Supplier evaluation and selection for sustainable supply chain management under uncertainty conditions

Abstract

With the global increasing importance of sustainable development, sustainable supply chain has gained value among both researchers and industrialists in the last decade. Nowadays, industries are facing pressure from government legislation and the global competition in addition to the pressure from their clients to carry out environmentally – conscious actions. Thus, organisations are required to implement actions to enhance their level of both environmental and economic performances. Traditionally, organisations use criteria such as cost, quality and on-time delivery to evaluate their suppliers’ performance. Although there have been numerous studies on the common criteria for these assessments, very few studies have taken sustainable criteria into consideration. Thereupon, this study tries to put forward a complete model for selection and evaluation of the suppliers, considering three criteria for sustainability, thus using the fuzzy group graph theory and matrix approach. It is an innovative approach based on fuzzy logic and group decision-making, which aims to treat lack of certainty in selection and evaluation of suppliers. We will also discuss a case study in the industry to demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed approach.     

Green supplier selection generic framework: a multi-attribute utility theory approach

This paper presents a generic framework integrating environmental and social criteria leading to a comprehensive selection process of green suppliers. Traditionally, price, quality, lead time and flexibility are considered for the supplier selection. With the increase in awareness of environmental and social responsibility issues, many companies are tending towards adopting green concepts and sourcing green suppliers. This study proposes a framework consisting of environmental (E), green (G) and organisational (O) factors that are required for the green supplier selection process. These factors are further classified as criteria for which attributes are presented. A hierarchy is constructed to facilitate in evaluating the importance of the selected criteria and alternatives of green suppliers. To cater to the multi-criteria decision-making approach with both quantitative and qualitative attributes, we applied the multiple attribute utility theory, which is a decision support that helps managers formulating viable sourcing strategies. A hypothetical example is presented to illustrate the applicability of the approach.     

基于混合指标值TODIM方法的东营市生态系统健康评价

城市生态系统健康评价是城市可持续发展以及城市生态文明建设的需要。在当今各种"城市病"频发的背景下,研究城市生态系统健康水平,不仅有利于协调城市发展与城市生态系统健康之间的矛盾,而且对于指导城市建设规划编制,监控城市生态环境的可持续发展具有重要的现实意义。鉴于此,论文在原有的城市生态系统健康评价指标的基础上,通过基于混合指标值的TODIM方法评价东营市2007—2013年间的城市生态系统健康状况,并分析活力、组成结构、恢复力、维持生态系统服务功能以及生态系统认知的构成指标对城市生态系统健康状况的影响。为了避免主观判断对城市生态系统健康评价的不确定性,文章采用兼顾客观信息和主观信息的组合权重赋权法确定各个指标的权重;根据东营市城市生态系统健康评价指标的特性和数据特点,建立了混合多属性决策TODIM方法的数学模型;采用扩展的TODIM方法对东营市城市生态系统健康状况进行评价,并分析了各个指标在城市生态发展过程中的作用。研究表明:(1)东营市的城市生态系统健康状况一直向好,由脆弱状态逐渐过渡到亚健康状态,但是生态状况仍然不容乐观,距离健康状态仍有较大的差距;(2)环保投入力度不足、污染物排放量增加、产业结构仍不完善、建成区人口密度过高等成为制约东营市城市生态系统健康发展的突出问题。文章提出了相应的对策建议,以促进城市生态系统的健康发展。     

Sustainable supplier selection for the cold supply chain (CSC) in the context of a developing country

Cold supply chain (CSC) is a process that involves temperature-controlled activities ranging from the acquisition of raw materials and down to the end consumers. A sustainable cold chain supplier is the one that incorporates sustainable practices in its complete cycle of operations. This is to ensure keeping the products from going to waste, especially in the case of a developing country. To identify the driving factors towards the sustainable cold chain supplier, this study utilizes the interpretive structural modelling (ISM) approach in the first phase. Fifteen various sustainability factors were analyzed and the “utilization of renewable resources” factor concluded to be the most important driving factor. By implementing renewable resources, a supplier can be able to convert its manufacturing processes and services to sustainable assets. The second phase of this study conducts the selection of cold chain suppliers in the context of Pakistan. For this purpose, fuzzy VIKOR, a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) technique is incorporated to analyze eight suppliers based on fifteen distinct criteria. The results concluded Mitchell foods to be the most economically, environmentally and socially sustainable suppliers in the context of Pakistan. This study recommends providing business-friendly incentives to suppliers like Mitchells and new investors who tend to keep their operations sustainable by adopting renewable resources. Furthermore, the relaxation of taxes and creating job employability by working with sustainable suppliers can contribute positively towards economic growth and the overall society. The study holds novelty in the area of cold chain supplier selection for Pakistan by utilizing a novel approach in the form of ISM and fuzzy VIKOR techniques, thus forming a major application of this research study.

