Today, it is important to understand how logistic systems can become more efficient and effective through increased digitalization and information sharing, as the exponential development in technological advancements during the recent decade has opened up new opportunities for digitalization of businesses. Blockchain is considered to be one of the most disruptive technologies of modern times. (Dinh & Thai, 2018) Information generation and information sharing are important for integration of partners in a supply chain, and for the logistics in a supply chain to function efficiently. To understand how blockchain can impact information sharing through supply chains and logistics, the purpose is to explore the potential of blockchain in supply chain logistics. The thesis focuses on explaining blockchain to make it approachable and easy to understand. The thesis is divided into two parts, the technological part, with comparisons to other digital technologies in order to pinpoint how blockchain relates to other technologies, and the information sharing part of the supply chain. With that foundation, the analyses look into the contributions blockchain can provide, how it compares to traditional IT-systems for information sharing and what to consider before and during an implementation of a blockchain protocol in a supply chain.   To categorize information sharing, important aspects were chosen from literature and validated through a survey sent to supply chain managers from companies operating at different parts of supply chains and different industries. In order to evaluate the actual potential of blockchain, interviews with four highly experienced blockchain experts were conducted. The research resulted in the conclusion of how important it is to conduct an investigation of what blockchain is intended for, and what value it adds to all parties involved, before starting the technical implementation. Furthermore, this research concluded that the possibility to use blockchain both independently and in combination with other technologies in a chain to provide fully automated processes of disseminating and storing information provides a greater potential for further use. Through the characteristics the technology possesses, such as, consensus, traceability (provenance), immutability, finality, decentralisation and persistency, blockchain can have a big impact on information handling in many industries. Companies should however consider whether a blockchain solution is necessary, since its complicated, demands involvement from multiple parties and comes at a substantial cost. A supply chain aims to maximise added value, which correlates well with the opportunity blockchain presents of eliminating the need for unnecessary intermediaries, streamlining the information flow, while simultaneously building trust.

The objective of this thesis is to analyze logistics processes of company Verana, s.r.o. both from the cost and feasibility perspective and using this analysis, the thesis investigates the possibility of outsourcing logistics by using a third party, that is a logistics company. Both advantages and disadvantages are addressed and compared to the current state of logistics system in the company.

The evolution of supply chain management has made significant and continuous contributions to logistical processes. This is highly relevant to crude oil logistics in Nigeria, because both indigenous and multinational oil companies who distribute crude oil from Nigerian ports are yet to adopt an integrated export logistics operation. Besides, the study explores the philosophy of supply chain management applying theoretic frameworks of supply chain process management, demand variability, and vertical integration to encourage integrated export logistics for the distribution of crude oil from Nigeria to China. In addition, the research objectives are: to identify the components of crude oil exports; to review the principles of integrated supply chain management; to analyse crude oil demand in China; to evaluate the efficiency of oil distribution, and to propose strategies that will raise the efficiency of crude oil exports to China from Nigeria. A conceptual model was developed to identify relevant issues that guide the synergy of China’s requirement for energy security and Nigeria’s crude oil supply capability. Also, both a Delphi survey and an archival research method’s were adopted to elucidate on the characteristics of the research population, the shipment frequencies between the two countries, and the sources of competing crude oil exports to China. Measures of central tendency from respondent feedback and non-parametric tests support the study’s findings. Furthermore, recommendations for strategic, operational, and tactical organisation of resources were identified to raise integrated crude oil export efficiency from Nigeria to China directed by the theoretic framework. Moreover, their implications for sustainable logistics practice in the short, medium, and long-term are considered. Finally, it was found that adopting vertical integration in a crude oil supply chain will ensure responsiveness to support export efficiency, and enhance the geographic characteristics of Nigeria for increased export shipments to China.

Generic pharmaceutical supply chains are complex, interfacing humanitarian needs, industrial manufacturing, regulatory bodies and numerous other shareholders. This report gives a brief introduction to a current supply chain process within a company as well as a proposal to improve the supply chain financially, socially and environmentally. Data has been collected mainly through interviews and literature studies in order to conduct a case study. The project included an initial business case, calculations of necessary data in order to justify the work as well as to quantify the results. The main part of the proposal is to postpone the packing of medical products to a later stage as a way of improving the triple bottom line. Theoretically, this change results in lower ordering costs, lower volumes scrapped and thus lower scrapping costs and pollution, a decrease in order volumes further reducing costs and pollution and more. The study met the intended outcomes and would theoretically improve the company in line with the set targets. At the time of writing it is yet unclear whether it will lead to any action on behalf of the company. / Försörjningskedjorna inom farmaceutisk generika är komplexa med många externa beröringspunkter såsom mänskligt behov, industriell produktion, regulatoriska organisationer och andra intressenter. Den här rapporten erbjuder en kort introduktion till den befintliga försörjningsprocessen i ett företag i branschen samt ett förslag till hur företaget kan förbättra sin försörjningskedja ur ett ekonomiskt, socialt och miljömässigt perspektiv. Information har inhämtats främst genom intervjuer och litteraturstudier som har utgjort grund för en fallstudie. Projektet inkluderade framtagning av ett beslutsunderlag, datakalkyler för att ge stöd åt syftet med arbetet samt för att kvantifiera resultaten. Huvuddelen av förslaget utgörs av senareläggningen av packningsstadiet för medicinska produkter och effekten det får på det som på engelska kallas triple bottom line. Implementeringen av projektet ska teoretiskt leda till bland annat förbättrade vinstmarginaler, lägre andel kassationer och därmed en minskning av kostnader och utsläpp hänförliga till kassationer, lägre ordervolymer vilket i sin tur leder till sänkta kostnader och utsläpp. Studien har gett ett positivt utfall relativt målsättningen och implementeringen ska teoretiskt leda till en förbättring av verksamheten i linje med de uppsatta målen. I skrivande stund är det oklart huruvida företaget kommer att implementera förslaget.

