A novel transportation location routing network for the sustainable closed-loop supply chain considering the quality of returns

The current paper aims to design a closed-loop supply chain network which maximizes the productivity and the asset recovery by focusing on the location-routing decisions. A practical network is presented using quality-based routing and segmentation policies. Moreover, a novel social index is provided based on the sustainability reporting guidelines. The forward chain includes the manufacturers, the depots, the distributors and the customers. In the backward chain, the distributers collect and sort the returns into three groups to be sent out either to the emerging markets, the decomposition centre or the secondary chain facility. The resultant model is then validated and tested via a numerical example under the different scenarios from single-objective and multiple-objective approaches. A comprehensive analysis is presented to test the impacts of the return rates, the location of the receiver facility, and the transport fleet. The results show the effectiveness of the model under different scenarios.