A.P. Barroso

Supply chain redesign for resilience using simulation

Supply chains are facing numerous changes that are contributing to increasing their complexity and vulnerability to disturbances, therefore, to survive, supply chains must be resilient. The paper presents a supply chain simulation study for a real case concerned with the Portuguese automotive supply chain. The subset automotive supply chain involved in the case study is a three-echelon supply chain, composed by one automaker, two 1st-tier suppliers, two 2nd-tier suppliers, and one outsource entity. The purpose of the study is to evaluate alternative supply chain scenarios for improving supply chain resilience to a disturbance and understanding how mitigation strategies affect each supply chain entity performance. Two strategies widely used to mitigate disturbance negative effects on supply chains were considered and six scenarios were designed. The scenarios differ in terms of presence or absence of a disturbance in one hand and presence or absence of a mitigation strategy in other hand. To evaluate the scenarios designed, two performance measures were defined per supply chain entity, Lead Time Ratio and Total Cost.

Supply Chain Resilience Using the Mapping Approach

The supply chain environment is changing. Globalisation and changes demanded by stakeholders have influenced the attitudes of supply chain entities. These entities are becoming more professional, showing ever increasing levels of complexity, and adopting philosophies and management practices with the objective of increasing their levels of competitiveness. Competitiveness is a critical factor in the success of a supply chain. Disturbances increase supply chain and may reduce it performance and competitiveness. It is therefore fundamental for a supply chain to be resilient to disturbances. The chapter begins by defining and discussing the central concepts of resilience and disturbance, within the scope of supply chain management. Based on a mapping approach, a methodology is proposed for improving the supply chains resilience to a disturbance proactively. After the selection of a supply chain disturbance, and the supply chain mapping, a mitigation strategy is chosen to make the supply chain resilient to this disturbance. A case study is presented to illustrate how the mapping approach support managers in the decision making process to make the supply chain resilient.

A supply chain disturbances classification

Nowadays, organizations and supply chains have to deal with a number of disturbances. The pressures to grow revenues, to take advantage of new technologies, to reduce costs, and to improve working capital and streamline operational procedures, pushed many organizations to establish strategies which increase risk exposure. As a result, companies can loose the ability to act quickly and effectively in response to disturbances. In this paper, different disturbances are identified and the relationship with their potential sources is discussed. A proposal for the classification of disturbances is presented; it is considered as a required step to understand how to model for better organization performance in situations characterised by high levels of exposure to disturbances.

Toward a resilient Supply Chain with supply disturbances

The Supply Chain (SC) environment is changing. The SC entities exhibit ever increasing levels of complexity and are adopting new philosophies and management practices with the objective of increasing levels of competitiveness. In recent years there has been an increase in the likelihood of disturbances that affect the normal operation of the SCs. These disturbances can negatively affect the SCs, making them vulnerable and reducing their competitiveness, which is a critical factor to the success of organizations/SCs. Therefore, it is fundamental that SCs become resilient to disturbances. Managers must identify the likelihood of the occurrence and severity of disturbances, and take appropriate measures (implement management strategies) to respond to each disturbance, thereby reducing the negative effects of such disturbances on the SC. In this paper we will discuss proactive and reactive management strategies that can be adopted by the SC to make it resilient to disturbances at the supply side.

The resilience paradigm in the supply chain management: A case study

Supply chains are facing numerous changes that are contributing to increasing their complexity and vulnerability to disturbances. To survive, supply chains must be resilient. However, the specificities of each supply chain allied to the uncertainty environment in which they operate, do not allow to determine, with advance, which is the most appropriate strategy to mitigate the negative effects of a likely disturbance. To understand how some management strategies improve supply chain resilience to a disturbance, and how they influence supply chain performance, scenario analysis was used. A case study related to a Portuguese automotive supply chain is presented. Two strategies widely used to mitigate disturbance effects on supply chains were considered and six scenarios were designed. The scenarios differ in terms of presence or absence of a disturbance and a mitigation strategy. To evaluate the scenarios designed, two key performance measurements were defined.

Identifying vulnerabilities in the supply chain

The supply chains environment is changing, and organizations are facing pressures, which means that vulnerability to disturbances is increasing. In this context, it is crucial for supply chain (SC) survival that managers identify the vulnerability of SCs to disturbance in a proactive manner. A fundamental prerequisite for identifying SC vulnerabilities is an understanding of the network that connects a business to its suppliers and to its customers. Therefore, to achieve this objective, SC mapping needs to be performed. After that, it will be possible to identify the vulnerability of the SC to disturbances, and to define strategic or operational policies to reduce the effects of these disturbances on the SC. The main purpose of this paper is to show that the mapping of the SC allows identify the specific vulnerabilities of a SC to disturbances. An illustrative case study is developed. The mapping process is performed using Value Stream Mapping.

Diffusion of innovation concepts in Portuguese manufacturing companies

This paper focuses on the diffusion of innovation concepts in Portuguese manufacturing companies. Based on the literature, the concepts of technical and non-technical innovations are explored and three purposes guide our study: (i) to what extent technological and organizational innovation concepts are diffused in Portuguese manufacturing companies; (ii) how the use of technological innovation concepts are interrelated with the use of organizational innovation concepts; and (iii) to what extent Portuguese companies since 2009 have introduced product innovation and product-related service innovation. Data were collected from 62 companies participating in the European Manufacturing Survey (EMS) 2012 and findings indicate that: (i) Portuguese manufacturing companies are more organizationally innovation oriented where quality and price are quoted as the most important competitive factors, whilst service offerings and service sales attain far less rank; (ii) technological innovation concepts are significantly related to organizational innovation; and (iii) product innovation has a higher diffusion level than product-related services.

Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Management. A case study

Owing to new legal requirements, essential changes in the field of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) management are expected. In WEEE management, several deciding factors must be considered to maximize benefits at a determined cost. Thus, the main objective of this study is to contribute to more effective WEEE management. Within this contribution, two models are proposed to help in the management of WEEE between Sorting Centres (SC) and Treatment and Recovery Centres (TRC), at minimum cost. A model for assigning the destination TRC for the WEEE of each SC, i.e., where 1 vehicle moves between 1 SC and 1 TRC. Another model is proposed with the aim of introducing joint WEEE management of 2 SCs to 1 TRC. The models are applied on a case study, with approximately one hundred of SCs and ten TRCs. Based on this case study, conclusions are drawn for WEEE decision managers.

Coffee waste management. A case study

For some years now, organizations and countries have been concerned with waste management. This has resulted in laws that held producers responsible for the recovery of the products that they produce when these reach the end of their lifetime. Although the existing legislation does not include all types of wastes, some producers have been making efforts in adapting the supply chain management to the activities associated with recovering waste produced by the products that they are responsible for because they feel socially motivated to give an ecological image and/or they want to prepare for the legislation implementation that they foresee is going to be published. The case study presented here is a pilot study supporting the decision developed in an organization responsible for roasting and distributing coffee in Portugal with the objective of achieving a model of coffee waste collection and transportation that is efficient and reduces the environmental impact.

Identifying Innovation Patterns: Some Insights on Portuguese Manufacturing Companies

Innovation is a complex phenomenon including technical and non-technical organizational aspects. The literature refers to technical innovations as those that affect the organizational technical system, while non-technical innovations can be understood as organizational innovations, comprising changes in the structure and processes derived from the implementation of new managerial practices and working principles such as teamwork in production, supply chain management and quality management systems. There are many studies on innovation which show that increased RD (2) how the use of technological innovation concepts are interrelated to the use of organizational innovation concepts.