From green buildings to green supply chains

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 532-548 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Muhammad Aslaam Mohamed Abdul Ghani ◽  
Gokhan Egilmez ◽  
Murat Kucukvar ◽  
M. Khurrum S. Bhutta
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Industrial Building ◽  
Building Structures ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to focus on tracing GHG emissions across the supply chain industries associated with the US residential, commercial and industrial building stock and provides optimized GHG reduction policy plans for sustainable development. Design/methodology/approach A two-step hierarchical approach is developed. First, Economic Input-Output-based Life Cycle Assessment (EIO-LCA) is utilized to quantify the GHG emissions associated with the US residential, commercial and industrial building stock. Second, a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) based optimization framework is developed to identify the optimal GHG emissions’ reduction (percent) for each industry across the supply chain network of the US economy. Findings The results indicated that “ready-mix concrete manufacturing”, “electric power generation, transmission and distribution” and “lighting fixture manufacturing” sectors were found to be the main culprits in the GHG emissions’ stock. Additionally, the majorly responsible industries in the supply chains of each building construction categories were also highlighted as the hot-spots in the supply chains with respect to the GHG emission reduction (percent) requirements. Practical implications The decision making in terms of construction-related expenses and energy use options have considerable impacts across the supply chains. Therefore, regulations and actions should be re-organized around the systematic understanding considering the principles of “circular economy” within the context of sustainable development. Originality/value Although the literature is abundant with works that address quantifying environmental impacts of building structures, environmental life cycle impact-based optimization methods are scarce. This paper successfully fills this gap by integrating EIO-LCA and MILP frameworks to identify the most pollutant industries in the supply chains of building structures.

scholarly journals Carbon footprint stock analysis of US manufacturing: a time series input-output LCA

2017 ◽  
Vol 117 (5) ◽  
pp. 853-872 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gokhan Egilmez ◽  
Khurrum Bhutta ◽  
Bulent Erenay ◽  
Yong Shin Park ◽  
Ridvan Gedik
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Carbon Footprint ◽  
Manufacturing Industries ◽  
Input Output ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us ◽  
Manufacturing Sectors

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an input-output life cycle assessment model to estimate the carbon footprint of US manufacturing sectors. To achieve this, the paper sets out the following objectives: develop a time series carbon footprint estimation model for US manufacturing sectors; analyze the annual and cumulative carbon footprint; analyze and identify the most carbon emitting and carbon intensive manufacturing industries in the last four decades; and analyze the supply chains of US manufacturing industries to help identify the most critical carbon emitting industries. Design/methodology/approach Initially, the economic input-output tables of US economy and carbon footprint multipliers were collected from EORA database (Lenzen et al., 2012). Then, economic input-output life cycle assessment models were developed to quantify the carbon footprint extents of the US manufacturing sectors between 1970 and 2011. The carbon footprint is assessed in metric tons of CO2-equivalent, whereas the economic outputs were measured in million dollar economic activity. Findings The salient finding of this paper is that the carbon footprint stock has been increasing substantially over the last four decades. The steep growth in economic output unfortunately over-shadowed the potential benefits that were obtained from lower CO2 intensities. Analysis of specific industry results indicate that the top five manufacturing sectors based on total carbon footprint share are “petroleum refineries,” “Animal (except poultry) slaughtering, rendering, and processing,” “Other basic organic chemical manufacturing,” “Motor vehicle parts manufacturing,” and “Iron and steel mills and ferroalloy manufacturing.” Originality/value This paper proposes a state-of-art time series input-output-based carbon footprint assessment for the US manufacturing industries considering direct (onsite) and indirect (supply chain) impacts. In addition, the paper provides carbon intensity and carbon stock variables that are assessed over time for each of the US manufacturing industries from a supply chain footprint perspective.

