Interpretive structural modelling to assess third party logistics providers

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to analyse the extent of the integration between manufacturers and third party logistics (TPL) providers at present and how the integration is expected to develop in the near future. The focus is on studying what tasks are part of the cooperation, what information and communications technology (ICT) tools are used for support, and what types of services are supplied and are expected to be supplied by TPL providers in the future.Design/methodology/approachA multiple case study of seven manufacturers and TPL providers is conducted. As the basis for the study a literature review is presented focusing on supply chain management and TPL provider integration as well as operationalisation of the integration concept. A framework is chosen for developing a detailed interview guide.FindingsCooperation is primarily found in sub‐processes of three out of the eight business processes studied. Further integration in the same processes is expected, based on ICT tools and with a focus on cost. ICT competences are primarily seen as a qualifier not a differentiator. Because the future TPL industry is expected to be characterised by more standardised services, more segmented markets for the various services and more intense competition, the manufacturers do not expect increased dependence on the TPL providers.Research limitations/implicationsManagerial and behavioural components are not part of this study and their effect on integration will require further investigation.Originality/valueFrom a supply chain management perspective, the study sheds light on a rarely explored area concerning the integration between manufacturers and TPL providers and its future development.

For most of the manufacturing firms, logistics is not considered to be a core competency and it is often performed by Third Party Logistics Provider (TPLP). The present work describes an efficient decision framework for TPLP evaluation and selection in supply chain. The objective of this paper is to explain how an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Performance Value Analysis (PVA) algorithm can be used to capture and analyse Significant Categories (SCs) and Performance Indicators (PIs) for ranking the TPLPs effectively. The application of decision framework for TPLP evaluation and selection has been demonstrated with a case situation.

The modernization and digitization of businesses have significantly influenced the growth of the courier industry in Malaysia and globally. In today’s dynamic business environment, rapid shifts in operational processes have increased the demand for strategic partnerships to ensure sustainability in the digital age. Among these, collaboration with third-party logistics (3PL) providers has become a critical component of supply chain management. The integration of 3PL services, whether through contract logistics or outsourcing demonstrates the need for businesses to remain adaptable, particularly with the rise of e-commerce. While courier companies have traditionally been part of the logistics landscape, the evolving nature of logistics management now necessitates deeper engagement with 3PL providers. Consequently, organizations must carefully evaluate the performance and suitability of such partnerships before implementation. This study aims to review existing performance metrics within the 3PL sector and identify key factors that contribute to effective performance measurement. The ultimate goal is to develop relevant performance indicators tailored to courier companies operating in 3PL environments.

This study investigates the dynamic carbon emission reduction strategies in a three-tier cold chain supply system consisting of producer, third-party logistics (TPL) provider, and retailer. Using differential game theory, it explores the emission reduction and preservation strategies of supply chain members under different cost-sharing mechanisms. This study finds that when the entity with higher marginal profits shares the costs, the TPL provider increases its efforts in emission reductions and research and development (R&D) investment. The producer and retailer are more willing to enhance their emission reduction efforts when sharing emission reduction costs, which increases carbon emission reduction and decreases overall emissions. Cost-sharing for preservation enhances the TPL provider’s R&D enthusiasm but does not affect the total emission reduction. When the marginal profits of the producer and retailer reach a certain level, sharing both emission reductions and preservation costs can simultaneously improve carbon reduction and preservation quality. An emission reduction cost-sharing contract can increase corporate profits, while a preservation cost-sharing contract further enhances profitability based on emission reduction cost sharing. Furthermore, the carbon emission reduction and preservation quality of fresh products gradually increase over time and eventually stabilize.

Enterprises have difficulty in completing all the required operations when facing market competition and environmental changes. In such situations, enterprises begin to explore their capacity to outsource logistics from external support, hence giving the existence of a third-party logistics. But in recent years, few scholars have inducted the third-party logistics to reverse logistics. This study thus explores the relationships among recycling by manufacturers, retailers, and third-party logistics providers in the framework of reverse logistics. Returned items must be disassembled, inspected, and disposed off to determine if they can be re-manufactured in the recycling process. Thus, this study constructs a mathematical model to get the maximum profit under the assumption that transfer price is induced by a third-party logistics service. From an overall supply chain standpoint of total profit, the third model in which the third-party provider leads returned product collection before transferring back to the manufacturer for remanufacturing, is preferred. This study shows that it is feasible when a third-party logistics provider is used in the reverse logistics system and that return rate and retail price are the main determinants of total profit. Therefore, the total profit increases when the retail price increases.

In many cases, end customers are sensitive to a product’s logistics service level which is provided by a third-party logistics (3PL) provider, therefore, the continuous improvement of the logistics service is imperative and valuable. However, the problem is that improving the logistics service benefits all of them, but is costly to only the 3PL provider. The 3PL provider is not willing to do this. Sharing the logistics cost is one solution to this problem. This study investigates cost sharing in two kinds of supply chains, i.e., one manufacturer-one 3PL provider-one retailer supply chain and two manufacturers-one 3PL provider-one retailer supply chain. Two types of cost sharing mechanisms, i.e., decentralized cost sharing mechanisms and centralized cost sharing mechanisms, are explored. Decentralized cost sharing mechanisms are proposed as contracts that chain members separately decide their cost sharing portions to optimize their own profits, ignoring the collective impacts of their decisions on the channel as a whole. Centralized cost sharing mechanisms are in the situation that chain members negotiate their cost sharing portions so that their profits are the shares of the entire supply chain’s profit, implying that the supply chain is coordinated perfectly. This study aims to analyse how cost sharing mechanisms affect supply chain performance and under what conditions chain members are willing to engage in cost sharing mechanisms. Conditions necessary for cost sharing mechanisms to achieve win-win outcomes are identified.

