R. K. Garg

Trust among supply chain partners: a review

Purpose – The primary purpose of this paper is to develop a context‐dependent, multi‐perspective and multilevel concept called “trust” among supply chain members (SCM); second, to classify trust; third, to classify available literature and finally, to propose areas for future research. The field related to trust among supply chain partners has historically been collected through studies in micro‐ functional areas. While some effort towards producing a broader organizational perspective has been made, nonetheless, trust in SCM continues to be largely eclectic, with little consensus on its conceptualization and research methodological bases. This paper seeks to clarify aspects of this emerging perspective.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 100 papers/articles were systematically perused and analyzed.Findings – A number of key findings emerged: the field is a relatively “new” one for supply chain management; several disciplines claim ownership of the field; consensus is lacking on the definition of the...

GSCM: practices, trends and prospects in Indian context

Purpose – Environmental friendliness, in context of industrial operations, is an issue that has evoked much interest among environmentalists, governments, academicians and other sections of society in recent times. The said development has been more profound and broad-based in developed economies of the world, though, the trend is catching fast in developing countries, as well. Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) is a management technique that aims to make a supply chain eco-friendly, without diluting the organizational objectives. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the scale of adoption and implementation of GSCM practices in the context of Indian industries. Design/methodology/approach – The investigation used literature review approach to determine the current status of implementation of GSCM by Indian industry, and associated aspects of the same. Literature pertaining to the subject in context of non-Indian industries has also been studied for the purpose of rudimentary knowledge on the mana...

An investigation into the effect of nickel micro powder suspended dielectric and varying triangular shape electrodes on EDM performance measures of EN-19 steel

In this article, a material removal rate (MRR) and tool wear rate (TWR) study on the powder mixed electrical discharge machining (PMEDM) of EN-19 (AISI-4140) steel has been carried out. Response surface methodology (RSM) has been used to plan and analyse the experiments. Average current, duty cycle, angle of triangular electrode and concentration of micro-nickel powder added into dielectric fluid of EDM were chosen as process parameters to study the PMEDM performance in terms of MRR and TWR. Experiments have been performed on newly designed experimental set-up developed in laboratory. Most important parameters affecting selected performance measures have been identified and effects of their variations have been observed. Also, recommended regression models have been verified by conducting confirmation experiments.

Green Supply Chain Management Drivers Analysis Using TISM

Power Industry is one of the leading global polluters, given the huge amounts of flue gasses and ash produced, while generating power from fossils fuels. The rising demand of power in developing countries, in other words, means rapid increase in global pollution on account of more generation in countries marked as emerging economies. Certainly, concepts such as Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) offer a hope in containing the damage to environment on account of power industry. But, it has been observed that developing countries, which will witness extraordinary expansions in their generating capacities, are slow at imbibing GSCM practices to the maximum of their potential. India is fast emerging as a prime energy producer, as well as consumer of energy. The Indian Power industry is witnessing a phase of transition, wherein switchover from traditional operations to modern practices is precipitating; but still there is a long way to go. The research aims to study the various drivers affecting the Indian power Industry using Total Interpretive Structural Modeling (TISM) technique, which is a reasonably advanced version of Interpretive Structural Modeling Technique (ISM). TISM differs from ISM in the sense that it does not limit itself in furnishing the causal inter-element relationship, but also cites the logical reasons forming its basis. Its superiority over ISM lies in its Interpretive Matrix, featuring explicitly the causal basis of expert opinions. As a representational sample, the power companies operating in Punjab have been considered; as they aptly symbolize the changing face of Indian power sector–wherein modern changes are brewing up–still there is a plenty of old baggage to pull along. The drivers of GSCM have been studied, which hold promise for more and better-quality energy coupled with eco-financial gains. The drivers were finalized on the basis of opinions extended by Industry experts, as well as having review of extensive volume of literature on the subject. A model based on hierarchy of factors was proposed after applying TISM Technique to identify contextual relationships among the identified enablers which were to be gradually elicited on priority basis for construction of more eco-friendly supply chain of Power Industry. There is greater potency of “Top Management Commitment” (toward greening of Power Sector) in ensuring successful implementation of GSCM, whereas “Environment/Social Responsibility” was identified with weak motivation for power industry to go green.

Barriers analysis for green supply chain management implementation in power industry using ISM

The Indian power industry is witnessing a phase of transition, wherein switchover from traditional operations to modern practices is precipitating; but still there is a long way to go. This research paper makes an attempt to assess the barriers that were identified from extensive literature review and opinions invited from power industry-experts that impede implementation of green supply chain management by making use of interpretive structural modelling (ISM). Out of 16 barriers, insufficient government support and limited investment in green measures barriers are found to be significant, which invoke unfavourable response from the government. To enhance the validity of the results so reached, opinions of different industry experts were invited to corroborate the earlier deductions; thereby yielding a more accurate model. This has added to the credibility of the findings.

Experimental Investigation of the PMEDM of Nickel Free Austenitic Stainless Steel: A Promising Coronary Stent Material

A new composition of Taguchi and the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) in combination with principal component analysis (PCA) has been explored. A series of experiments were performed in order to acquire an optimal parametric combination during powder mixed electro-discharge machining (PMEDM) of nickel free austenitic stainless steel. Peak current, pulse on time and powder concentration were selected as three process variables, whereas the material removal rate (MRR), tool wear rate (TWR) and over cut (OC) were the major attention. Domain of the investigation was adopted from Taguchi based L16 orthogonal array. The outcomes of the experiment were optimized using TOPSIS method whereas PCA technique was employed to determine the weightage of each response. Response table for S/N ratio was drawn to identify the most influencing machining parameter. Results of the investigation indicated that, peak current was the most effective machining variable followed by pulse on time and powder concentration. The proposed amalgamation of PCA-TOPSIS method was observed to be robust, easily understandable, time saving and modest approach which can help the decision maker to identify an optimal parametric combination with desirable accuracy.

Factor Analysis of Sourcing Flexibility Among Supply Chain Partners in Indian Industries

Primary purpose of this paper is to apply factor analysis on the data collected for sourcing flexibility; second to reduce data collected to a few factors; and third and finally to propose name of factors. A total of 117 responses of questionnaires were collected and analyzed, and a number of key findings emerged. The field is relatively “new” one for supply chain management as consensus is lacking on the definition of the term. Factors loading on sourcing flexibility emphasize to focus on two factors, and the proposed name for the key factors of sourcing flexibility are dynamic capability of the partners and range capability of partners.