Graphic abstract

     

Environmental impact assessment of manufacturing processes using a combinatorial mathematics based decision making method

This paper presents a methodology for environmental impact assessment of manufacturing processes using a combinatorial mathematics based decision making method. An ‘environmental impact assessment index’ is proposed that evaluates and ranks the manufacturing processes for producing a given engineering product or component. The index is obtained from an ‘environmental impact assessment factors function’ considering environmental impact assessment factors and their relative importance for the considered application. An example is included to illustrate the approach.     

Supplier assessment based on corporate social responsibility criteria in Indian automotive and textile industry sectors

Mandatory disclosure of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting forces supply chain members to consider CSR issues in developed countries. Researchers have viewed CSR content within different themes, such as human (social), ethical and environmental perspectives. So far, in India, very little research has been done to study the impact of human issues in employment (social), ethical issues in business operations and pollution (environmental) issues at both regional and specific sector level. This paper emphasises the perspective view of supplier selection, considering CSR issues as opposed to traditional methods using conventional selection criteria such as cost, quality, delivery and service. It employs six CSR criteria such as discrimination, abuse of human rights, child labour, long working hours, unfair competition and pollution to assess small- and medium-sized suppliers who produce and deliver products to the automotive and textile industry sectors. The results of this study indicate that to prevent discrimination against pay variation, minimise cases of abuse of human rights and incidence of child labour, suppliers must put in place proper policies and procedures regarding employment contract, identification and verification records. Furthermore, to reduce unfair competition, suppliers of both automotive and textile sectors may introduce processes for investigating reports of unethical conducts and take severe disciplinary action. The suppliers of both automotive and textile sectors believe that the competitive advantage can be achieved through environmental oriented business practices. However, they differ in their approaches in attaining this objective.     

Design for environment as a tool for the development of a sustainable supply chain

In this work, design for environment (DfE) methodologies have been used as a tool for the development of a more sustainable supply chain. In particular by combining life‐cycle assessment (LCA) techniques and by using the quality function deployment (QFD) multi‐criteria matrices, an ‘environmental compromise’ can be reached. In this work, the QFD matrices have been developed in a new way using an iterative process that involves the whole supply chain starting from the product life‐cycle, taking into consideration the machines that make the product and their components. This methodology is compatible with the requirements of the various stakeholders, suppliers, manufacturers and clients, involved in the supply chain. To assess the validity of the proposed approach a specific supply chain was studied concerning packaging systems for liquid food substances (beverage cartons). Firstly all the stages which are most critical from the environmental point of view in the supply chain of packaging systems were identified and assessed. The starting point for the analysis of environmental aspects and impacts which characterise the supply chain was LCA, which proved to be useful for the identification and the environmental assessment of the various stages in a packaging system. Through the use of ‘iterative QFD’ it is possible to arrive at a definition of the engineering characteristics of all the machinery which is involved in the supply chain. In particular in this work the authors have tried to identify the critical points in the design of those machines which either make the beverage cartons or are involved in the filling process.     

中国石油资源的资产负债表编制初探

我国境内石油行业总体呈现原油开采量上升的态势,为之付出的经济和生态成本也越来越大。开展我国境内石油资源资产负债表的编制工作对于摸清我国石油资源的家底、评估我国石油资源开采的经济—资源—环境综合成本、探讨我国石油开采战略的合理性具有重要的意义。本文首先探讨了石油资源资产负债表的编制方法和框架,构建了集"生态系统服务"、"环境污染"和"资源消耗"三位于一体的"生态负债"账户。其次,收集并整理了重要的污染物处理成本和生态系统服务的价值评估成果,构建了价值化因子数据表。最后,基于2012年数据尝试编制了目前我国的第一份石油资源资产负债表。结果显示,(1)2012年末,我国石油资源的资产总额为1.47×109万元,负债总额为9.03×107万元,所有者权益为1.38×109万元;(2)石油资源资产总额占到当年政府资产总额的14.43%,占政府资源性资产比重达31.12%;(3)石油行业的资产负债率为6.15%,负债权益比达到了6.56%;(4)"生态系统服务"构成了负债的最大比重,达到了98.16%。总的来说,我国石油开采行业整体处于"高资产、高负债、强生态压力和弱可持续性"的状态。从这份资产负债表我们可以看出,我国境内石油开采的生态成本不容忽视。随着资源的不断开发,石油开采的边际生态成本只会越来越大,因此,能指向经济和生态两方面的综合成本应该取代账面成本成为政府进行石油资源开发的决策依据之一。此外,要落实石油资源资产负债表对于生态保护的实际指导意义,我们建议应该将石油资源开采的资产负债率、负债权益比等指标纳入官员的绩效考核体系。     

