as a result of the retailer’s gatekeeping effort. We also perform sensitivity analysis of each parameter in our game models to further examine the impacts of the retailer’s gatekeeping on the manufacturer’s and the retailer’s decisions and profits. We find that the retailer’s penalty cost per defect has more significant impacts than the manufacturer’s unit penalty cost. The paper ends with a summary of managerial insights.

Försörjningskedjor har blivit allt mer globala, vilket har medfört att risken ökat och allt fler oförutsedda händelser uppstår som kan påverka organisationen på ett negativt sätt. Denna studies syfte var att få en förståelse för hur företag A hanterar och identifierar risker inom försörjningskedjan utifrån ett inköpsperspektiv, vilket undersöktes med hjälp av kvalitativa metoder. Studien började med insamling av allmänna fakta för att skapa en bild över potentiella problem inom försörjningskedjan, vidare riktades den teoretiska referensramen in på teorier och modeller inom riskdefinition, riskstrategier och analysverktyg för riskbedömning. Sedan genomfördes en fallstudie av hur företag A upplever risker. Den empiriska datan blev insamlad genom semi-strukturerade intervjuer med individer på företagets inköpsavdelning, med fokus på hur de identifierar och hanterar risker. Därefter analyserades den insamlade datan från intervjuerna, utifrån den teoretiska referensramen. Resultatet visade att det finns en stor riskförståelse och aktivt arbete mot olika typer av risker, samt för att minimera störningar är den främsta åtgärden kommunikation med leverantörer. I studien framkom även att det inte finns någon enhetlig riskstrategi och riskhantering bland individerna på inköpsavdelningen, istället hanteras riskerna utifrån enskilda situationer. / Supply chains have become increasingly global, which has led to increased risk and more and more unforeseen events occurring that could adversely affect the organization. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how Company A manages and identifies risks in the supply chain from a purchasing perspective, which was investigated using qualitative methods. The study began with the gathering of general facts to create a picture of potential problems in the supply chain, and the theoretical frame of reference was also focused on theories and models within risk definition, risk strategies and analysis tools for risk assessment. A case study was then conducted of how Company A perceived risks. The empirical data was collected through semi-structured interviews with individuals in the company's purchasing department, focusing on how they identify and manage risks. Subsequently, the data collected from the interviews were analyzed based on the theoretical frame of reference. The result showed that there is a great understanding of risk and active work against different types of risks, and to minimize disruptions, the main measure is communication with suppliers. The study also revealed that there is no uniform risk strategy and risk management among the individuals in the purchasing department, instead the risks are managed based on individual situations.

Introduktion: I takt med en ökad global handel och en stor konkurrens inom industrisektorn letar många företag alternativ för att stärka sin position och konkurrensförmåga. Inom Supply Chain Management sker utveckling för att bättre passa den marknad som råder. En anpassning till en föränderlig verksamhet är numera något som måste ses som en viktig aspekt i skapandet av framtida Supply Chain och en strukturerad flexibilitet är ett måste för att möta kundernas behov. Kärnkraften står efter olyckan i Fukushima inför en stor förändring då nya material måste utvecklas för att höja säkerheten i världens kärnkraftreaktorer. I och med detta måste också nya produktionsvägar skapas och försörjningskedjan måste utvärderas för att möta kundens önskemål. En analys av den tilltänka försörjningskedjan där de gap som finns mellan försörjningskedjans möjliga kapacitet och kundens önskade kapacitet genomförs för att säkerställa att organisationen fattar rätt beslut vad gäller expansion av kapacitet. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att undersöka avgörande parametrar som en förnyad Supply Chain kan byggas från. Därefter undersöks den specifika försörjningskedjans möjlighet att möta kundens behov. Detta genom att analysera försörjningskedjans kapacitet och de eventuella gap som finns mellan den möjliga kapaciteten och kundens önskade kapacitet. Syftet är att på detta sätt skapa goda förutsättningar för en stark och konkurrenskraftig Supply Chain. Metod: För att svara mot syftet skapades en teoretisk modell över viktiga aspekter i en Supply Chain fram. I denna undersökning har en kombination av kvalitativa och kvantitativa forskningsstrategier använts. Slutligen analyserades en specifik försörjningskedja genom en GAP-analys. Resultat: I undersökningen har ett flertal kapacitetsbegränsningar och flaskhalsar upptäckts i produktionen. Olika scenarion visar på vilka när och var dessa begränsningar uppstår. Genom GAP-analysen påvisas olika alternativ att skapa flexibilitet i försörjningskedjan. Slutsats: I slutsatsen lyfts en modell för arbetet med en Supply Chain fram. Denna sätter kundens behov i fokus och bidrar sedan till att skapa en flexibel och öppen/synlig Supply Chain. Den specifika försörjningskedjan har viss kapacitet att möta marknadens behov. Genom investeringar och flexibla lösningar så som en förändrad skiftgång och inköp av mer produktionsutrustning kan ytterligare kapacitetsbehov mötas.