Recently, there has been a surge in the research and application of "Green energy" in the United States. This has been driven by the following three objectives: (1) to reduce the nation's reliance on foreign oil, (2) to mitigate emission of greenhouse gas, and (3) to create an economic stimulus within the United States. Switchgrass is the biomass of choice for the Southeastern United States. In this dissertation, we address a feedstock logistics problem associated with the delivery of switchgrass for conversion into biofuel. In order to satisfy the continual demand of biomass at a bioenergy plant, production fields within a 48-km radius of its location are assumed to be attracted into production. The bioenergy plant is expected to receive as many as 50-400 loads of biomass per day. As a result, an industrialized transportation system must be introduced as early as possible in order to remove bottlenecks and reduce the total system cost. Additionally, we assume locating multiple bioenergy plants within a given region for the production of biofuel. We develop mixed integer programming formulations for the feedstock logistics problem that we address and for some related problems, and we solve them either through the use of decomposition-based methods or directly through the use of CPLEX 12.1.0. The feedstock logistics problem that we address spans the entire system-from the growing of switchgrass to the transporting of bio-crude oil, a high energy density intermediate product, to a refinery for conversion into a final product. To facilitate understanding, we present the reader with a case study that includes a preliminary cost analysis of a real-life-based instance in order to provide the reader appropriate insights of the logistics system before applying optimization techniques for its solution. First, we consider the benefits of active versus passive ownership of the production fields. This is followed by a discussion on the selection of baler type, and then, a discussion of contracts between various business entities. The advantages of storing biomass at a satellite storage location (SSL) and interactions between the operations performed at the production field with those performed at the storage locations are then established. We also provide a detailed description of the operations performed at a SSL. Three potential equipment options are presented for transporting biomass from the SSLs to a utilization point, defined in this study as a Bio-crude Plant (BcP). The details of the entire logistics chain are presented in order to highlight the need for making decisions in view of the entire chain rather than basing them on its segments. We model the feedstock logistics problem as a combination of a 2-level facility location-allocation problem and a multiple traveling salesmen problem (mATSP). The 2-level facility location-allocation problem pertains to the allocation of production fields to SSLs and SSLs to one of the multiple bioenergy plants. The mATSP arises because of the need for scheduling unloading operations at the SSLs. To this end, we provide a detailed study of 13 formulations of the mATSP and their reformulations as ATSPs. First, we assume that the SSLs are always full, regardless of when they are scheduled to be unloaded. We, then, relax this assumption by providing precedence constraints on the availability of the SSLs. This precedence is defined in two different ways and, is then, effectively modeled utilizing all the formulations for the mATSP and ATSP. Given the location of a BcP for the conversion of biomass to bio-crude oil, we develop a feedstock logistics system that relies on the use of SSLs for temporary storage and loading of round bales. Three equipment systems are considered for handling biomass at the SSLs, and they are either placed permanently or are mobile, and thereby, travel from one SSL to another. We use a mathematical programming-based approach to determine SSLs and equipment routes in order to minimize the total cost incurred. The mathematical program is applied to a real-life production region in South-central Virginia (Gretna, VA), and it clearly reveals the benefits of using SSLs as a part of the logistics system. Finally, we provide a sensitivity analysis on the input parameters that we used. This analysis highlights the key cost factors in the model, and it emphasizes areas where biggest gains can be achieved for further cost reduction. For a more general scenario, where multiple BcPs have to be located, we use a nested Benders' decomposition-based method. First, we prove the validity of using this method. We, then, employ this method for the solution of a potential real-life instance. Moreover, we successfully solve problems that are more than an order of magnitude larger than those solved directly by CPLEX 12.1.0. Finally, we develop a Benders' decomposition-based method for the solution of a problem that gives rise to a binary sub-problem. The difficulty arises because of the sub-problem being an integer program for which the dual solution is not readily available. Our approach consists of first solving the integer sub-problem, and then, generating the convex hull at the optimal integer point. We illustrate this approach for an instance for which such a convex hull is readily available, but otherwise, it is too expensive to generate for the entire problem. This special instance is the solution of the mATSP (using Benders' decomposition) for which each of the sub-problems is an ATSP. The convex hull for the ATSP is given by the Dantzig, Fulkerson, and Johnson constraints. These constraints at a given integer solution point are only polynomial in number. With the inclusion of these constraints, a linear programming solution and its corresponding dual solution can now be obtained at the optimal integer points. We have proven the validity of using this method. However, the success of our algorithm is limited because of a large number of integer problems that must be solved at every iteration. While the algorithm is theoretically promising, the advantages of the decomposition do not seem to outweigh the additional cost resulting from solving a larger number of decomposed problems. / Ph. D.