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Article
Publication date: 21 June 2013

Shuo‐Yan Chou and Dayjian Chen

This study is an inquiry into practical solutions in the field of emergent disaster rescue methods and prevention management, and it focuses on planning, real‐time rescue, and

1945

Abstract

Purpose

This study is an inquiry into practical solutions in the field of emergent disaster rescue methods and prevention management, and it focuses on planning, real‐time rescue, and emergency management. This study is a conventional writing style. Thus, the purpose of this study is to offer methods for governor reducing disaster losses in terms of human life and livelihoods.

Design/methodology/approach

The government should establish permanent disaster recovery institutions, such as disaster recovery coordinators, resource distributors at the provincial or state level, and nodes in districts to manage supplies, rescue activities. During the preparation stage of disaster responses, government offices must prepare the rescue plans and policies for future disasters, as well as create the documents for establishing part‐time civilian and volunteer agreements.

Findings

Even though residents suffer tremendous losses in terms of human life, regional administrators are usually and poorly organized at the preparation stage.

Practical implications

Disaster rescue activities depend heavily on civilians and organizations. A disaster rescue manager plays a key role, because he or she has received training in and has become familiar with emergent rescue operations.

Originality/value

Disaster rescue management is a valuable topic because it is a globally significant challenge to safeguard people's lives. A complex disaster of earthquakes and tsunamis occurring can give rise to nuclear radiation damage, for example, that occurred in Japan on March 11, 2011, is an illustrative case.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 22 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 June 2015

Foivos Anastasiadis and Nigel Poole

This paper aims to report research into emergent supply chain management (SCM) practices in a context in which the imperative for business development requires efficient…

2707

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to report research into emergent supply chain management (SCM) practices in a context in which the imperative for business development requires efficient inter-firm collaboration. It explores the way key supply chain (SC) actors perceive entrepreneurial opportunities and evaluates their SC processes.

Design/methodology/approach

A whole chain approach, using qualitative methods, was used to investigate retail, wholesale and production links, with a special focus on small businesses which predominate in the agrifood sector. The methodology used is of vital importance to understand the complexity of the sector and the interdependencies among stakeholders.

Findings

Results suggest several SC malfunctions originating in diverse strategic planning practices and different entrepreneurial mentalities which hinder the process of emergence from traditional to more modern chain configurations. The fact that the nature of new opportunities in the agrifood sector (e.g. organics) was poorly understood, obstructs further development of the agrifood sector. Other key findings suggest problematic flows of information within the SC and minimal trust among stakeholders.

Research limitations/implications

Sampling constraints suggest that caution should be exercised in extrapolating these conclusions elsewhere. Nonetheless, further investigation using similar approach should be applied in a wider context not only in Greece but also in other similar economies characterized by nascent SCs.

Originality/value

The study investigates the entire SC of a vital sector for numerous small- and medium-sized enterprises, with lessons for diverse emerging agribusiness economies. Insights, not only for the direct SC stakeholders but also for policymakers, could serve to unlock the potential of such sectors and also the exploitation of new opportunities in emerging markets which can be stifled by stagnant sectoral structures and conservative business attitudes.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 20 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 May 2018

Neil Turner, James Aitken and Cecil Bozarth

The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature of supply chain complexity and extend this with literature developed within the project domain. The authors use the lens of…

2684

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature of supply chain complexity and extend this with literature developed within the project domain. The authors use the lens of ambidexterity (the ability both to exploit and explore) to analyse responses to complexity, since this enables the authors to understand the application of known solutions in conjunction with innovative ones to resolve difficulties. This research also seeks to investigate how managers respond to supply chain complexities that can either be operationally deleterious or strategically beneficial.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors develop a descriptive framework based on the project management (PM) literature to understand response options to complexity, and then use interviews with supply chain managers in six organisations to examine the utility of this framework in practice. The authors ask the research question “How do managers in supply chains respond to complexities”?

Findings

The case study data show first that managers faced with structural, socio-political, or emergent supply chain complexities use a wide range of responses. Second, over a third of the instances of complexity coded were actually accommodated, rather than reduced, by the study firms, suggesting that adapting to supply chain complexity in certain instances may be strategically appropriate. Third, the lens of ambidexterity allows a more explicit assessment of whether existing PM solutions can be considered or if novel methods are required to address supply chain complexities.

