Search results

Based on a framework developed by Kovács and Spens, this paper seeks to assess the use of the three different research approaches in logistics research; discuss the use of different research methods within the three research approaches; find and discuss applications of the abductive research approach to logistics problems.

Content analysis is used in order to categorize the different research approaches. While content analysis commonly uses smaller units such as paragraphs, sentences, words or characters, this study used entire articles as the unit of analysis. The scope of the review encompassed five years (1998‐2002) of articles in IJLM, IJPDLM and JBL. A total of 378 articles was reviewed and categorized.

The findings of the study corroborate earlier studies regarding the main research approach used in logistics. Published logistics research is hypothetico‐deductive, with a strong emphasis on using survey methods. Nevertheless, inductive as well as abductive research is gaining importance. However, most logistics articles do not explicitly discuss the research process, nor the approach used. Therefore, a call for more explicit statements of the research approach is suggested.

The review of the articles is limited to three main journals in the field. A more comprehensive view of research approaches could be obtained by broadening the review to include also other types of research.

The paper provides a framework and guidelines to researchers for explicitly discussing the research approach used in logistics articles.

The paper provides an overview of the research approaches used in logistics research.

The blood service sector faces issues with obtaining and retaining loyal donors at one end of its supply chain, a marketing issue, and being efficient and effective in blood and related product delivery to customers at the other end of its supply chain, a supply chain management issue. The purpose of this paper is to present an investigation of these issues and propose the adoption of techniques and technologies from the food processing and retailing sector to address them.

An exploratory case study with the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service is used to investigate research questions stemming from extant literature.

This study finds that a national blood service can achieve better stock management and resource optimisation and better communication with “input” and “output” stakeholders by implementing information flows and integration throughout the supply and marketing chain. It also finds that a national blood service can convince non‐donors to donate and increase donor relationships and loyalty by ensuring internal marketing takes place with its employees who can then inform external stakeholders through their first‐contact relationships.

This study is exploratory, thus empirical research is limited.

This paper validates primary issues in recruiting and retaining blood donors and making blood supply chains more efficient and effective, and proposes the adoption of techniques and technology from other process sectors to overcome these issues. Thus, European national blood services should benefit from implementing suggestions in this research.

This paper adopts a multi‐disciplinary approach across the marketing and supply chain management disciplines to explore issues usually associated with medical and pure sciences.

The purpose of this paper is to present a brief overview of the field of humanitarian logistics and supply chain management and outline the scope of the new Journal of Humanitarian Logistics and Supply Chain Management (JHLSCM). It further aims to highlight the variety of humanitarian logistics research and summarize the articles in the inaugural issue.

Results from an e‐mail survey with editorial board members are presented. The survey is used to further shape the scope of JHLSCM.

The journal draws on a variety of research streams in humanitarian logistics. This is seen as its richness but also as a challenge.

Humanitarian logistics is an emerging field. There is still a lack of good empirical research and research with rigor as well as relevance. More research needs to be done in developing countries and by researchers from these.

Even though there has been collaboration between humanitarian and commercial organizations, there is also a need to establish humanitarian‐academic partnerships to improve training, education, as well as research – which should ultimately manifest itself in an improvement of practice.

Humanitarian logistics research needs to rediscover its aim to serve beneficiaries.

This paper is an introduction to the inaugural issue of a new journal, JHLSCM.

It has been suggested that successful Supply Chain Management (SCM) requires the understanding and management of three important issues: who are the members in the supply chain; which supply chain processes link them; and. What type/level of integration do these supply chain processes require? This article is based on an extended conceptual framework developed by previous researchers and provides an application in a health care setting. The main purpose of this work is to test the usefulness and to increase the understanding of the framework in a case environment. The objective is to assess the applicability of this supply chain framework for managerial purposes.

The aim of this paper is to present current trends and developments in humanitarian logistics (HL) practice, research, and education, and analyze the gaps between these. The article serves as an update on previous literature reviews in HL.

The paper is primarily conceptual and develops a framework for analyzing trends and gaps between HL research, education, and practice. Data are compiled through keyword searches, publicly available bibliographies, and web sites of educational institutions, as well as drawing on material from practitioner workshops, tutorials, conference presentations, and personal communication with practitioners and educators.

Gaps are revealed in HL practice, research, education, as well as between these. Few education programs to date consider the skill needs of humanitarian logisticians, but future trends in practice and research can be used to develop them further. More empirical and practice‐near research is called for at the same time as there is a need for comparative analyses, generic models, and theory building in HL.

Any attempt to grasp current trends in a field is delimited by a lack of overview of the activities of an abundance of HL and fragmented research communities. The article advocates a broader view and openness across organizations and disciplines.

The gap analysis indicates not only trends but also gaps in HL practice and highlights the need to consider new societal pressures such as climate change and urbanization.

HL is concerned with serving beneficiaries; thus, their welfare is at the core of the discipline.

Several articles have reviewed HL research before, but gaps between practice, research, and education have not yet been addressed.

The overall aim of the research presented is to improve blood supply chain management in order to use the scarce resource of blood more efficiently. Computer simulation is used as a tool for increasing efficiency in blood supply chains.

An application of discrete event simulation modeling in the health‐care sector, more specifically in the area of blood transfusion services. The model has been refined in cooperation with medical expertise as it is vital that practitioners are closely involved so that the model can be tested against their understanding as it develops.

Decision makers can make better and less risky decisions regarding changes in the blood supply chain based on the knowledge created by simulation experiments. Simulation modeling can be used to make complex and chaotic systems comprehensible and more efficient. In health care, this means that scarce resources can be allocated better, and thereby simulation can aid in increasing the overall quality of health care.

Models are simplifications and there is no guarantee that they will be valid, however, when used sensibly, simulation models and modeling approaches provide an important tool to managing risk and uncertainty in health care supply chains.

Earlier calculations and improvement efforts of blood supply chain in focus were based on “gut feeling”. Through applying simulation to this complex system, the dynamics of blood supply chain was more easily understood by the medical expertise.

There is a lack of work on computer simulations of blood supply chains, a challenge which this work has taken up on.

This paper aims to develop the tentative hypothesis that common effective dynamics generate asymmetry volatility and unpredictability in the business, military and humanitarian logistics sectors.

The paper examines collaborative supply chain management (CSCM) concepts which integrate practical comparator cases to develop and justify the theoretical framework.

The humanitarian logistics sector can take “best practice” from business and military LSCM developments, but has specific problems of potential instability which require sector‐specific attention.

Humanitarian logistics' “present state” is a zero sum model because of the fragmented nature and number of disparate actors, which generate the logistics system volatility, unpredictability and asymmetry common to unstable operations, and which formed the research rationale for this paper.

The development gap identified can be resolved, and synthesis achieved, with the application of an intelligent system infrastructure.

This paper provides a development framework for a comprehensive set of universal techniques and a commonality in humanitarian logistics and supply chain management.