Search results

International Journal of Logistics Management (IJLM) celebrated 30 years of its publication in 2019. This study provides a retrospective overview of the IJLM articles between 1990 and 2019.

The authors applied bibliometrics to study and present a retrospective summary of the publication trends, citations, pattern of authorship, productivity, popularity depicting influence, and the impact of the IJLM, its contributors, their affiliations, and discusses the conceptual layout of IJLM's prolific themes.

With 23 yearly articles, IJLM contributed 689 specialized research papers on Supply Chain Management (SCM) by 2019. Authorship grew by 42 new contributors adding up to 1,256 unique IJLM authors by 2019. Each of its lead contributors associated with 1.55 other authors to contribute an article in the journal among which 93% are cited at least once. Survey-based research dominated in last 30 years. The h-index of the journal is 73 while its g-index suggests that 133 IJLM articles were cited at least 17,689 times in Scopus. IJLM authors affiliated to the Cranfield University and the US contributed the highest count of articles. Bibliographic coupling analysis groups IJLM articles into eight bibliographic clusters while network analysis exposes the thematic layout of IJLM articles.

The literature selection is confined to the Scopus database starting from 1990, a year before the inception of the IJLM, thereby limiting its scope.

This study is the first retrospective bibliometric analysis of the IJLM, which is useful for aspiring contributors.

Grounded in contingency theory and strategic fit theory, the goal for this research was to determine if managers differentiate in terms of the degree of partnership when allocating resources for planning, joint operating controls, communication and other management components to relationships and if this differentiation is based on the Partnership Model (Lambert et al., 1996).

In total, 381 managers representing 31 relationships participated in one-and-a-half-day partnership meetings, and the authors analyzed how the management components were implemented in each relationship compared to the recommendations in the Partnership Model.

Managers did not differentiate types of partnerships which led to over-resourcing relationships with low potential and under-resourcing those with the highest potential for creating value. The principles of contingency theory and strategic fit were not used for managing relationships.

Contingency theory combined with the relationship view suggests that management components should not be implemented at the same level for all relationships, but in the 31 relationships studied different partnership types were not managed based on their potential.

The research reinforces the need for a formal structure like the Partnership Model to establish joint goals for a relationship and guide management in implementation.

Effective supply chain management depends on the ability of managers to differentiate among partnership types and fit relational mechanisms that are appropriate. However, researchers tend to generalize their findings to all partnerships regardless of potential. The authors found support for the Partnership Model published in IJLM in 1996 as a method to resource different types of partnerships following the contingency perspective and strategic fit theory.

This paper aims to optimize the mass of a tethered aerostat to achieve optimum hull volume, and fins to generate aerodynamic lift to reduce the blow-by.

The design code of aerostat involving structure, aerostatics, aerodynamics and stability has been developed using MATLAB®. The design code is used to obtain the baseline configuration for a tactical aerostat mission by using the statistical values of the hull fineness ratio and the fin parameters of in-service aerostats. The effect of the design variables that include the hull fineness ratio, fin area and fin position on the aerostat mass and blow-by is determined through sensitivity analysis. The aerostat is optimized with an objective function of minimization of mass for the bounded values of design variables and taking blow-by limit as a constraint.

This study reveals that the simultaneous optimization of the aerostat hull fineness ratio, fin area and fin position results in an improvement in the design. The aerostat design with optimum values of these parameters helps in a reduction in its size and mass without compromising the blow-by limits.

This study has been conducted by keeping the hull shape constant by selecting standard National Physics Laboratory envelope shape. The aerodynamic model used in the design code is based on empirical relationships that can be improved in future studies that can use high fidelity aerodynamic models using CFD based surrogate models.

The previous studies on optimization of aerostats are limited to hull envelope shape only, whereas this paper presents the optimization of the hull and fin together. The optimized configuration obtained has a reduced mass and can operate within the specified blow-by limits.

The goal of this exploratory study is to establish an explanatory model and corresponding instrument to help further understand, and conduct research in the area of supply chain management (SCM). Constructs pertaining to SCM assimilation, SCM outcomes, and overall firm performance are operationally defined in terms of their dimensions and items. The business literature is utilized to help define the constructs and to generate potential measurement items. The scales are then purified and a preliminary test for predictive validity is performed.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual model that includes drivers of supply chain management (SCM) adoption and execution identified in the literature, provide a set of measurement scales that operationalise constructs within this model, empirically verify a hierarchical order of antecedents that affects the adoption and execution of SCM, and assist management by providing a focus on those SCM conditions and processes that need to be prioritised to increase successful SCM adoption and execution.