Sustainable supplier selection criteria classification for Indian iron and steel industry: a fuzzy modified Kano model approach

ABSTRACT

The aim of this work is to provide a systematic approach for sustainability criteria clustering into different useful categories. For this purpose, a methodology has been proposed with the following three steps. (i) A comprehensive set of the sustainability criteria in economic, environmental and social dimension has been extracted from the literature and have been customised for the iron and steel industry. (ii) A fuzzy Kano methodology has been used to classify these sustainability criteria into useful Kano cluster like must-be, one-dimensional, and attractive cluster (iii) further, must-be and attractive criteria derived from the second step were further sub-classified into three categories using Type IV Kano model. All steps have been examined in the iron and steel industry of India and findings indicate that quality and delivery criteria are classified as high must be criteria in the economic realm. Further, environmental and energy management system in the environmental dimension and social responsibility and right of stakeholders criteria in the social dimension are classified as high must be criteria. Prioritising must be and attractive criteria enable decision makers of other industries to select the appropriate criteria to adopt sustainability.     

Multiscale Methodological Framework to Derive Criteria and Indicators for Sustainability Evaluation of Peasant Natural Resource Management Systems

Design and implementation of more sustainable natural resource management systems is the current objective of many research institutions, development agencies, NGOs and other stakeholders. But, how to assess whether a system is sustainable? How do we know whether the alternatives designed will increase the sustainability of the system? How to evaluate or assess the sustainability of natural resource management systems?In this paper we present a multiscale methodological framework for sustainability evaluation. The framework is based on a systems approach from which five general attributes of sustainable natural resource management systems are defined based on scale- and discipline-independent properties (productivity, stability, resilience, reliability and adaptability).A general operational strategy to derive ‘site-specific’ criteria and indicators for the attributes at different scales is also presented. This strategy is based on the definition of ‘impact scales’, at which the different stakeholders can or want to design alternatives, as well as the main stakeholders’ objectives and constraints. The application of the multiscale framework is illustrated with a case study in the Purhepecha Region of Michoacán, a peasant mountainous region in the west of Mexico. We used stakeholder consultation to identify the main objectives and constraints as well as to select criteria and indicators. The sets of criteria and indicators suggested for the different scales of analysis of the Purhepecha Region are comprehensive, yet not exhaustive, and represent the main issues related to natural resource management in the region. Further work will be directed towards the quantification of indicators at different scales and their relationships and trade-offs.     

突变级数法在区域生态系统健康评价中的应用

目前在多目标综合评价方面有层次分析、因子分析、模糊评判等诸多方法．但有些方法对权重的确定主观性较大或计算过程过于复杂。介绍了突变理论用于多准则决策问题的基本思想和步骤，该法不需对评价指标赋以权重。它只考虑指标的相对重要性。避免了直接使用难于确定且主观性较大的“权重”概念。因而显得简易。同时．突变级数是一种多维模糊隶属函数。用它来计算通常模糊数学的多目标评价决策问题。就更适宜和更准确。以广东省生态系统健康评价为实例．引用相关文献中的数据构建了适用于突变级数法的层次结构指标体系．运用突变理论中的归一公式。计算了广东省生态系统的健康得分，发现健康排名与实际情况较为符合．证明了该方法的可行性。文章同时使用了加权平均法对指标体系进行计算，通过比较。发现原文献的结果与本文采用的两种方法的评价结果基本一致。尤其是健康程度较好和较坏的区域。实例表明．突变级数法较为简便、快捷和可靠。这为解决区域多目标评价问题提供了一种新的思路。     

Social sustainability performance indicators – experiences from process industry

Sustainable industrial development can be advanced through the development and application of sustainability metrics. This study addressed the application of social sustainability metrics to the measurement of sustainability performance within process industry and to metal production at the plant level in particular. The applied social sustainability indicators are one part of the overall sustainability index which aims at presenting a balanced and holistic view of plant-level sustainability performance. Application of plant-level indicators can support informed decision-making and fill in potential gaps in corporate-level assessments and reporting initiatives with respect to plant-level social sustainability performance. The social part of the overall index provides information on both in-plant sustainability performance and on the direct and in-direct impacts of plant operations on the surrounding society with special emphasis on the supply chain and emerging social due diligence aspects. The results of pilot implementation of social indicators in Ruukki Lappohja plant indicated a very high level of social sustainability performance with minor areas of improvement such as social risk management auditing covering the whole supply chain, suppliers communication on social responsibility requirements to workers and sub-suppliers, signing of the code of conduct by employees and reporting on policies on local community relations, safety in supply chain covering suppliers and contractors and factory health and safety performance in relation to average field of industry performance in this field.     

