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The purpose of this study is to introduce a new innovative means of container stacking/storage as a potential solution for overcoming the lack of container yard space.

A qualitative methodology that incorporates questionnaires and interview sessions as the tools is utilised together with an application of new innovation concept.

The proposed system not only allows increased efficiency and effectiveness in handling containers, but also increases the profit margin of ports, as container stacking/storage is tripled in height.

This is just the beginning of a preliminary research study that proposes a new container stacking/storage system to address the lack of space in container yards. Therefore, much more work needs to be done in future studies before a solid and concrete decision on the application of this innovative system can be carried out.

The practicality of the proposed model means that it can be easily implemented to address space limitation problems in ports.

The benefits of the results to the local community around ports are a healthier environment, with cleaner air, so that there will be less health issues of the residents and therefore reduced burden on the local health system. This is due to the use of technology that will prevent the expansion of ports that ultimately could lead to deforestation and environmental damage. This technology will also help to preserve the greenery of the area around ports.

An innovative model of a container stacking/storage system is presented in this study as a possible solution to the problem.

The current study seeks to investigate how supply chain quality management (SCQM) and supply chain agility (SCA) and innovation (SCI) have an impact on supply chain performance (SCP) and how SCQM affects SCP through the mediating role of SCA and SCI capabilities.

In line with the research objective, a quantitative model was applied, and a multi-item survey questionnaire was developed to collect primary data. A random sample of 284 manufacturing firms belonging to different industries was used. The measurement model was assessed for validity and reliability, and satisfactory levels of these tests were demonstrated. Research hypotheses were examined using structural equation modeling (SEM).

The results of the current study have significant implications in regard to the further improvement of SCP through SCQM. The study also found that SCQM plays a key role across the entire SC network in facilitating and developing SCA and SCI capabilities. The remarkable findings of the current study revealed the indirect effect of SCQM on SCP through SCA and SCI. These results broaden the work of previous studies which identified the positive effects of SCQM on performance by providing meaningful insights into SCQM's role in promoting SCA and SCI capabilities, which, in turn, further improves SCP.

This study addresses a gap in the literature concerning the effect of SCQM on SCP. In addition, it is the first study, to the best of the researchers' knowledge, to explore the role of two major SC capabilities, namely, SCA and SCI on the SCQM–SCP relationship. Moreover, the present study addresses a questionable issue in the literature regarding practices that conceptualize SCQM. Several studies confuse SCQM practices with internal quality management (QM) practices. This study defines SCQM as consisting of collaborative QM practices with external SC members and proposes five related practices for measuring SCQM.

To examine the EU ‘Short Sea Shipping’ (SSS), its ‘motorways of the sea (MoS)’ and green ports, within short sea maritime logistics.

To present past research and report recent developments speculating on future trends.

The dominance of SSS over road is questioned; as road transport has expanded, hubs are expected to become larger and fewer with feeders. Road transport is not certain to follow SSS and its four motorways. This result was responsible for the relocation of industry from West to East and North–East inter-port competition.

The SSS ship size and port are undefined; specific data on these concepts are unavailable.

‘Door-to-door’ services are highly sought after in this sector, but difficult to establish.

The green element introduced here, mainly for ports, will dominate future discussions because of the high importance given to climate change.

This chapter outlines for the first time the development of the policy on EU Eco-ports, the relocation of industry, the West–East port competition, the MoS and the long-term deterioration of SSS logistics which is likely to persist in the future.

The globalization of market and production activities with unequal distribution of market demand and resources has accelerated the demand for shipping services. Public concerns about environmental issues and the impacts of shipping service providers’ green shipping practices (GSPs) on the reputation and performance of multinational companies (MNCs) motivated the authors to test the impact of shipping companies’ GSPs on MNCs’ loyalty by considering timeliness and perceived value as moderators. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

The data were collected from 141 MNCs and analyzed using the partial least squares technique.

The results show that company policy and procedure, shipping documentation, shipping equipment and shipping materials have significant effects on MNCs’ loyalty. Furthermore, timeliness positively moderates the impacts of shipping materials and shipping design on compliance, while perceived value positively moderates the effects of shipping equipment and shipping design for compliance on MNCs’ loyalty.

The results provide insight for shipping service providers on GSPs that may lead to MNCs’ loyalty by considering the roles of lead time and freight rate.

The results extend the literature by testing empirically the impacts of GSP of shipping companies on MNCs’ loyalty and also by investigating the moderating impacts of perceived value and timeliness.

The purpose of this paper is to use a theoretical framework (i.e. resource-based view) to investigate causal relationships between the supply chain integration, market orientation, information technology (IT) application and firm performance of container shipping firms in Taiwan.

The data are collected from 124 container shipping firms in Taiwan. The methodologies used in the paper are exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling.

The findings indicated that IT application and market orientation positively influence supply chain integration. It revealed that IT-based and market-oriented firms more easily integrate market information related to partners, departments and customers. Further, supply chain integration and market orientation have a positive effect on firm performance.

Such a result indicated a market-oriented firm quickly responds to market information and competitors’ strategies; and thus, it would make effort to offer satisfactory customer services in dynamically fluctuating markets, and obtain better firm performance. Also, the integration provides higher operation efficiency and obtains an enhanced performance improvement.

