Plasti有限公司能实现可持续物流与供应链管理吗？-Can PlastiCo Ltd. achieve sustainable Logistics and supply chain manageme

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04-29, 2014

Plasti有限公司能实现可持续物流与供应链管理吗？-Can PlastiCo Ltd. achieve sustainable Logistics and supply chain management?

Introduction 引言

多年来，组织中的管理者或领导者已经日益突显可持续的物流和供应链管理的重要性。国际商学院的凯琴与霍特（2006）认为，物流和供应链管理组织理论在当今竞争激烈的市场上显示出越来越多的效率。据说，物流和供应链管理也应该不断变化的适应外部环境和技术的发展，实现可持续外包和采购决策。

Over the years, managers or leaders in organizations have increasingly highlighted the importance of sustainable logistics and supplying chain management. Ketchen & Hult, (2006) argue that logistics and supplying chain management are closely integrated into organizational theory allowing for more and more efficiency in today’s competitive market. It is said that logistics and supplying chain management should also respond to changing external environments and technological developments to achieve sustainable outsourcing and purchasing decisions.

In this essay, focusing on sustainable logistics and supplying chain management, is aimed at discussing the significance of a case study conducted about PlastiCo Ltd. Firstly, it focused on case of PlastiCo Ltd and examined the purchasing strategy and inbound logistics management toward to waste production. Secondly, it analyzed the potential problems involved in logistics and supply chain management of PlastiCo Ltd. Finally, the essay represented some recommendations to help improve sustainable logistics and supply chain management in PlastiCo Ltd. It intended achieve well understanding of the significance of logistics and supply chain management. Meanwhile, the essay is important to improve the overall performance of logistics and supply chain management for PlastiCo Ltd.

Theoretical framework of logistics and supplying chain management 物流和供应链管理的理论框架

物流与供应链管理是指活动，如采购，供应，仓储物料，配送等。一般情况下，组织整合所有的活动分为物流与供应链管理部门。

Logistics and supply chain management refers to wide ranges of activities such as purchasing, supplying, storage of materials, and distribution, etc. Generally, organisations integrate all of activities into role of logistics and supply chain management department.

（2009）学科定义的物流管理规划的过程，实施和控制从起点快速、高效流动和储存的货物，服务和相关信息消费点和客户的需求。

Branch (2009) defined logistics management as processes of planning, implementing and controlling efficient, effective flow and storage of goods, services, and related information from point of origin to point of consumption and customers’ demands. There are two categories including business logistics and production logistics. In business, logistics includes inbound logistics and outbound logistics, which ranges from flow and storage of materials, distribution, purchasing, transportation, warehousing, capital, people, information flow and technologies. It promises right products to right place, at right time, in right quantity and quality at the cost controlling from end of production streamline to customers, which is described as 5Rs of logistics.#p#分页标题#e#

Supply chain management, as an expanded concept of logistics, covers large scales of interests and activities in organisations. According to one American professional association, supply chain management is set of activities including the planning, management, sourcing, procurement, logistics and customers (Mentzer, et al., 2001).

In today’s global dynamic market, supply and logistics management such as prices of materials, fluctuation of supply and quality, colors and texture of feedstock extensively affected by its related companies or suppliers (Svensson, 2002).

Company profile 公司简介

PlastiCo Ltd is one UK-based reprocessing company to collect plastic waste and reprocess into usable plastic pellets or granular for sale. The reprocessing industry is a new emerging field over the last two decades along with increasing attentions on environmental protection (PlastiCo, 2008a). As regarding for the source plastic waste of PlastiCo, it mainly collect and sort waste from local UK supply market and continental European market (Wong & Grant, 2009). There are two main processes concerning logistics and supply chain management for PlastiCo.

One is purchasing process which charged with purchasing managers and source right plastics waste, called feedstock for production. The managers must deal with several tasks such as sales forecast, production plan, inventory record and current status of tested feedstock from laboratory staff. Since the changing environment and market performance, all of tasks should update daily, weekly or monthly. It needs to forecast purchasing record, certain grades, colors, sale planning and available feedstock (PlastiCo, 2008b).

The other field of logistics and supply chain management was described as inbound logistics, which responded to processes of delivery by suppliers or collected by PlastiCo. Logistics staff, external transportation and warehouses usually involved in this process. On average, it would take 6 days from issuance of a purchase order to the delivery of orders to Plastic’s production plants (Mangan, et al., 2008). Meanwhile, inbound logistics charged with the sample testing and decided whether feedstock was suitable to requirements of production, laboratory testing and blend test. In other word, logistics staff mainly decided next flow location regarding feedstock. Figure 1 indicated each decision of inbound logistics in PlastiCo.

Findings 发现

Based on an investigation of logistics and supply chain management in PlastiCo, it found that there were several problems involved in purchasing process and inbound logistics.

Firstly, the purchasing managers are difficult to establish available feedstock requirements since the supply of plastic waste is unreliable and volatile, especially in UK local supply market. They usually have to guess how different available feedstock could be used to finished goods according to sales forecast and production plan. So, it is prone to cause the misuse of materials and feedstock without in light of the production planning.#p#分页标题#e#

Secondly, there was no any emphasis on either local UK supply market or Continental European supply market. It is that PlastiCo did not engage in establishment of stable supply relationship in both markets since the purchasing staff usually unsure about the contents of plastic waste and had to purchase several FIBC bags of contaminated or out-of-specification plastic waste.

Thirdly, in PlastiCo it lacked certain emergency measures to deal with the condition when some of the feedstock were not suitable for the planned production, For example, the wrong color or wrong size for production. The purchasing staff often had to rush to buy materials at high prices from suppliers.

