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Start date: 2020Subject: search.filters.subject.350909 Supply chains

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    A supplier development framework for agri-food value chains in developing countries : a test on a dairy value chain in Sri Lanka : a thesis with publication presented in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Logistics and Supply Chain Management, School of Food Technology and Natural Sciences, Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2025) DeSilva, Leeza
    Agri-food value chains (AVC) in developing countries, including dairy value chains (VC), face significant challenges. A key issue is farmers' limited capacity to improve their operational performance (e.g., product quality, delivery, and production efficiency) despite the support they may typically receive, which hinders the achievement of their triple-bottom-line (TBL) outcomes. In an AVC, farmers supply commodities that buyers (e.g., processors) purchase to add value. The concept of supplier development (SD) refers to a buyer taking an effort—strong or weak—to improve the capability and/or performance of their supplier. This makes SD (as understood in operations and supply chain management), an attractive proposition for predicting and explaining how farmer development initiatives by buyers can improve farmers' operational performance and their TBL outcomes. The objectives of the study were to: (i) study the dairy VC of Sri Lanka to understand how farmer development takes place through a milk processor; (ii) develop and test a theoretical model that predicts and explains the relationship between processor-led farmer development initiatives, farmer capability, processor-farmer relationship, and a farmer’s sustainable performance; (iii) analyze farmer heterogeneity to enable milk processors and other interested parties to better focus on farmer development initiatives; (iv) develop an index to measure the overall sustainable performance of dairy farmers and facilitate efficient, sustainability-focused development. The model developed through the literature posited that farmer development—farmer training (FT), financial support (FS), evaluation and feedback on farmer quality performance (EFFQP)—results in farmer TBL performance, through the mediation effects of farmer capability (FC) and processor-farmer relationship (PFR). Data collected from 324 Sri Lankan dairy farmers were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The heterogeneity analysis was conducted using cluster analysis, while the parameters of the sustainability index were estimated by fitting an index-creating model to the data. The findings supported the overarching hypothesis. FS as well as EFFQP were found to be having a more substantial positive impact on sustainable farmer performance than FT. Cluster analysis identified three distinct clusters—labeled as laggers, accelerators, and leaders—based on the cluster variables used. Laggers were found to be significantly underachieving in economic outcomes and FC, compared to accelerators. Notable differences in farmer and farm characteristics were identified across these clusters, and cluster-specific suggestions were provided to milk processors and policymakers to improve the FC and TBL outcomes of the farmers. The overall sustainability index, which considered farmer TBL outcomes and their enablers, suggested that all components and sub-components of the index are important (weight-wise) but farmer capability as a category commanded the highest weight (0.236) and farmer’s economic outcomes as a category commanded the lowest weights (0.170). The implications of these empirically generated weights were discussed and how the study contributes to new knowledge was argued.
