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This research investigates how to optimize storage location assignment to decrease the order picking time and the waiting time of orders in the staging area of low-temperature logistics centers, with the goal of reducing food loss caused by temperature abuse.

The authors applied ABC clustering to the products in a simulated database of historical orders modeled after the actual order pattern of a large cold logistics company; then, the authors mined the association rules and calculated the sales volume correlation indices of the ordered products. Finally, the authors generated three different simulated order databases to compare order picking time and waiting time of orders in the staging area under eight different storage location assignment strategies.

All the eight proposed storage location assignment strategies significantly improve the order picking time (by up to 8%) and the waiting time of orders in the staging area (by up to 22%) compared with random placement.

The results of this research are based on a case study and simulated data, which implies that, if the best performing strategies are applied to different environments, the extent of the improvements may vary. Additionally, the authors only considered specific settings in terms of order picker routing, zoning and batching: other settings may lead to different results.

A storage location assignment strategy that adopts dispersion and takes into consideration ABC clustering and shipping frequency provides the best performance in minimizing order picker's travel distance, order picking time, and waiting time of orders in the staging area. Other strategies may be a better fit if the company's objectives differ.

Previous research on optimal storage location assignment rarely considered item association rules based on sales volume correlation. This study combines such rules with several storage planning strategies, ABC clustering, and two warehouse layouts; then, it evaluates their performance compared to the random placement, to find which one minimizes the order picking time and the order waiting time in the staging area, with a 30-min time limit to preserve the integrity of the cold chain. Order picking under these conditions was rarely studied before, because they may be irrelevant when dealing with temperature-insensitive items but become critical in cold warehouses to prevent temperature abuse.

Warehouses are under pressure to operate as efficiently as possible. In pursuit of attaining high efficiency in the order picking process, the warehouse manager must take several planning decisions, typically supported by a central planning system. However, highly centralised work erodes the autonomy of warehouse workers, interfering with worker well-being and productivity. This study holistically explores the impact of a work system with more decision autonomy for order pickers.

We conduct a unique field experiment in a real-world warehouse and use a within-subjects design to compare two work systems, one with worker autonomy and one without. 18 permanent employees participate in our study, in which we measure both psychosocial and physical well-being as well as productivity. Post-experimental interviews are conducted to delve deeper into the observed effects.

Our study illustrates that involving order pickers in operational decisions can benefit their job satisfaction and motivation without compromising productivity. Although we fail to find significance at the conventional level (α = 0.05), we do find marginally significant effects of our treatment on physical well-being aspects. Furthermore, our intervention invoked a highly positive user experience.

We show that slightly loosening tight process control results in organisational and individual benefits without endangering smooth operational flows. The warehouse in this paper acknowledged this and decided to permanently work according to this philosophy.

This study is the first to holistically explore the effects of a participatory work setting in a real-world warehouse.

In line with global initiatives, the state of Kerala in southern India is actively working towards formalizing its informal solid waste management (SWM) sector. Despite this, there is a dearth of studies on formalization processes, particularly focusing on the conditions of workers within this sector. This study addresses the gap by examining the challenges faced by women workers operating within the formalized framework of Kerala’s SWM sector. It aimed to investigate challenges faced by grassroots women workers in Kerala’s SWM sector during its transition from informal to formal, identifying gaps in the process through their experiences. Using a qualitative methodology, the research gathered data from 10 women workers in the SWM sector in Kozhikode, Kerala, who were part of the Haritha Karma Sena (green task force). Thematic analysis of in-depth interviews revealed two major challenges faced by these women. Firstly, there was a negative societal perception towards them, and secondly, there was a lack of appropriate state response to their needs and requirements. These challenges were attributed to gaps and pitfalls in the formalization process, leading to a lowered socio-economic status for the women, increased vulnerability to health hazards, and societal stigma. The findings underscore the need for significant improvements in the formalization process of Kerala’s waste management sector. The study advocates for targeted policy interventions to enhance the working conditions of SWM workers, emphasizing the importance of expediting and streamlining the formalization process. This, in turn, would contribute to the overall effectiveness of the SWM system in the state.