基于区间直觉模糊集的水资源配置群决策研究

水资源问题是我国面临的重要资源与环境问题。流域水资源配置的有效性缺失也使水资源问题进一步恶化,而水资源配置过程中大量不确定信息也使高效决策问题更加困难。基于区间直觉模糊群决策的水资源配置方案优化方法,分析了水资源系统作为复杂系统的特殊性和区间直觉模糊理论在群决策中应用的优势,利用区间模糊数来表达专家判断信息,提高了流域水资源配置方案的合理性。通过多个水资源领域专家的群体决策,从流域水资源可持续利用评价视角出发,针对流域的社会、经济、资源、环境等多个因素进行判断,利用IIWAA算子进行群体意见集成,最后根据流域指标与理想点逼近点的距离对流域水资源配置方案排序。通过赣抚平原灌区内的用水区域在不同方案情景下的水资源可持续利用实例分析表明,该方法能够比较准确地评估出流域水资源配置方案的可持续性,为流域的水资源配置方案制定提供有效合理的决策支持     

强“波特假说”存在产业异质性吗?——基于产业碳密集程度细分的视角

强"波特假说"认为严格而恰当的环境规制政策将使企业的生产效率呈现先降后升的趋势,为验证强"波特假说"及其产业异质性,首先建立产业碳密集指数,将工业部门36个细分行业划分为高碳密集产业、中碳密集产业和低碳密集产业;接着运用方向性距离函数测算2003—2014年细分行业的绿色全要素生产率,基于系统"GMM"估计方法验证三个细分行业的环境规制强度对绿色全要素生产率的影响。研究结果显示:第一,样本期间内,高碳密集产业的环境规制强度远远高于中低碳密集产业,这表明高碳密集产业一直是产业节能减排的重点对象,而碳排放情况较为严重的中碳密集产业则为"被遗忘的角落";第二,强"波特假说"在工业部门内存在产业异质性,高碳密集产业和中碳密集产业的环境规制强度与绿色全要素生产率呈"U"型关系,而在低碳密集产业中两者则呈倒"U"型关系;第三,相对于高碳密集产业,中碳密集产业因环境规制强度较容易跨越"U"型拐点而具有较大的减排空间,低碳密集产业在达到"U"型拐点之前,环境规制为其绿色全要素生产率提升的动力。本文研究结论蕴含如下的政策建议:根据产业的碳密集程度实施针对性的环境规制政策,持续加强中碳密集产业的环境规制力度,适度加强低碳密集产业的环境规制强度,高碳密集产业需根据不同阶段的经济水平设计具有针对性的环境规制政策,逐渐将三类产业的"遵循成本"效应转化为"创新补偿"效应,实现经济增长和环境保护的双赢。     

Flora biodiversity change detection: a case study

Changes in flora biodiversity are a dilemma facing managers in order to cope with challenges of extinction or endangering plant species as well as replacement by invasive species. Such problems can occur in the region as disruption of ecosystem balance. The first step of proper management of a watershed is obtaining accurate information about plant communities and their dominance and biodiversity status. Such information will help decision makers to adopt an appropriate management approach. Accordingly, the current study was conducted to detect various types of plant species in Zanjanrood Watershed. For this porous, quadrate and transect methods were applied to determine available plant species in the region. Afterwards, Shannon and Simpson’s Reciprocal indices were used to specify the biodiversity status of the identified communities. The calculation results revealed 3.19 and 5.98 for Shannon and Simpson’s Reciprocal indices, respectively. As the results suggested, there has been a downward trend in biodiversity status over the last 20 years. Such a deteriorating condition has been accelerated rise in recent years so that the non-palatable species are rapidly replaced by the palatable ones due to uncontrolled overgrazing of livestock. If management is not based on principles of sustainability in the region, the watershed will experience an extreme poverty of land cover. The findings would be so helpful to achieve an appropriate strategy in order to conserve the biodiversity in a sustainable manner.     