Practical implications

The descriptive framework can aid managers in conceptualising and addressing supply chain complexity. Through exploiting current knowledge, managers can lessen the impact of complexity while exploring other innovative approaches to solve new problems and challenges that evolve from complexity growth driven by business strategy.

Originality/value

This study addresses a gap in the literature through the development of a framework which provides a structure on ways to address supply chain complexity. The authors evaluate an existing project complexity concept and demonstrate that it is both applicable and valuable in non-project, ongoing operations. The authors then extend it using the lens of ambidexterity, and develop a framework that can support practitioners in analysing and addressing both strategically necessary supply complexities, together with unwanted, negative complexities within the organisation and across the supply chain.

Details

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 38 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 July 2021

Tillmann Boehme, James Aitken, Neil Turner and Robert Handfield

The sudden arrival of Covid-19 severely disrupted the supply chain of personal protective equipment (PPE) in Australia. This paper aims to examine the development of a…

1217

Abstract

Purpose

The sudden arrival of Covid-19 severely disrupted the supply chain of personal protective equipment (PPE) in Australia. This paper aims to examine the development of a geographical cluster, which, through the application of additive manufacturing (AM), responded to the PPE supply crisis.

Design/methodology/approach

This longitudinal case study focuses on an AM cluster, which was developed to supply PPE in a responsive and flexible manner from 2019/2020. The study gathered data over three stages of cluster evolution: pre, during and post-peak Covid-19.

Findings

The type and nature of exchanges between organizations involved in the cluster established important insights into success factors for cluster creation and development. Using an established complexity framework, this study identifies the characteristics of establishing a cluster. The importance of cluster alignment created initially by a common PPE supply goal led to an emerging commercial and relational imperative to address the longer-term configuration after the disruption.

Practical implications

Clusters can be a viable option for a technology-driven sector when there is a “buzz” that drives and rapidly diffuses knowledge to support cluster formation. This research identifies the structural, socio-political and emergent dimensions, which need to be considered by stakeholders when aiming at improving competitiveness using clusters.

Originality/value

Covid-19 has rapidly and unexpectedly disrupted the supply chain for many industries. Responding to challenges, businesses will investigate different pathways to improve the overall resilience including on-/near-shoring. The results provide insights into how clusters are formed, grow and develop and the differentiating factors that result in successful impacts of clusters on local economies.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 26 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 March 2008

Mario Duarte Canever, Hans C.M. Van Trijp and George Beers

The paper seeks to delineate the emergence of demand chain management (DCM) from a theoretical perspective and to illustrate its occurrence in practice.

3053

Abstract

Purpose

The paper seeks to delineate the emergence of demand chain management (DCM) from a theoretical perspective and to illustrate its occurrence in practice.

Design/methodology/approach

The DCM concept is examined empirically through a case study with retailers involved in the beef chain in the state of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil).

Findings

The paper reveals that the DCM concept derives from the supply chain management (SCM) concept, but with a strong emphasis on demand management due to the incorporation of the market orientation perspective. In the beef business in the Rio Grande do Sul, two distinct practices were observed: SCM and DCM practice. The SCM practice is tightly related to the traditional beef market, whereas the DCM practice emphasizes understanding customers and the sequential capabilities for responding to their requirements.

Originality/value

By establishing the evolutionary development from SCM to DCM, businesses will certainly gain insights about how to become more responsive, and this will improve effectiveness and yield more delighted customers.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 February 1990

Martyn Evans

The unacknowledged and obscure mechanisms which “inflate” demand for health care provisions, thereby exacerbating the persistent gap between demand and the resources available to…

Abstract

The unacknowledged and obscure mechanisms which “inflate” demand for health care provisions, thereby exacerbating the persistent gap between demand and the resources available to meet it, are considered. It is suggested that the structural scrutiny of emergent medical research ‐ alongside health promotion measures ‐ could be used as a means to moderate health care demand. It is argued that anti‐utilitarian objectives to this approach may be equally levelled at laissez‐faire justifications for unfettered research.

Details

International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, vol. 3 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0952-6862

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2003

Georgios I. Zekos

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some…

88129

Abstract

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.