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    Developing a framework for prefabrication supply chain integration in New Zealand using blockchain technology : a thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Construction Project Management, School of Built Environment, College of Sciences, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2024) Bakhtiarizadeh, Ehsan
    Prefabrication or off-site fabrication in New Zealand is snowballing in terms of its contribution to the delivery of construction projects. The increasing demand for new houses and the lack of affordable accommodations in New Zealand evolved the need for innovative and effective project delivery systems instead of conventional types. The prefabrication sub-sector is considered leverage for eliminating the shortcomings of traditional construction systems. However, this sub-sector of the construction industry struggles with challenges such as low coordination and integration across its supply chain partners. These challenges are attributed to the inefficient foundation of communication and information flow. This research addresses the problem of the relatively weak integration within New Zealand's prefabrication construction supply chain. The particular focus of the study is on information integration. The central point is that an effective and efficient exchange of information among supply chain stakeholders is imperative for enhancing supply chain integration in New Zealand's highly fragmented construction industry. Therefore, this study concludes that providing an effective information-integration-based platform for stakeholders involved in prefabrication projects will deliver integration improvement in the whole supply chain system. Blockchain technology, as a secure information integration instrument, capably improves the integration of information flow within the prefabrication sub-sector. Blockchain, a decentralised, safe, and unalterable information storage, offers numerous benefits to investors, clients, end-users, and other organisations or individuals. This technology, via its inherent features such as decentralisation, consensus mechanism, and immutability, supports organisations engaged in the supply chain with more transparent and trustful interactions and information flow. By adopting qualitative and quantitative data collection methods, this research provides insight into the applicability of blockchain technology within prefabrication construction supply chains. Minimum input requirements for blockchain according to types and patterns of information will be identified and categorised, and an applicable framework for using this new information integration technology will be proposed. Some key findings of this study are the identification and classification of (1) key stakeholders and recent project phases within the prefabrication supply chain, (2) flow of information across the stakeholders in different project phases, (3) important information attributes, (4) communication channels among stakeholders, and (4) impact of blockchain technology on facilitating information integration in the prefabrication construction industry of New Zealand. This research utilised pilot interviews, a questionnaire survey, a focus group study, and a validation survey to verify the objectives of the research and validate the proposed blockchain-based framework. The findings of this research could also be relevant to other industries facing similar challenges that rely heavily on information inputs. By identifying the importance of efficient information integration and the attributes crucial for successful project outcomes, stakeholders can prioritise investments in technologies like blockchain to streamline communication and data sharing across the supply chain. The identification of conventional communication modes like email, meetings, and internet-based applications in the prefabrication supply chain suggests a reliance on traditional methods for information exchange. However, the research underscores the importance of transparency, traceability, and reliability in communication, especially in the context of advanced information technology adoption. This implies a need for stakeholders to develop tailored communication strategies that leverage both conventional methods and emerging technologies to ensure effective collaboration throughout project phases. Finally, the development of a practical document management framework utilising blockchain technology presents opportunities for innovation and collaboration within the prefabrication industry. By demonstrating the applicability of blockchain in addressing document management challenges and validating the framework through expert feedback, the research paves the way for industry practitioners to adopt similar approaches in their projects. This suggests a broader trend towards embracing digital solutions and collaborative platforms to enhance information exchange, transparency, and project efficiency in the prefabrication sector.
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    Supply chain integration in prefabricated residentialconstruction in New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Construction at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2022) Sooriyamudalige, Nishadi Anuruddika