El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado. / This research analyzes the Peruvian organic production coffee industry, the relationship between Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Supply Chain Integration (SCI) concerning the performance of the Cooperatives and the Coffee Associations in Junin Region of Peru. It also analyzes the current scenario of the Coffee Sector and the participation of the Supply Chain (SC) in the processing and distribution of Organic Coffee in Junin, Peru. A diagnosis was made to the certified organizations from the market. The diagnosis and the surveys indicated that they do not have a correct flow of information, shared goals and objectives, strategic decisions, and sourcing materials among the different parties demonstrating the lack of interrelationship among the members. The final objective of this research is to improve the competitiveness of these organizations through the increase in the performance of the SC, for which a model of supply chain integration is proposed. / Revisión por pares

El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado. / The Blueberry situation in Peru is in a stage of development, in which it is necessary to incorporate good management practices as well as productive to raise the competitiveness of the enterprises. The findings were synthesized and analyzed, to propose improvements and to support the growth of the small companies in the long term. The improvement proposal is based on the best practices and supply chain models applied in the industry. Also, the research was based on sources of information from researchers with experience in evaluating and analyzing the supply chain of the perishable sector in different scenarios worldwide. / Revisión por pares

El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado. / The present research seeks to show the importance of applying process management techniques and food safety norms in the operational processes of the supply chain to know the meaning and the need for an integrated hybrid model. The article reviews the sugarcane distillery sector of Peru and its main operational problems. Based on the literature reviewed and discussed with academics who have knowledge of the food supply chain, an integrated hybrid model was developed to help any distillery with lower levels of competitiveness than its competitors in other sectors, such as pisco, applying techniques of process management and food safety to increase the efficiency of liquor distilleries. The findings confirm that distilleries can increase their efficiency, thanks to the higher performance of their operations after their alignment with the integrated model. / Revisión por pares

As the product-release cycle in the tech industry speeds up, there is more pressure on manufacturers to bring new products to market faster than ever. This puts a great deal of pressure on the suppliers of capital equipment used to manufacture these tech products. The supply chain agility of these suppliers is increasingly important. The purpose of this study is three-fold (1) to develop a methodology that can be used by any firm for measuring and ranking the agility of suppliers and finding the root causes of supplier agility, (2) to develop the first-ever fully quantitative measure of supply chain agility, and (3) to test if the supply chain management practices that are associated with agility in the academic literature are truly correlated with supply chain agility. Using the outlined methodology in this paper, the data suggest that the customer's current system and processes adequately met the need for short-notice, expedited build times. However, many processes and communications between the suppliers and customer have a lot of room for improvement that may positively impact the supply chain agility of suppliers. Since most every firm captures this same data, such as PO create dates and supplier ship dates, any firm can and should replicate this analysis to discover their suppliers' unique drivers of supply chain agility. Each supplier's historical agility was measured and ranked using historical order performance data. This agility score is the first of its kind to measure agility without the use of qualitative factors or self-reported measures of agility. Only three of the supply chain survey questions developed from or borrowed from the academic literature were correlated with supply chain agility in this study. Survey responses regarding the frequency of communication and information sharing are two examples of variables that were not associated with supplier supply chain agility. The only survey question response that was found to be positively correlated with supply chain agility involves the agile practice of delayed product differentiation. Contrary to the literature, two questions involving supplier-customer communication and the linking of order management system were found to be negatively correlated with supply chain agility. In regards to the non-survey, historical data, the independent variables that were correlated with agility highlighted the need for improved systems and processes between the suppliers and customer. Two examples of processes and systems that need improvement are expedited build time requests and PO swaps.