In this chapter, the author dwells on the effects of documenting and the failure to document, border lives and deaths. Despite their apparent differences, both practices function as forms of erasure. While the Australian government has historically been keen to document the number of asylum seeker arrivals in this country, it has shown no interest in the numbers and names of those who have died in attempting to arrive here. In contrast, those who manage to cross the border, are subject to intense classificatory and numbering regimes. The latter manifests in bureaucratic control and excessive intervention, while the former reveals governmental denial of complicity in these deaths by not acknowledging them. Both practices share a refusal to encounter the other on ethical terms, reflecting the politics of numbers (Andreas & Greenhill, 2010) at and within the border. This also reveals a paradox, between being represented and not being represented. In the lacuna of details about border deaths, human rights organisations, researchers and advocacy groups have sought both to honour these deaths and to ensure that the scale of border violence is marked by statistical records on the numbers of border deaths. While it might seem that being ‘counted’ – or in Butler’s (2003, p. 41) terms – ‘represented’ is better than not being counted/represented at all, representation is never straightforward (Szörényi, 2009b, p. 185): being counted is often barely a form of representation, with such ‘numbering’ practices contributing to the effacement, rather than the recognition of refugees’ humanity.

This paper explores sustainability within supply chain management and its link towards resilience through the lens of ethics. The wicked problem of sustainability impacts supply chains and society at large, and the ability of supply chains to remain viable in the future is based on the sustainability of business practices. The paper argues that a substantive proportion of sustainability mechanisms (such as the Triple Bottom Line approach and codes of conducts) can be viewed within the ethical paradigm of deontology, whereby the morality of an action is based on adherence to rules. However, there are numerous critiques of such approaches and their success in creating more sustainable practices. Therefore, the paper proposes there is a need for systems thinking approaches to be incorporated into the exploration of the link between ethics, sustainability and supply chain resilience. Using two examples of social sustainability issues in Australia – modern slavery legislation and horticultural ¹ worker exploitation – the paper demonstrates the utility of various systems thinking methodologies to explore the complexity of these issues. The paper sets out a conceptual call to arms for researchers and practitioners to apply a holistic lens towards how the morality of actions is shaped and influences supply chain sustainability practices.

The informal sector has become the most dominant sector in the Global South and can be seen in all sectors of the economy. The waste management sector is one of the major areas with many informal actors. This chapter examined how the collaboration of city authorities with informal waste actors (IWAs) can help improve the management of waste and address climate change issues. The study employed a qualitative case study where IWAs and leadership of the waste management department of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) engaged in a workshop to gather information data. The findings showed that informal waste actors’ valuable contributions have changed city authorities’ perception of them from being a nuisance to key stakeholders in waste management. This recognition and collaboration go beyond seeing IWAs as partners in waste management but also as climate change mitigation agents.

The paper aims to investigate the practices facilitating the transformation of healthcare services, understanding the resulting outcomes in terms of well-being and uplifting changes. a systematic literature review (SLR) focusing on analyzing the healthcare sector under the transformative service research (TSR) theoretical domain is conducted to achieve this goal.

Employing a structured SLR developed based on the PRISMA protocol (Pickering and Byrne, 2014; Pickering et al., 2015) and using Scopus and WoS databases, the study identifies and analyzes 49 papers published between 2021 and 2022. Content analysis is used to classify and analyze the papers.

The SLR reveals four transformative practices (how) within the healthcare sector under the TSR domain, each linked to specific well-being outcomes (what). The analysis shows that both practices and outcomes are mainly patient-related. An integrative framework for transformative healthcare service is presented and critically examined to identify research gaps and define the trajectory for the future development of TSR in healthcare. In addition, managerial implications are provided to guide practitioners.

This research is among the first to analyze TSR literature in the context of healthcare. The study critically examines the TSR’s impact on the sector’s transformation, providing insights for future research and offering a roadmap for healthcare practitioners to facilitate uplifting changes.