    Prefabrication has long been reported as an effective alternative to conventional construction, with wide-ranging benefits. It serves as a valuable source of providing time, cost, quality, productivity, health and safety and environmental benefits to residential construction. Although prefabrication has gained much attention, the residential construction industry appears to be taking minimal advantage of prefabrication due to barriers associated with this methodology. Inefficiencies in the supply chain are one of the major issues that hinder the wider uptake of prefabrication in residential construction. However, there has been little research in the literature considering the supply chain and supply chain integration in prefabricated residential construction. Therefore, this research aims to improve supply chain integration in prefabricated residential construction. The objectives of the research include 1. review and analyse the nature of the processes and supply chain relationships of module and panel manufacturing in New Zealand residential construction; 2. identify the barriers to implementing effective supply chain practices in module and panel manufacturing in New Zealand residential construction; 3. identify the enablers for effective supply chain practices in module and panel manufacturing in New Zealand residential construction; 5. develop and validate a framework to measure and improve the current supply chain practices in module and panel manufacturing in the New Zealand housing sector. The research used a multi-tiered qualitative approach for data collection. Firstly, twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect data. The collected data was analysed using thematic analysis. Based on the literature review and analysed data maturity model was developed. The developed model was validated through focus group interviews. After validation, three case studies were conducted to benchmark the supply chain integration based on the maturity model. Key findings emerged from the study: a standardised supply chain network for prefabricated residential construction and module and panel manufacturing was developed; 13 barriers (both internal and external) for supply chain integration in module and panel manufacturing were identified. Enablers (9 enablers) were identified to mitigate the barriers to supply chain integration in module and panel manufacturing; a maturity model was developed to improve supply chain integration continuously. The recommendation can improve the maturity model, widening the scope and applicability for future research. The content of this thesis is beneficial for prefabrication manufacturers to assess their supply chain practices throughout the performance improvement process, for the residential construction industry to encourage residential prefabrication manufacturers to adopt and improve supply chain practices, for government and interested organisations to encourage residential prefabrication manufacturers by implementing favourable regulations and policies relevant prefabrication residential construction. Keywords: Prefabrication; Residential construction; module and panel manufacturing; supply chain integration; maturity
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    The effects of blockchain on supply chain trust : a thesis presented in partial of the requirements for the Master of Supply Chain Management at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2022) French, Liam Anthony
    Enterprises place strategic importance on supply chains to effectively manage their flow of materials, products, and information. Supply chains primary aim is to have the right product, at the right place, at the right cost, at the right time. Therefore, any gain in efficiency leads to a competitive advantage for the enterprise. A key element to achieving differentiation from competitors is through collaborative partnerships with supply chain suppliers and ultimately, this is achieved by the presence of high-level trust amongst stakeholders. The academic pursuit of this research paper is to explore the type of trust found in supply chain relationships and what effect the adoption of an innovative technology like blockchain would have on trust. Through a thorough literature review, this research thesis addresses comparisons of types of trust, the importance of trust and how trust is achieved in supply chains. Blockchain is, by all definitions, a nascent technology and this amplifies concerns of risk from enterprise and further increases its barriers to adoption. This research thesis argues that blockchain is particularly exposed to a slow rate of adoption due to a lack of knowledge of what distinguishes it from other exponential technologies. In arguing this the research seeks to answer the question: how does blockchain affect trust in supply chain relationships? Through the development of a survey and semi-structured interviews, responses capture the attitude of supply chain professionals surrounding perceived trust in their supply chain, their piloting of exponential technologies and the biggest inhibitors they have experienced to implementing blockchain in their organisations. One of the conclusions of this research is that through the successful implementation of blockchain, enterprises are likely to see increased trust, sustainability, visibility, and efficiency. This cannot be achieved however without an increased understanding from management about the technology, its use cases, and the efficiencies it will bring to a modern, resilient, and adaptive supply chain. This research establishes that the future for blockchain is optimistic if greater awareness of the technological benefits is exposed to the supply chain industry and its various stakeholders.
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    A Scholarly Review of Supply Chain Integration within the New Zealand Wool Industry
    (Operations and Engineering Innovation, Massey University, Manawatu Campus, Palmerston North, 2021-12) Bezuidenhout, Carel N.; Passos de Oliveira, Daniel; Black, Anthony; Murrell, Teresa; Dela Cruz, Chelsea; Vaghela, Bhavin; Kirk, Logan P.; Kathara, Rahul Dilip; Sun, Noah
    Supply Chain Integration is a vast field of study, and a Google Scholar search will reveal more than 2.7 million publications in this space. This document captures some of the core concepts when the degree of integration of a primary industry supply chain, such as the wool industry, is evaluated. The book was developed after final year students in Massey University’s Logistics and Supply Chain Management Programme conducted an in-depth review as part of a formal assessment. The content of the book is of a scholarly nature and caution should be practiced before any guidelines are implemented. The students studied the literature, reports, newspaper articles and accessed information on the internet. However, the most valuable source of information was through interviews with industry representatives, most noteworthy, an interactive question and answer session with wool exporter, Mr Ryan Cosgrove.