Details

Managerial Law, vol. 45 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0558

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 September 2009

Beverly A. Wagner and James A. Young

This paper aims to investigate how small and medium sized aquaculture producers in the Mediterranean might move from traditional high volume output systems to become more market…

1283

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate how small and medium sized aquaculture producers in the Mediterranean might move from traditional high volume output systems to become more market oriented.

Design/ methodology/approach

The quantitative methodology was devised to assess production trends and potential of seabass and seabream farmed off most of the countries bordering the Mediterranean. In addition to markets adjacent to the Mediterranean producers, those in Northern Europe are also included because of the opportunities for market expansion and product diversification.

Findings

It is concluded that greatest scope for industry gain lies in supply channel members being more market oriented to meet the dynamic and varied demands of consumers. The historic, but still predominant, one‐size fits all philosophy and business approach to fish farming is outdated and demands radical revision to realise potential added value of the industry. This is all the more important as consumers, pressure groups and governments become more aware of the political, economic and environmental impact of food miles and wider sustainable production issues, encouraging many international food markets to move away from an emphasis on cheap food.

Practical implications

The study has practical implications for European Union aquaculture policy and small to medium‐sized enterprise development to ensure more sustainable production and to promote positive benefits in often peripheral and fragile rural economies where alternative options are commonly rare and/or conflicting.

Originality/value

The research highlights the challenges of a sector with spatially disparate points of production and consumption coupled with a highly perishable product critically dependent on efficient distribution whilst facing emergent environmental concerns over sustainable food production systems.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 14 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 March 2008

Christine Wycisk, Bill McKelvey and Michael Hülsmann

The purpose of this paper is to critically analyze whether supply networks may be validly treated as complex adaptive systems (CAS). Finding this to be true, the paper turns into…

2870

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to critically analyze whether supply networks may be validly treated as complex adaptive systems (CAS). Finding this to be true, the paper turns into the latest concerns of complexity science like Pareto distributions to explain well‐known phenomena of extreme events in logistics, like the bullwhip effect. It aims to introduce a possible solution to handle these effects.

Design/methodology/approach

The method is a comparative analysis of current literature in the fields of logistics and complexity science. The discussion of CAS in supply networks is updated to include recent complexity research on power laws, non‐linear dynamics, extreme events, Pareto distribution, and long tails.

Findings

Based on recent findings of complexity science, the paper concludes that it is valid to call supply networks CAS. It then finds that supply networks are vulnerable to all the nonlinear and extreme dynamics found in CAS within the business world. These possible outcomes have to be considered in supply network management. It is found that the use of a neural network model could work to manage these new challenges.

Practical implications

Since, smart parts are the future of logistics systems, managers need to worry about the combination of human and smart parts, resulting design challenges, the learning effects of interacting smart parts, and possible exacerbation of the bullwhip effect. In doing so, the paper suggests several options concerning the design and management of supply networks.

Originality/value

The novel contribution of this paper lies in its analysis of supply networks from a new theoretical approach: complexity science, which the paper updates. It enhances and reflects on existing attempts in this field to describe supply networks as CAS through the comprehensive theoretical base of complexity science. More specifically, it suggests the likely vulnerability to extreme outcomes as the “parts” in supply networks become smarter. The paper also suggests different ways of using a neural network approach for their management – depending on how smart the logistics parts actually are.

Details

International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, vol. 38 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0960-0035

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 July 2004

R.R. Bales, R.S. Maull and Z. Radnor

This paper analyses the development of aerospace material supply chains. The paper begins with an overview of operations management literature, which introduces and conceptualises…

8073

Abstract

This paper analyses the development of aerospace material supply chains. The paper begins with an overview of operations management literature, which introduces and conceptualises the research area. Supply chain literature is examined, focusing on supply chain structure and the inter‐organisational links between supply chain actors. Analysis of case study material is presented to illustrate the scope, complexity and interdependent nature of the aerospace supply chain. Recurring themes from the literature are compared with the data categories emergent from the empirical case data. The results are discussed in terms of the changes that are taking place in supply chain structure to increase the overall effectiveness of the network. The paper concludes by identifying the need for, and discussing the nature of, a specialised organisation focused on managing the complex structure of the supply chain.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 9 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

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