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.

Many third-party logistics (3PL) providers in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region are small to medium companies, which play an important role in outbound logistics, managing logistics activities in the manufacturing supply chain in the Greater China. It is necessary for these companies to improve information transparency to their supply chain partners to maintain competitiveness. In this paper, a logistics information management platform known as Integrated Logistics Information Management System (ILIMS) is presented to suit this need. ILIMS aims to provide 3PL companies a uniform way of doing business with other trading partners and managing operation performance online. Besides, it enables 3PL companies to communicate with different trading partners on the internet without geographical restriction. A case study is presented with the application of ILIMS to a medium-sized 3PL company. With this generic system, the overall outbound logistics performance of the supply chain was significantly improved.

Interpretive structural modeling is used to generate the hierarchy used in worth assessment. The partitioning techniques of interpretive structural modeling are extended to permit identification of a single sink digraph tree as a special type of structural model. The worth assessment hierarchy is identified as a single sink digraph tree. An example is presented to demonstrate how the extended partitioning techniques can be used in the interpretive structural modeling process to generate the worth assessment hierarchy for a higher education program planning problem.

In the supply chain composed of tench production association and the third-party logistics provider, the third-party logistics' efforts can reduce the rate of tench going stale. Based on jointly losses bearing in tench Sales, the benefits derived from the reduction of tench going stale are primarily occupied by the tench production association, so there is not enough incentive for the third-party logistics provider. By adopting the game theory and under the conditions of either information symmetry or asymmetry, the optimal contracts can realize the supply chain coordination.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the interaction among some of the major barriers that may hinder the implementation of third-party logistics (TPL) in manufacturing industries. Design/methodology/approach – This paper uses an interpretive structural modeling (ISM) methodology to analyze the interactions among the barriers. Findings – It is beneficial for the management of any firm to be aware of significant barriers and to diagnose those that could be integral to the organization's future survival. Many works have focused on identifying barriers for TPL implementation, but a model for such barriers is lacking. This paper attempts to develop a model for the barriers using an ISM methodology and analyzes the mutual interactions among the barriers. The model differentiates between the barriers so that driving barriers, which can intensify other barriers, and dependent barriers are identified separately. Originality/value – In this research, eight barriers are considered. Interactions between the barriers are evaluated with the help of the ISM matrix. Of the eight barriers, three barriers, including the lack of application and knowledge of advanced information technology, congested roadways and ports, and fear of employees of the firm, demonstrate both strong driving power and strong dependence power, as illustrated in the MICMAC analysis.

Targeting the principal-agent relationship between logistics outsourcing enterprises and suppliers of third-party logistics, a principal-agent model is established. The risk cost of the third-party logistics suppliers and the incentive cost of the logistics outsourcing enterprises is analyzed; a designing ideal of protection from risks is put forward. With the internationalization of enterprise competition, non-core logistics businesses are outsourced to promote competitive strength as a strategy. Through logistics outsourcing, logistics cost can be reduced and core competency also can be strengthened. The relationship built between logistics outsourcing enterprises and the third-party logistics suppliers is called principal-agent relation. The principal-agent model is studied.

Safety measures are the ones to increase the level of safety or rather are control measures, to alleviate the physical destruction by the formulated safety policies or visual management practices or through physical signage. Two factors which determine the impact of non-existence of safety practices in any organization are economic repercussions and large humanitarian. This is particularly prevalent among the manufacturing firm which holds a track record of maximum illness and injury rate for the past couple of years. This outlays the importance of safety in any organization. The contemporary trend of manufacturing firms is that, the safety practices that exist in the organization or in the shop floor is aligned with the very nature of its business or the way its operations run. This gives us a limited understanding on safety implementation in those firms. This paper primarily focuses upon identifying the most important drivers that are rudimentary for improvement of safety practices. This paper makes use of interpretive structural modeling whose output elucidates two important components namely, driving power and dependence power. Driving power is the level of prominence that each driver has got in importance in the safety practice improvement. Dependence power is the level of interdependency between them.

In recent times the rapid globalization of markets, the increase in international trade, and technological advancements have dramatically improved the reach and integration of business between countries. This impels logistics to be among the first function that can be outsourced to organizations whose core business is logistics itself, which are known as third-party logistics providers (3PL). This study identifies and analyzes the factors that influence the decision of whether manufacturers and retailers outsource or run logistics in house. Based on a theoretic study on relevant data and literatures, the study indicates five key factors that influence the decision: core competency and corporate culture, in-house technology capabilities, overhead and fixed logistics costs and customer service and risk control. Moreover, following an in-depth evaluation of the entire supply chain process, the study provides a decision framework to help firms make the decision.

Due to the complexity and uncertainty of third-party logistics (3PL) provider selection circumstances, the research on the hybrid multi-criteria decision-making (HMCDM) method with fuzzy hesitation information is becoming more and more important. Based on symmetry principles, both the objectivity of the decision information and the subjectivity of decision makers’ (DMs) preferences should be considered in the HMCDM method. In this paper, a novel interactive decision-making method to deal with the 3PL provider selection problem of hesitant fuzzy sets, intuitionistic fuzzy sets and real numbers is developed. We first investigate the positive and negative ideal solutions of the alternative and the satisfaction degree of the DMs under hybrid multi-criteria circumstances. Then, the interactive HMCDM models based on satisfaction degrees are established, which can use objective decision information to rank alternatives and, symmetrically, the preference information of the DMs is also taken into account. DMs can modify their preference information using the models and thus make the most reasonable selection of 3PL provider. Finally, the case analysis and sensitivity analysis show that the change of parameter and the setting of the satisfaction lower limit will not affect the optimal rank of alternatives, and the feasibility of the proposed method is confirmed.