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    Supply chain information visibility and its impact on decision-making : an integrated model in the pharmaceutical industry : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management at Massey University, Albany, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2021) Nguyen, Thi Thanh Hoa
    Supply chain information visibility (SCIV) has been largely recognized as a key issue in pharmaceutical supply chain management. In recent years, there has been growing concern regarding the exponential growth and ubiquity of supply chain information as the result of the application of advanced technologies. Thus, the topic of visibility of information flow across a supply chain has attracted interest in both practice and academia. Despite the existence of considerable literature on SCIV, the concept is still under-theorized. The lack of a clear understanding of the characteristics of SCIV has made it difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of SCIV and, consequently, hinders the improvement of SCIV (McIntire, 2014). Second, recent research identifies the potential of SCIV for operational performance through supporting managerial decision-making but also points out challenges and risks. In addition, there is a dearth of behavioral empirical research on supply chain management topics with which to achieve an increase in theory-building research in the field. This research addresses these gaps in the literature and investigates how SCIV across the pharmaceutical supply chain is perceived by pharmaceutical supply chain practitioners who are involved in supply chain decision-making, and how the decision-makers make use of SCIV in their supply chain decision-making process. This study adopted an exploratory, and qualitative approach to address two research questions: “How do supply chain professionals perceive SCIV in the pharmaceutical supply chain?” and “How do supply chain professionals make informed supply chain decisions?” The constructivist grounded theory methodology was used to guide the data gathering and analysis. The data were mainly drawn from semi-structured interviews with supply chain practitioners in New Zealand-based pharmaceutical firms, working at different levels of the supply chain, including manufacturers and distributors. Based on the findings a theoretical model was developed, the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Information-based Decision-Making Model. The model explains the behavioral supply chain decision-making process in the pharmaceutical supply chain, based on the existence of a given level of SCIV. The empirical findings suggest that SCIV is achieved both within and outside of the pharmaceutical firms and that human relational factors tend to be more beneficial than technological factors in developing SCIV. The importance of this finding is that it addresses a frequently asked question in recent literature about what constitutes SCIV and how to successfully build information visibility in a supply chain. Moreover, this research contributes to the behavioural supply chain management research literature by introducing a theoretical model of pharmaceutical supply chain information-based decision-making, which is grounded in the field data. The model offers significant theoretical insight into information-based decision-making in the pharmaceutical supply chain context based on empirical data, which has been largely overlooked in the supply chain management discipline. The empirical findings suggest that supply chain practitioners make information-based decisions in which they conduct an informative engaging mechanism with technological tools, with relevant stakeholders, and with themselves. Thus, the decision-making process involves extensive data analysis along with the crucial support of experience-based intuition and relevant stakeholders’ engagement. Another key contribution of this study is the identification of the constructive aspect of political behaviour in the supply chain decision-making process in which relevant stakeholders when invited to engage in the process tend to positively contribute and buy into the decision. Finally, this thesis provides significant practical implications and suggest directions for future research. Supply chain practitioners may benefit from the study by utilizing the study’s results to develop supply chain information visibility in their firms. In addition, the theoretical model of the information-based decision-making process explicates a useful step-by-step approach for supply chain practitioners to follow in making effective supply chain operational decisions. Recommendations for further research are provided, especially the recommendations for further studies that are crucially needed to assist firms to counter the pharmaceutical supply chain disruption risks caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
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    Examining supply chain agility using social network analysis : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Supply Chain Management at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2020) Le, Nguyen Hong Ngoc
    In the current literature of supply chain agility (SCA), the extant agility models are not only rare but are also usually developed from the viewpoint of a firm rather than from a network perspective. While social network analysis (SNA) has proven its power and capacity in the social sciences, it has been rarely applied to supply chain management (SCM) phenomena. As such, this is a primary motivation for this study to take shape. The main focus of the research is refined to build on the Scion project on Rural Value Chains. It seeks to explore the appropriateness of SNA to assess SCA and to simultaneously make a relative agility comparison between supply chains by SNA. The empirical data are collected by structured interviews in a rural area of New Zealand and then analysed as a network case by varying SNA metrics, tools, and techniques. This thesis sheds light on how SNA is appropriate to tap into the areas that are barely recognised by the extant approaches. The findings show that SNA is well able to consider interactions and linkages in complex networks, and it also enables the integrated lens of network and complex adaptive system (CAS) to examine network agility in a comprehensive and systematic manner. SNA lends itself well to phenomena that directly relates to, or results from, network topology, connectivity, and interconnectedness, such as network visibility, speed of responses, and the ability to have multiple connection options. However, if used exclusively, SNA is less appropriate to examine attributes that either have qualitative elements or which are associated with firm operations. This thesis has added to the literature the applicability of SNA to evaluate SCA and to model SCs. For policy makers, it offers a clearer understanding of the local network for regional development plans. For business owners, it proposes an alternative approach of evaluating SCA, SC relationships, and SC members, so as to build up effective SCM strategies.