Layer analysis of CO2 sources in the US economic supply chains: an input output LCA study

2017 ◽  
Vol 117 (10) ◽  
pp. 2171-2193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gokhan Egilmez ◽  
N. Muhammad Aslaam Mohamed Abdul Ghani ◽  
Ridvan Gedik
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Carbon Footprint ◽  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Chain Structure ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Input Output ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us ◽  
Supply Chain Structure

Purpose Carbon footprint assessment requires a holistic approach, where all possible lifecycle stages of products from raw material extraction to the end of life are considered. The purpose of this paper is to develop an analytical sustainability assessment framework to assess the carbon footprint of US economic supply chains from two perspectives: supply chain layers (tiers) and carbon footprint sources. Design/methodology/approach The methodology consists of two phases. In the first phase, the data were collected from EORA input output and environmental impact assessment database. In the second phase, 48 input-output-based lifecycle assessment models were developed (seven CO2 sources and total CO2 impact, and six supply chain tiers). In the third phase, the results are analyzed by using data visualization, data analytics, and statistical approaches in order to identify the heavy carbon emitter industries and their percentage shares in the supply chains by each layer and the CO2 source. Findings Vast majority of carbon footprint was found to be attributed to the power generation, petroleum refineries, used and secondhand goods, natural gas distribution, scrap, and truck transportation. These industries dominated the entire supply chain structure and found to be the top drivers in all six layers. Practical implications This study decomposes the sources of the total carbon footprint of US economic supply chains into six layers and assesses the percentage contribution of each sector in each layer. Thus, it paves the way for quantifying the carbon footprint of each layer in today’s complex supply chain structure and highlights the importance of handling CO2 source in each layer separately while maintaining a holistic focus on the overall carbon footprint impacts in the big picture. In practice, one size fits all type of policy making may not be as effective as it could be expected. Originality/value This paper provides a two-dimensional viewpoint for tracing/analyzing carbon footprint across a national economy. In the first dimension, the national economic system is divided into six layers. In the second dimension, carbon footprint analysis is performed considering specific CO2 sources, including energy production, solvent, cement and minerals, agricultural burning, natural decay, and waste. Thus, this paper contributes to the state-of-art sustainability assessment by providing a comprehensive overview of CO2 sources in the US economic supply chains.

scholarly journals Key factors of carbon footprint in the UK food supply chains: a new perspective of life cycle assessment

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (7/8) ◽  
pp. 945-970
Author(s):  
Emmanuel Ferguson Aikins ◽  
Usha Ramanathan
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Food Supply ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Food Supply Chain ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Food Supply Chains ◽  
The Uk

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to empirically identify key factors of UK food supply chains (SCs) that significantly contribute to CO2 emissions (CO2e) taking into account the life cycle assessment (LCA). The UK food supply chain includes imports from other countries.Design/methodology/approachThis research develops a conceptual framework from extant literature. Secondary data obtained from ONS and FAOSTAT covering from 1990 to 2014 are analysed using Multilinear Regression (MLR) and Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) to identify the factors relating to CO2 emissions significance, and the efficient contributions that are being made to their reduction in the UK food supply chains.FindingsThe study results suggest that Transportation and Sales/Distribution are the two key factors of CO2 emissions in UK food supply chains. This is confirmed by two multivariate methods, MLR and SFA. MLR results show that transportation increases UK CO2 emissions by 10 tonnes of CO2 emissions from one tonne of fruits and vegetables imports from overseas to the UK Sales and Distribution reduces the UK CO2 emissions by 1.3 tonnes of CO2 emissions due to improved, technological operation activities in the UK. In addition, the SFA results confirm that the key factors are sufficient to predict an increase or decrease in CO2 emissions in the UK food supply chains.Research limitations/implicationsThis study has focused on the LCA of the UK food supply chain from limited data. Future studies should consider Sustainability Impact Assessment of the UK food supply chain, identifying the social, economic, regulatory and environmental impacts of the food supply chain using a re-defined LCA (all-inclusive assessment) tool.Practical implicationsThis research suggests that food supply chain professionals should improve efficiency, e.g. the use of solar energy and biogas, and also integrate low-carbon policies and practices in food supply chain operations. Furthermore, governments should encourage policies such as mobility management programmes, urban redevelopment and privatisation to enhance better transportation systems and infrastructure to continuously reduce CO2e from the food trade.Originality/valueAlthough logistics play a major role in CO2 emissions, all logistics CO2 emissions for other countries are not included in the ONS data. This research reveals some important insights into the UK food supply chains. Logistics and other food supply chain processes of importing countries significantly contribute to CO2 emissions which are yet to be considered in the UK food SCs.