Fourthly, there was lack of effective communication between laboratory staff and parching staff, or logistics staff since in PlastiCo it often emerged the case of failing to meet the specification of feedstock such as color or size of material. As a result, the purchasing staff must deal with emergency purchasing and make a spot market.

Fifthly, the storage or inventory management was efficiency for PlastiCo. Since there were usually happened to fail to blending test and visual test, the non-conformance record feedstock would occupy large space of storage or warehouse, though most of them would never used in future. Without immediate disposal, these failed feedstock became the major problems of inventory management and increase the cost of logistics and supply chain management.

Sixthly, the communication in PlastiCo with its suppliers was also proved to be ineffective since they often provided feedstock without according to the contracts requirements or without precise required packing.

Resolutions of logistics and supply chain management for PlastiCo Ltd. Plasti有限公司物流与供应链管理的决议

In order to help achieve sustainability of logistics and supply chain management, it recommended that in PlastiCo it should enhance its logistics and supply chain management with feasible strategies.

Firstly, enhancing performance of purchasing managers through establishing effective available feedstock requirements based on the production planning and sale forecast report. Purchasing managers can buy specifications according to the production planning and certain particular requirement. Information about feedstock requirement can be proposed by line managers or laboratory staff to purchasing managers based on word office documents. Meanwhile, purchasing managers can record each feedstock on paper of word excel table and share with other related staff. It maintains the free information share for feedstock among all people to avoid unnecessary misuse for particular material or products.

Secondly, improving and specifying risk management to deal with rush purchasing. The risk management is regarded very critical tool for any projects or planning (Chapman & Ward, 2003). In PlastiCo, the risk management provides feasible solutions such conditions without any delay of production or waste from higher purchase of spot market or rush decision. For example, urgent measures to “spot purchase”, purchasing managers could quickly find out stable supplier or standby feedstock in warehouse.#p#分页标题#e#

Thirdly, establishing relative stable and reliable supply market based on cost and transportation facility. It indicated that PlastiCo has not weighed the significance role toward to its supply market. Mentzer (2007), suggested that the supply market should be identified into primary and secondary level toward to supply relationship. It suggested PlastiCo can focus on primary local supply market and develop wide scale of secondary oversea supply market.

Fourthly, enhancing efficiency of communication among supplier, customer and purchasing managers.. Effective communication is critical to understand the business objectives, missions and helps to achieve business success (Bell & Smith, 2005). In PlastiCo, communication involves in all activities of logistics and supply chain management. It suggested that good communication channels should be enhanced in PlastiCo. For example, weekly meeting among purchasing managers, laboratory staff and line managers can organize regularly and discuss all of problems face to face. Then, through communication, it helps to find out solutions to improve the information share in PlastiCo.

Fifthly, regarding troubles of warehouse and inventory management, it suggested the PlastiCo should develop special warehouse centre nearby factories. Or it can establish cooperative relationship with other logistics companies in UK to share heavy inventory task, or large portion of NRC feedstock. It can relieve storage pressure from logistics and supply chain management.

Conclusion 结论

Because of the process of globalization and international development, the world is changing more rapid than ever before including the economic, social and the cultural environments and presents a more complex surrounding for every organization. Based on the above analysis, how to maintain sustainable logistics and supply chain management has become one critical issue for supporting production and any other activity.

This essay established theoretical framework of logistics and supply chain management in order to offer guidelines to current researches. Given increasing significance of logistics and supply chain management, it carried out case study of PlastiCo Ltd and found out problems regarding its logistics and supply chain network. It indicated that difficulties have been emerged to the company with respect to its inbound or outbound logistics and supply chain network. These problems extensively influenced company’s production planning and misuse of materials and feedstock. Subsequently, the essay enabled to provide recommendations and suggest integrated overall network of logistics and supply chain management in order to help achieve sustainability logistics and supply chain management in PlastiCo. Basically, it strongly suggests improvements in effective communication management, risk management, inventory management, focused on supplying the major markets of the UK. After all, stable, reliable, nearby supply market in UK for PlastiCo means less cost and faster delivery than continental European supply market.#p#分页标题#e#

References 参考文献

Bell, A. H. & Smith, D. M. (2005). Management communication, 2nd edition. Publisher: Wiley.

Branch, A. E. (2009). Global supply chain management and international logistics. T&F Books, UK.

Chapman, C. & Ward, S. (2003). Project risk management: Processes, Techniques and Insights, 2nd edition. John Wiley and Sons Ltd.

Hoffman, A. J. (2000). Competitive Environmental Management: A Guide to the Changing Business Landscape, Island Press, Washington, DC.

Ketchen, J, G., & Hult, T. M. (2006). Bridging organization theory and supply chain management: The case of best value supply chains. Journal of Operations Management, vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 573-580.

Mangan, J., Lalwani, C. & Butcher, T. (2008). Global Logistics and supply chain management. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Mentzer, J.T., DeWitt, W., Keebler, J. S., Min, S., Nix, N.W., Smith, C.D. & Zacharia, Z.G. (2001). Defining supply chain management, Journal of Business Logistics, Vol. 22 No.2, pp.1-25.

Mentzer, J. T. (2007). Defining Supply Chain Management, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 1-25.

PlastiCo, (2008a). Welcome to PlastiCo, (Online). Available at: http://www.plastico.co.uk/.

PlastiCo, (2008b). Sourcing, (Online). Available at: http://www.plastico.co.uk/servicepages4.html.

Svensson, G. (2002). The theoretical foundation of supply chain management: a functionalist theory of marketing, International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, Vol. 32 No.9, pp.734-54.

Wong, C. & Grant, D. B. (2009). MSc Logistics and supply chain management: sustainable logistics Module, Logistics of PlastiCo Ltd. Paper for Business School of Hull Logistics institute.

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