The blood supply chain, starting from the donor until the blood is used to meet transfusion demands of patients, is a multi-echelon and complex system. The perishable and lifesaving characteristics of blood products, such as red blood cells and platelets, as well as uncertainties in both supply and demand make it difficult to maintain a balance between shortage and wastage due to expiry. An effective blood supply chain should be able to meet the demand while at the same time reducing wastage and total operational cost. In order to be cost effective, the related organizations have to decide how much blood should be collected from donors, how much blood products should be produced at the blood center, and how much blood products should be distributed to hospitals or transshipped between hospitals. The objective of this dissertation is to provide these tactical and operational decisions to guide those who work in healthcare supply chain management and explore new opportunities on performance improvement for an integrated blood supply chain by optimization with aim of minimizing total cost, consideration of transshipment between hospitals, and application of a coordinated multi-product model. This dissertation presents three multi-stage stochastic models for an integrated blood supply chain to minimize total cost incurred in the collection, production, inventory, and distribution echelons under centralized control. The scope of this study focuses on modeling a supply chain of blood products in one regional blood center, several hospitals and blood collection facilities. First, we develop an integrated model for the platelet supply chain that accounts for demand uncertainty and blood age information, then we develop this model further by investigating the impact of transshipment between hospitals on cost savings, and then we propose a multi-product model that accounts for red blood cells and platelets at the same time and compare it with an uncoordinated model where the red blood cell and platelet supply chains are considered separately.

The purpose of the study was to investigate how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) involved in local procurement create supply chain value. The study investigated supply chain value creation (SCVC) by testing three initiators of SCVC: entrepreneurial competencies; supply chain collaboration; and supply chain trust as well as the moderation effects of trust on SCVC. Feedback from a cross-sectional survey of 294 respondents in the construction, furniture and fitting, food processing and agricultural sectors was utilized to test hypothesized relationships. The study employed factor analysis and structural equation modelling to conduct analysis. The unit of analysis was an SME and level of analysis was the SME owner-manager. The results show that building value-driven supply chains in Uganda’s local procurement context requires SME owner-managers to integrate competencies, share information with customers, communicate collaboratively with suppliers and build an optimal level of trust. Supply chain trust is highly regarded in facilitating the exchange of resources within local communities but the owner-managers’ perspective – which differs in terms of how they view customers and suppliers – alters how managers assess trusted customers and suppliers, and what different tactics they may employ in building trust in customer, as opposed to supplier, relationships. The research findings demonstrate how managers, who trust customers on the basis of transparency and reliability, by contrast trust suppliers on the basis of operational flexibility, fairness and market credibility. The study contributes to existing knowledge by separating out and defining the key competencies most important in the management of local SME supply chains: opportunity competence and commitment competence. These are what the study has named Entrepreneurial Supply Chain Value-creating Competences (ESCVC). In addition, the study illuminates how trust increases the value suppliers create for the focal firm. Finally, by demonstrating that cost and goal congruence are not key value drivers, the research provides compelling evidence for why managers should instead focus on developing competencies, facilitating the flow of information and building trust in order to optimally benefit from local supply chains. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / PhD / Unrestricted

The author investigated the condition under which competition effect and contagion effect impact the suppliers of the firm encountering data breach. An event study was conducted to analyze the stock price of 104 suppliers of Target after the large-scale data breach in 2013. The result showed that suppliers with high dependence on Target experienced negative abnormal return on the day after Target’s announcement, while those with low dependence experienced positive abnormal return. After regressing the abnormal return on some explanatory variables, the result showed that firms with better operational performance and high information technology capability were less negatively affected. This study suggested that suppliers who relatively highly rely on one customer company are susceptible for the negative shock from that customer because of contagion effect. Furthermore, maintaining good performance and investing in information technology can help firms reduce losses from negative events happened in customer companies.