Sustainable life cycle offers through cooperation

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Selberherr
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Business Model ◽  
Value Creation ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Construction Sector ◽  
Content Type ◽  
New Business ◽  
Societal Level

Purpose – Sustainable buildings bear enormous potential benefits for clients, service providers, and our society. To release this potential a change in business models is required. The purpose of this paper is to develop a new business model with the objective of proactively contributing to sustainable development on the societal level and thereby improving the economic position of the service providers in the construction sector. Design/methodology/approach – The modeling process comprises two steps, the formal structuring and the contextual configuration. In the formal structuring systems theory is used and two levels are analytically separated. The outside view concerns the business model’s interaction with the environment and its impact on sustainability. The inside view focusses on efficient value creation for securing sustainability. The logically deductively developed business model is subsequently theory-led substantiated with Giddens’ structuration theory. Findings – The relevant mechanisms for the development of a new service offer, which creates a perceivable surplus value to the client and contributes to sustainable development on the societal level, are identified. The requirements for an efficient value creation process with the objective of optimizing the service providers’ competitive position are outlined. Research limitations/implications – The model is developed logically deductively based on literature and embedded in a theoretical framework. It has not yet been empirically tested. Practical implications – Guidelines for the practical implementation of more sustainable business models for the provision of life cycle service offers are developed. Social implications – The construction industry’s impact requires it to contribute proactively to a more sustainable development of the society. Originality/value – This paper analyzes the role for the players in the construction sector in proactively contributing to sustainable development on the societal level. One feasible strategy is proposed with a new business model, which aims at cooperatively optimizing buildings and infrastructures and taking the responsibility for the operating phase via guarantees.

Propagation of risks and their impact on performance in fresh food retail

2015 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 568-602 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samir K Srivastava ◽  
Atanu Chaudhuri ◽  
Rajiv K. Srivastava
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Performance Measures ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Food Retail ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Fresh Food ◽  
Retail Supply Chains ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Supply Chain Risks

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to carry out structural analysis of potential supply chain risks and performance measures in fresh food retail by applying interpretive structural modeling (ISM). Design/methodology/approach – Inputs were taken from industry experts in identifying and understanding interdependencies among food retail supply chain risks on different levels (sourcing and logistics outside the retail stores; storage and customer interface at the stores). Interdependencies among risks and their impact on performance measures are structured into a hierarchy in order to derive subsystems of interdependent elements to derive useful insights for theory and practice. Findings – Using the ISM approach the risks and performance measures were clustered according to their driving power and dependence power. Change in/inadequate government regulations’ are at the bottom level of the hierarchy implying highest driving power and require higher attention and focussed mitigation strategies. Risks like lack of traceability, transport delays/breakdowns and temperature abuse, cross-contamination in transport and storage have medium driver and dependence powers. Research limitations/implications – The approach is focussed on food retail supply chains in the Indian context and thereby limits the ability to generalize the findings. The academics and experts were selected on convenience and availability. Practical implications – It gives managers a better understanding of the risks and performance measures that have most influence on others (driving performance measures) and those measures which are most influenced by others (dependent performance measures) in fresh food retail and also a tool to prioritize them. This kind of information is strategic for managers who can use it to identify which performance measures they should concentrate on managing the trade-offs between measures. The findings and the applicability for practical use have been validated by both experts and practicing managers in food retail supply chains. Originality/value – The work is perhaps the first to link supply chain risks with performance and explains the propagation of risks in food retail supply chains. It contributes to theory by addressing a few research gaps and provides relevant managerial insights for practitioners.