The purpose of this study is to investigate how the process of becoming an entrepreneur in the cooperation and poverty contexts takes place.

This study adopted a phenomenological approach for data collection purposes. Autoscopy, which is a methodological device of reflective nature, was herein applied to a group of interlocutors comprising seven representatives of waste pickers’ cooperatives (RC). Data analysis focused on defining the meaning of participants’ speech was conducted in compliance with Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis guidelines.

The current findings have shown that becoming a representative of cooperatives involves mobilization toward empowerment and a sense of collectively doing on behalf of community interests. Moreover, these RCs become entrepreneurs in the poverty context, as they perceive opportunities, are persistent and take risks pursuing alternatives for both the survival and improvement of theirs own living conditions, and of others.

Adopting a reflective approach associated with an ontology of becoming could have led to deeper results if the current research was a longitudinal study, rather than a cross-sectional one.

Training programs provided for waste pickers should take into consideration that their learning process is mainly based on practice.

Behaviors disclosed by participants toward fostering collective and entrepreneurial actions in the poverty context may be an inspiration for future changes.

The methodological option for adopting a reflective approach resulted in a contribution device that is barely applied to research in the management field; thus, the current investigation can introduce a new pathway for further research.

Climate change has been universally recognized as a major threat to human well-being, necessitating a comprehensive transformation of people's activities. Various measures have been proposed to contain climate change among which the green transformation grabs special attention, thanks to its desirable properties. Within the green transformation process, green tourism comes to prominence with huge potential. As one of the largest carbon emitters, the transition towards green tourism may offer substantial benefits not only for tourism companies but also for the whole economy. Yet, most studies tend to focus on the adverse effects of tourism on climate change while overlooking the potential impact of climate change on tourism. This chapter clarifies the feedback relationship between climate change and tourism and makes some recommendations.

The traditional VeoVa10-VAc copolymer latex, which prepared via the emulsion polymerization of the mixed monomers of VAc and VeoVa10, has the poor water resistance and thermal stability because of the migration of the conventional emulsifier molecules and the low bond energy of C-C bond. The purpose of this work is that the fluorinated monomer is used to modify the latex. The film of the resultant latex has the C-F bond with high bond energy and low surface energy, which can effectively improve the heat resistance and water resistance of the resultant film. In addition, the reactive emulsifier is used to replace the conventional emulsifier. The drawbacks of the conventional emulsifier molecules migrate and desorb can be avoided when the polymer latex is stored, thereby also improving the water resistance.

The modified VAc-VeoVa10 latex has been successfully synthesized via the semi-continuous seeded emulsion polymerization, which VAc and VeoVa10 is used as the main monomers and HFMA was used as the functional monomer. KPS and reactive surfactants of SE-10 were used as the initiator and emulsifier, respectively. The structure of resultant latex film was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The latex films were tested by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and contact angle (CA). The particle size and its distribution of the latex were measured by the nano particle size analyzer.

The factors that had an influence on the properties of the latex and the film were investigated in detail. The stability of the resultant latex is good. The average particles of the latex and its distribution are small and uniform, respectively. In comparison with the conventional latex film, the thermal stability and hydrophobicity of the resultant latex film are improved obviously.

The resultant latex can be used in both the waterborne interior and exterior wall coatings, pickering stabilized waterborne polymer dispersions, polymer powders, environmentally friendly polymer-modified waterproof mortar and other fields, which can be satisfied with the high demand of thermal stability and hydrophobicity.

The modification of poly (VAc-VeoVa10) by reactive surfactant and fluorinated monomer is seldom reported. In this study, the fluorinated poly (VAC-VeoVa) latex is prepared via the reactive surfactants, which VAc and VeoVa10 is used as the main monomers and hexafluorobutyl methacrylate is used as the functional monomer. Potassium persulfate (KPS) and allyl nonyl phenoxy propyl alcohol polyoxyethylene ether ammonium sulfate are used as the initiator and emulsifier, respectively.