The results also indicated that firms are able to develop their market-oriented strategies through electronic information transmission and exchange platform. Based on the study’s findings, managerial strategies are proposed to improve firm performance.

This paper clarifies the concept of supply chain integration, market orientation and IT application in the context of container shipping, and investigates the inter-relationship between supply chain integration, market orientation, IT application and firm performance and develop a conceptual model in the context of container shipping.

The prevailing view in the studies on Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) is that PPPs can improve the quality and efficiency of infrastructure services and facilitates innovation in infrastructure developments. Although researchers highlight the potentiality of PPP models for stimulating innovation, they do not prove whether and in which conditions the PPP model is capable of developing innovative solutions. This paper aims to provide answers to the following key research questions: Which are the PPP features that favor innovation? How properly structure a PPP to foster innovation?

With this aim, drawing upon the main streams of studies on innovation, the authors develop a conceptual framework that identifies the PPP features that can influence the innovativeness. Second, they define how these PPP features have to be structured to foster innovation.

The authors find that a wider involvement of the private sector will increase the level of innovation. The industry structure exerts opposite forces on innovation: the dominance of large-sized firms is positively related to innovative output, whereas the market concentration negatively affects innovation. Performance-based contracts should be used in the context of PPP instead of traditional contracts. Finally, the authors find that, to fully exploit the networking effects on innovation, cooperation and trusting among partners involved in PPPs should be enhanced.

The developed framework identifies the relations existing between each PPP feature and the level of innovation and allows to define how these PPP features have to be structured to foster innovation. The authors contribute to fill the gap in the academic literature on PPP and innovation by proving whether and in which conditions the PPP model is capable of developing innovative solutions. Furthermore, they provide meaningful guidelines to those called to structure the PPP arrangements.

This paper aims to analyse the key trends in oil delivery and production and evaluate the capacities of crude oil transportation systems in the Western European region.

To meet these goals, qualitative data analysis was used to assess the contribution of countries in the region to the total crude oil production and delivery, the changes in concentration of crude oil deliveries and refineries’ capacities, the capabilities of the regional crude oil transportation system and the trends in crude oil supplies and processing from 2005 to 2015.

The study established that from 2013 to 2015 oil supply to the region’s refineries increased and generated additional stress on the transportation and refining infrastructure.

This study examined the aggregate values of crude oil production, crude oil deliveries and refining capacities. In practice, different refineries are set to process certain types of crude oil. It is possible to use the described approach with a certain crude oil grade.

When developing the programmes for crude oil supply to refineries, it is vital to take into account the capacities of refineries and the capabilities of the crude oil transportation systems.

The study suggests that the region’s infrastructure has the necessary reserves to operate for the next few years without additional investments.

Despite the importance of collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenishment (CPFR), its influence on supply chain innovation capability (SCIC) and supply chain performance (SCP) has not been sufficiently examined. The purpose of this paper is to examine the antecedence of SCP through CPFR and SCIC.

Through cluster and stratified random sampling, 286 responses from top managers of 1,574 Nigerian manufacturing companies were analyzed. Data analysis was performed using structural equation modeling with AMOS graphics.

The results show that SCIC has a full mediating effect on the relationship between CPFR and SCP. Specifically, CPFR has a significant relationship with both SCP and SCIC, and SCIC also relates significantly to SCP.

This study offers implications for manufacturers in developing countries in general, and in Nigeria in particular, by providing a guideline on how to improve SCP through CPFR.

The paper contributes to the limited studies on CPFR and SCP by extending this line of study into the realm of innovation capability and innovation. It integrates the social exchange theory and the dynamic capabilities theory to examine the collaborative processes of CPFR in the supply chain context. This study stressed the importance of boundary theoretical spanning by extending CPFR and SCP into the domain of innovation capability.

The purpose of this paper is to assist a manufacturer with a process to measure the level of preferred supplier status (PSS) of its key suppliers along the timeline.

In measuring the PSS, the prominent preferred supplier enablers (PSEs) were identified and were broadly categorized under manufacturer’s interest component, common interest component and supplier’s characteristic component. These PSEs were further analyzed by using fuzzy analytic hierarchy process, Euclidean distance measurement and grey relation analysis methods. In order to demonstrate the application and utility of the proposed approach, a case study conducted in an Indian automotive component manufacturing company has been presented.

By applying the proposed methodology in a case company, the PSSs of five of its key suppliers were measured and then the suppliers’ characteristic scores were determined. Based on these scores, a preferential status plot of the suppliers was developed. Through the status plot, the manufacturer was suggested with whom the proposed initiatives can be productive and with whom the manufacturer has to appeal for improvement strategies.

Since the methodology was tried in the Indian manufacturing environment, the emphasis laid on the PSEs and in turn the measurement of PSS may not address the concern at large.

Measuring PSS would not only earn competitive advantages for the manufacturers but also facilitate the evolution of competitive suppliers.

Measuring PSS along the time would assist a manufacturer to effectively manage the preferences given to its suppliers and thereby enhance the supply base contribution in the value addition process.