Washington will rethink its foreign chip strategy

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
The United States ◽  
Export Controls ◽  
Political Pressure ◽  
Technical Standards ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us ◽  
Technology Competition ◽  
Business In China

Significance Follow-on action from Washington and responses from foreign actors will shape the US government’s adversarial policy towards China in semiconductors and other strategic technologies. Impacts The Biden administration will likely conclude that broad-based diversion of the semiconductor supply chain away from China is not feasible. The United States will rely on export controls and political pressure to prevent diffusion to China of cutting-edge chip technologies. The United States will focus on persuading foreign semiconductor leaders to help develop US capabilities, thereby staying ahead of China. Washington will focus on less direct approaches to strategic technology competition with China, notably technical standards-setting. Industry leaders in the semiconductor supply chain worldwide will continue expanding business in China in less politically sensitive areas.

AI technologies and their impact on supply chain resilience during COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sachin Modgil ◽  
Shivam Gupta ◽  
Rébecca Stekelorum ◽  
Issam Laguir
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Information Processing ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Failure Modes ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Weak Links ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Supply Chain Resilience

PurposeCOVID-19 has pushed many supply chains to re-think and strengthen their resilience and how it can help organisations survive in difficult times. Considering the availability of data and the huge number of supply chains that had their weak links exposed during COVID-19, the objective of the study is to employ artificial intelligence to develop supply chain resilience to withstand extreme disruptions such as COVID-19.Design/methodology/approachWe adopted a qualitative approach for interviewing respondents using a semi-structured interview schedule through the lens of organisational information processing theory. A total of 31 respondents from the supply chain and information systems field shared their views on employing artificial intelligence (AI) for supply chain resilience during COVID-19. We used a process of open, axial and selective coding to extract interrelated themes and proposals that resulted in the establishment of our framework.FindingsAn AI-facilitated supply chain helps systematically develop resilience in its structure and network. Resilient supply chains in dynamic settings and during extreme disruption scenarios are capable of recognising (sensing risks, degree of localisation, failure modes and data trends), analysing (what-if scenarios, realistic customer demand, stress test simulation and constraints), reconfiguring (automation, re-alignment of a network, tracking effort, physical security threats and control) and activating (establishing operating rules, contingency management, managing demand volatility and mitigating supply chain shock) operations quickly.Research limitations/implicationsAs the present research was conducted through semi-structured qualitative interviews to understand the role of AI in supply chain resilience during COVID-19, the respondents may have an inclination towards a specific role of AI due to their limited exposure.Practical implicationsSupply chain managers can utilise data to embed the required degree of resilience in their supply chains by considering the proposed framework elements and phases.Originality/valueThe present research contributes a framework that presents a four-phased, structured and systematic platform considering the required information processing capabilities to recognise, analyse, reconfigure and activate phases to ensure supply chain resilience.

The role of digital economy in China's sustainable development in a post-pandemic environment

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Malin Song ◽  
Chenbin Zheng ◽  
Jiangquan Wang
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Social Development ◽  
Environmental Protection ◽  
Digital Economy ◽  
Series Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic is still raging, which calls for an exploration of how to prevent and control pandemics to promote sustainable development. The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of the digital economy in sustainable development, the relationship between the two, the impacts of the outbreak on economic and social development, and changes in China's digital economy.Design/methodology/approachThe study used the time-series data from 2002 to 2019 and an unconstrained VAR model to examine the relationship between the digital economy and sustainable development before the pandemic.FindingsChina's digital economy has promoted the country's sustainable economic and social development; it has advanced rapid economic growth, improved people's living standards, increased efficient utilization of resources, and strengthened environmental protection.Research limitations/implicationsAmid the pandemic, China's digital economy developed effectively; it showed strong resilience because of its unique advantages. The digital economy in China has helped the country to control the pandemic in a short period, reduced the risk of supply chain disruption, promoted China's economic growth, and ensured the orderly operation of society. Therefore, countries worldwide are encouraged to prioritize their digital economies.Originality/valueCompared with the extant literature, this study explores the sustainable supply chain in a broader sense in the context of a pandemic, and how the supply chain is influenced by the digital economy. It not only includes the stability, resilience, and viability of the supply chain in economic development but also involves aspects of people's life, resource utilization, and environmental protection.

