Reverse Supply Chains

Winner of IIE Book of the Month, December 2013The introduction of reverse supply chains has created many challenges in network design, transportation, selection of used products, selection and evaluation of suppliers, performance measurement, marketing-related issues, end-of-life (EOL) alternative selection, remanufacturing, disassembly, and produc

The world of logistics has considerably changed due to globalization, modern information technology, and especially increasing ecological awareness. Large Supply Chain Management (SCM) systems are developing to global logistic networks. This book reflects major trends of the recent decade in SCM and, additionally, presents ideas and visions for logistic networks of the 21st century. Among the various aspects of SCM, emphasis is placed on reverse logistics: closing the loop of a supply chain by integrating waste materials into logistic management decisions.

This book addresses decision making in reverse logistics, which concerns the integration of used and obsolete products back into the supply chain as valuable resources. It covers a wide range of aspects, related to distribution, production and inventory management, and supply chain management. For each topic, it highlights key managerial issues in real-life examples and explains which quantitative models are available for addressing them. By treating a broad range of issues in a unified way, the book offers the reader a comprehensive view on the field of reverse logistics.

Increasing legislative and environmental pressure requires businesses to become more responsive to products that either have been returned or that are at the end of their useful lives. Life cycles are getting shorter, and efficient handling can save large amounts of money since many materials can be extracted and reused or redistributed. Reverse lo

The rapid technological development of new products, coupled with the growing consumer desire for the latest technology, has led to a new environmental problem: products that are discarded prematurely. But behind every problem lies an opportunity. Many of these products can be reprocessed, leading to savings in natural resources, energy, landfill space, and ultimately, time and money. Strategic Planning Models for Reverse and Closed-Loop Supply Chains addresses complex issues caused by the inherent uncertainty involved in every stage of a closed-loop supply chain. The book presents quantitative models for the many multifaceted issues faced by strategic planners of reverse and closed-loop supply chains amid the challenges of uncertainty in supply rate of used products, unknown condition of used products, and imperfect correlation between supply of used products and demand for reprocessed goods. The models proposed in this book provide understanding of how a particular issue can be effectively approached in a particular decision-making situation using a suitable quantitative technique or suitable combination of two or more quantitative techniques. This information then translates into decision-making strategies and guidance for reverse and closed-loop supply chain management.

Quality Management in Reverse Logistics intends to develop, collect, examine and evaluate a number of quality management (QM) tools and techniques, which can be applied in practice in order to understand, review and improve any closed-loop supply chain process. In other words, the book aims to examine the existing relationship between various well-developed and thoroughly studied quality issues, such as QM, quality assurance, standardization of processes and statistical quality control and the emerging research area of reverse logistics. Quality Management in Reverse Logistics contains modeling and quantitative methods that could be used by practitioners and academics in the reverse logistics industry, as well as a thorough description of QM tools and techniques. The book leads the potential reader to broaden their scope of thinking and acting in the new, promising area of reverse logistics, where QM can be applied.

Closed-Loop Supply Chains (CLSC) offer companies a unique opportunity to improve their profits whilst serving societal responsibility. The management of CLSC differs in a number of ways from managing supply chains in general. The book examines these differences and how these differences may be dealt with in practice, by offering a concrete framework, introducing the different aspects related to CLSC and their mutual relations, in a systematic logical way as well as cases clustered according to the inputs for a CLSC. The framework and especially the cases from successful companies offer the reader an invaluable help to build and improve CLSC.

Closed-loop supply chain activities such as remanufacturing, recycling, dismantling for spare parts, and reverse logistics have helped many companies tap into new revenue streams by finding secondary markets for their products, all while reducing their overall carbon footprint. Written by academic experts, in language that is accessible to practitioners, this authoritative resource examines recent research and case studies of companies running profitable reuse/remanufacture operations in various industries. It illustrates profitable practices in returned and recovered products, clearly explaining how to: design a reverse logistics network, conduct production planning, implement effective marketing strategies, and apply closed-loop supply chain strategies in industries besides manufacturing. From product development to materials to assembly and profitability, this complete resource explores the impact of these processes across all aspects of the supply chain.