Background: Diverse marketing channels have been developed with the advent of digitalization. In the fresh food and grocery retail sector, consumers may have a large choice of channels to shop from. In this case, an analysis of their behavior is crucial for retailers. Therefore, the present...

Background: Family farmers' access to markets is key for rural development. This study seeks to assess to what extent short and long marketing channels promote or inhibit the commercial inclusion of family farmers. Methods: The research was conducted in the Brazilian state of Goiás through...

In this paper, we introduce a physical Internet architecture for fresh food distribution networks with the goal of meeting the key challenges of maximizing the freshness of the delivered product and minimizing waste. The physical Internet (PI) architecture is based on the fundamental assumptions...

Background: Additive manufacturing (AM) for patient-specific medical care products offers great opportunities. However, evidence about the supply chain (SC) performance impact based on empirical data is limited. Methods: In this case study, we gathered real-life data about a traditional...

Additive manufacturing (AM) can lead to innovative solutions in traditional supply chain networks (TSCN), which contains very complicated and -hard to manage- chains. With 3D printing technology, a design file can transform directly to a product, skipping many traditional manufacturing steps....

Background: Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) has revolutionized the operations, technologies, logistics and supply chain. To align with industry 4.0, the conventional logistics processes need to upgrade into digital logistics (logistics 4.0). This study aims to analyse the critical...

Background: Blockchain is a digitally managed, distributed, and decentralized ledger used to record transactions in an immutable format. Its characteristics in providing trust, transparency, and traceability make it attractive for applications where transactions are involved. Originally intended...

Globalization has led to a significant effect on today’s manufacturing sector. Manufacturers need to find new and innovative ways to increase efficiency and reduce waste in the manufacturing supply chain. Lean/six sigma tools can help companies increase production efficiency and stay in...

Background: As industry and society move towards the second decade of the deluge of advanced technologies of the Industry 4.0 (I4.0) age, introduced circa 2012, it is evident that the global economy continues to grapple with a plethora of ever-intensifying disruptions and vulnerabilities that...

Background: The supply chain ecosystem is becoming fragile and difficult to manage due to the complexities in its interlinked functions such as planning, procurement, production, logistics, distribution, and sales. Recently, organizations have started embarking on "Industry 4.0 technologies", a...