A multi-objective model for sustainable closed-loop supply chain of perishable products under two carbon emission regulations

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Saman Esmaeilian ◽  
Dariush Mohamadi ◽  
Majid Esmaelian ◽  
Mostafa Ebrahimpour
Keyword(s):  
Mathematical Model ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Carbon Emission ◽  
Closed Loop ◽  
Perishable Products ◽  
Supply Chain Network ◽  
Closed Loop Supply Chain ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Trade Model

Purpose This paper aims to minimize the total carbon emissions and costs and also maximize the total social benefits. Design/methodology/approach The present study develops a mathematical model for a closed-loop supply chain network of perishable products so that considers the vital aspects of sustainability across the life cycle of the supply chain network. To evaluate carbon emissions, two different regulating policies are studied. Findings According to the obtained results, increasing the lifetime of the perishable products improves the incorporated objective function (IOF) in both the carbon cap-and-trade model and the model with a strict cap on carbon emission while the solving time increases in both models. Moreover, the computational efficiency of the carbon cap-and-trade model is higher than that of the model with a strict cap, but its value of the IOF is worse. Results indicate that efficient policies for carbon management will support planners to achieve sustainability in a cost-effectively manner. Originality/value This research proposes a mathematical model for the sustainable closed-loop supply chain of perishable products that applies the significant aspects of sustainability across the life cycle of the supply chain network. Regional economic value, regional development, unemployment rate and the number of job opportunities created in the regions are considered as the social dimension.

Applying Industry 4.0 technologies in the COVID–19 sustainable chains

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carina Acioli ◽  
Annibal Scavarda ◽  
Augusto Reis
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Supply Chain Performance ◽  
Chain Process ◽  
Sustainable Supply Chain ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Performance ◽  
The Social ◽  
New Research

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is 1) to investigate the effects on the crucial Industry 4.0 technological innovations that interact between the real and virtual worlds and that are applied in the sustainable supply chain process; 2) to contribute to the identification of the opportunities, the challenges and the gaps that will support the new research study developments and 3) to analyze the impact of the Industry 4.0 technologies as facilitators of the sustainable supply chain performance in the midst of the Coronavirus (COVID-19).Design/methodology/approachThis research is performed through a bibliographic review in the electronic databases of the Emerald Insight, the Scopus and the Web of Science, considering the main scientific publications on the subject.FindingsThe bibliographic search results in 526 articles, followed by two sequential filters for deleting the duplicate articles (resulting in 487 articles) and for selecting the most relevant articles (resulting in 150 articles).Practical implicationsThis article identifies the opportunities and the challenges focused on the emerging Industry 4.0 theme. The opportunities can contribute to the sustainable performance of the supply chains and their territories. The Industry 4.0 can also generate challenges like the social inequalities related to the position of the man in the labor market by replacing the human workforce with the machines. Therefore, the man-machine relationship in the Industry 4.0 era is analyzed as a gap in the literature. Therefore, as a way to fill this gap, the authors of this article suggest the exploration of the research focused on the Society 5.0. Also known as “super-smart society,” this recent theme appeared in Japan in April 2016. According to Fukuda (2020), in addition to the focus on the technological development, the Society 5.0 also aims at the quality of life and the social challenge resolutions.Originality/valueThis article contributes to the analysis of the Industry 4.0 technologies as facilitators in the sustainable supply chain performance. It addresses the impacts of the Industry 4.0 technologies applied to the supply chains in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it analyzes the research gaps and limitations found in the literature. The result of this study can add value and stimulate new research studies related to the application of the Industry 4.0 technologies as facilitators in the supply chain sustainable performance. It can encourage the studies related to the COVID-19 impacts on the sustainable supply chains, and it can promote the research development on the relationship among the man, the machine and the labor in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document