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    A Scholarly Review of Supply Chain Integration within the New Zealand Blueberry Industry
    (School of Food and Advanced Technology, Massey University, Manawatu Campus, Palmerston North, 2020-12) Bezuidenhout, Carel N.; Martin, Mitchel R.; Williams, Alexander H.; Peiris, Avinash; Wood, Katherine I.A.; Zhang, Tianxin; Shea, Gabriella; Lavelua, T. David; Cosgrove, Megan J.N.; Forman, Jade S.; Paranjape, Mrunal; Kodikara, D.R. Thenuka; Dalglish, Perry; Weng, Lihong; Cosson, Isaac; Raza, Shakeela; Claydon, Jonathon E.D.; Kour, Harpreet; Kathara, Rahul Dilip; Carel N. Bezuidenhout, PhD
    Ethics and credence attributes are the humanistic basis for establishing sustainable supply chain development. It determines brand reputation, ecology and customer experience. Furthermore, good ethics and credence Attributes promote the progress of industry leadership and increase the possibility of win-win strategies, especially in terms of negotiation. Negotiation is the premise of supply chain collaboration. The purpose of collaboration is to establish a synchronized supply chain to improve the ability of industry coordination. This is also the key to creating value, and the importance of risk management cannot be ignored. It is not only a guarantee for the smooth operation of the supply chain, but also an important measure to improve the flexibility of the supply chain. Finally, the results of supply chain integration need to rely on performance metrics and benchmarking to control and improve the overall performance of the supply chain. This publication evaluates modern theories in all these areas and contextualise it to the New Zealand blueberry industry. It is important that the reader appreciates the scholarly origin of this publication.
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    The influence of inter-firm investments on dyadic strategic alliances in supply chains : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Supply Chain Management at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2020) Singh, Digvijay
    “If you want to walk fast, walk alone. But if you want to walk far, walk together”- Rattan Tata. The purpose of this research is to provide insights about the influence dynamics of investments in an equity strategic alliance in supply chains. The investigation is focused on the influence of the inter-firm investments on a dyadic strategic alliance, and the relevant contribution towards achieving supply-chain management objective. Considering the research methodology, implications of inter-firm investments on the critical success factors of a strategic alliance are collected from eight companies in India and New Zealand, and synthesised to explain the overall influence on the strategic alliance; and the contribution to increase supply-chain surplus. In correspondence to the findings, study has explained how inter-firm investments can be used as strengthening tool for a strategic alliance; how it contributes to achieve supply-chain management objectives. Various creative implications/practices are highlighted to exploit an equity strategic alliance. By exploring the influence dynamics of investments in an equity strategic alliance, this study also corelates the subject to eliminating silo-mentality from the components of complete supply chain. Thus, neutralization/redistribution of negotiating power could be achieved in supply chains. However, this research is confined to New Zealand and India; capital companies; researcher’s philosophical constraints; research approach and so the results are not inevitably generalizable in all settings. Also, the research excludes the barriers to enter equity strategic alliance, which open the doors for further research. The conclusions encourage supply-chain participants to upgrade their strategic alliance with other participants to an equity strategic alliance. The analysis provides a solid background to consider making this decision and to broaden their perspective to external supply chain. The results also enable the participants to consider implementing other creative practices to benefit from the upgraded alliance and increase overall supply-chain surplus. In terms of originality, empirical investigation of the relationships between the inter-firm investments, the strategic alliance, and the supply chain management objective, in this study, contributes to the Supply Chain Management knowledge. This study adds another dimension to the study of equity strategic alliances, that also unlocks the direction for future research.