The conceptual model is tested empirically through a survey of 174 senior supply chain managers representing the biggest organisations within a central European country.

Using structural equation modelling the hypothesised hierarchical order of three proposed antecedents is verified: “internal SCM conditions”, that affect “joint or external SCM conditions”, which in turn influence collaborative “SCM‐related processes”. Firms that adopt these steps should enjoy a rigorous and appropriate road to the full execution of SCM.

The survey results reflect the views of large organisations in a country‐specific supply chain setting.

The findings provide a hierarchical focus for financial, personnel and management initiatives to increase integration within a supply chain and improve competitiveness.

The major contribution of this paper is that it provides empirical proof of the antecedents that affect the adoption and execution of SCM.

Owing to the manufacturing trend of stringent product disposal regulations, a new business scenario, which requires an alternative disposal option on consumer products and further product recovery operations, is increasingly important for promoting sustainable supply chain performance. The purpose of this paper is to explore the use to post‐use stage of the product lifecycle, that may have significant potential for increasing product utilisation value and reducing product disposal to landfills.

The paper proposes a re‐classification of the 6R (reduce, recover, redesign, reuse, recycle, remanufacturing) methodology for rectifying waste minimisation along a supply chain, to increase product utilisation at the post‐use stage.

Intensive study of 6R considerations to improve end‐of‐life planning and strategy and extend of product lifecycle management is lacking. None of the existing supply chain frameworks clearly illustrates the aspects of 6R perspectives for the use to post‐use stage.

The main limitation is that this study only focuses on 6R perspective for achieving waste minimisation along a supply chain. There is a need to explore various practical issues of the implementation, including the establishment of specific performance metrics for various manufacturing industries to assess organisational performance.

This proposed sustainable supply chain for collaborative manufacturing may provide a very useful source of what needs to be implemented and achieved to meet the requirements of sustainability, which is the current and future trend of manufacturing.

This paper provides some of the insights into holistic aspects of 6R perspective to increase product utilisation value between use and post‐use stages.

This paper aims to propose a methodology for managerial decision-making based on scenario planning and a multi-criteria approach.

The methodology consists of two stages, one referring to scenario planning and the other to multi-criteria decision-making. The methodology was applied to a company in the Brazilian agribusiness sector, aiming to help managers face the current situation of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The proposal addresses a set of simple methods for developing a scenario analysis based on different approaches. Although the methodology may allow the future addition of new, perhaps more robust strategies, the purpose of the analysis is not only to tell the decision maker which strategy should be adopted, but also to provide greater knowledge about the problem and possible scenarios.

The contribution of this research is to propose a structured and easily applicable methodology that can help managers in the future planning of their companies, especially when faced with complex decisions and high level of uncertainty.

Supply chain management has become such a popular topic in modern business management and researches. It brings the revolutionary philosophy and approach to manage the business with the sustained competitiveness. However, the existing performance measurement theory fails to provide its necessary support in strategy development, decision making, and performance improvement. This paper attempts to propose an innovative performance measurement method to contribute to the development of supply chain management. A process‐based systematic perspective is employed to build an effective model to measure the holistic performance of complex supply chains. Fuzzy set theory is introduced to address the real situation in judgment and evaluation processes. The main framework of this method is outlined with some suggestions and a simple example.

The paper extends a central paradigm of the strategy literature to the supply chain environment to foster a better understanding of the elements characterizing strategic decisions that lead to supply chain structural development and performance.

Strategic literature is reviewed to provide a fuller explanation of the strategy‐structure‐performance (SSP) research stream. SSP foundational principles are linked to supply chain management concepts, and synthesized into an explanatory framework. Propositions for future research are presented based upon the framework.

An iterative relationship among internal firm strategy, structure, and performance measurement systems is indicated, implying that firm supply chain strategy should be complementary with that of supply chain partners.

The paper presents a content analysis of existing research and a conceptual framework emerging from it. No data were collected nor were research propositions tested.

The primary implication is “know your supply chain partners”. Do their strategies mesh – either as consistent or complementary – to your own firm's supply chain strategy? Strategic alignment is a necessary precursor to deployment of an effective supply chain structure.

The paper shows that SSP theory can be extended beyond the firm to the complex supply chain environment.