Performance evaluation of lean sustainable systems using adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system: a case study

The modern manufacturing organisations have been adopting both lean and sustainable manufacturing paradigms to survive in the competitive environment. Lean and sustainable strategies aim at achieving productivity improvement by streamlined processes and waste elimination. The performance of such integrated lean sustainable system has to be assessed to ensure whether the strategic objectives are in line with customer value and to identify improvement opportunities that enable and enhance the competitive advantage of an integrated lean sustainable system. This paper presents the formulation of conceptual performance evaluation model to assess lean sustainable systems. Appropriate performance indicators have been identified and adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system approach is used to evaluate lean sustainability. A case of automotive component manufacturing firm in Indian scenario is exemplified. Based on the evaluation, lean sustainability index was computed and the firm was found to be ‘Averagely Lean Sustainable’. Further improvement actions to enhance the lean sustainable performance were planned and implemented. The developed performance evaluation model is capable of effectively evaluating the lean sustainable performance of manufacturing firms and has more practical relevance.     

The role of the engineering community in sustainable development

Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainability assessment is an important part of the decision process in organisations. Sustainability is difficult to define or measure because it is a complex concept. To assess the sustainability level of an organisation, a unique attempt has been made using fuzzy-based Kano model based on the stakeholders' satisfaction. The Kano model is a customer satisfaction assessment tool that must be precise, and it is incorporated with fuzzy logic because it has the capability to replicate the human perceptions. In this context, the approach is used to assess the sustainability by using the stakeholders' satisfaction for different criteria and it provides information regarding improvement in sustainability.     

GIS和模糊相似贴近度在洪灾安置区评价中的应用

在模糊物元分析的基础上,结合模糊相似贴近度的概念,将基于模糊相似贴近度的模糊物元分析方法应用于洪水灾害避难安置区评价中,并根据GIS中图层叠加方法,利用各种约束条件对方案进行初选,剔除不符合条件的方案,提高了评价效率。在评价指标权重方面,采用层次分析法和熵值法相结合的方法计算各评价指标权重,克服了单一方法在实际应用中得到的可信度存在一定偏差的缺陷,提高了评价结果的精度和可信度。该评价模型被应用到上海市长兴岛的洪灾避难安置区选择综合评价中,取得了较好的效果。该评价模型的建立为防洪避迁决策提供了科学依据     

基于遗传算法的可持续土地利用动态规划

在建立和求解多目标可持续土地利用动态规划模型过程中,采用遗传算法并结合多目标模糊优选理论处理多目标土地利用结构优化问题。其详细步骤为：在分析区域特征基础上构建时间序列;通过现状分析设置土地利用类型决策变量,确定优化目标和约束条件,构建土地利用结构多目标优化模型;用灰色GM(1,1)预测模型对土地利用结构优化多目标模型参数进行预测;用遗传算法多目标优化方法对土地利用结构优化模型求解得pareto解集;最后运用多目标模糊优选动态规划方法对规划期内各时间段的pareto解集进行模糊动态优选,以最大优属度判定原则确定出最优决策序列。自贡市的实例表明,该方法有助于解决多目标协调问题,并通过提供多方案选择性,从而使规划更具灵活性,同时又便于充分吸纳公众参与,减少规划中的不确定性,增加规划的科学性、现实性和可操作性。     

“2+26”城市治霾方案效果评估:以山东省为案例的研究

以京津冀大气污染传输通道“2+26”城市为对象的区域性雾霾专项治理已经开展两年有余。要判断“2+26”城市治霾方案的实施是否取得了显著成效需要通过科学的实证分析加以验证。采集山东省13个内陆城市2016—2018年每日空气质量指数(AQI)、六种单项污染物(PM 2.5、PM 10、SO 2、NO 2、CO、O 3)浓度以及气象条件等数据,以其中属于“2+26”城市的7城市作为实验组,其余6城市作为对照组,基于双重差分法,对“2+26”城市治霾方案在山东省相关城市的实施效果进行评估,试图分离方案实施所带来的环境效应。结果表明:①“2+26”城市治霾方案的实施总体上有效,对污染传输通道7城市空气质量指数(AQI)指标的降低发挥了显著作用。②“2+26”城市治霾方案对污染传输通道城市的PM 2.5、PM 10、CO浓度的降低有显著贡献,但对SO 2、NO 2和O 3指标的改善贡献并不明显。③对方案进行分时段动态效应分析发现,《京津冀及周边地区2017年大气污染防治工作方案》的发布并未对污染传输通道城市空气质量改善产生立竿见影的效果,而《京津冀及周边地区2017—2018年秋冬季大气污染综合治理攻坚行动方案》《京津冀及周边地区2018—2019年秋冬季大气污染综合治理攻坚行动方案》的落实和执行才是“2+26”城市治霾方案显著见效的保障。该研究在严格遵守双重差分法前提条件的同时,还通过了一系列稳健性检验确保评估结果的可靠性。