STUDY OF CO-ORDINATION MECHANISMS OF REVERSE SUPPLY CHAIN

Abstract

Reverse Supply Chain is one way to handle product returns efficiently. With zero waste, it is considered one of the best strategies of circular economy to manage product returns. A circular economy seeks to reduce waste by reusing, refurbishing, and recycling used products and increases the product/resource value of used goods. The effective execution of circular strategies necessitates coordination among all channel members participating in the activities, from acquisition to collection to disposal of returned items. Various difficulties from multiple angles must be addressed to carry out circular strategies. The pricing, quality, and warranty concerns of refurbished items must be investigated from the customer's standpoint. Supply chains are becoming increasingly data-driven and integrated due to digital technology. Supply chain participants are coordinating through digital platforms and real-time data. These technologies improve interaction and coordination, enabling organizations to coordinate tasks while keeping some decentralization or autonomy. Considering the above challenges in the effective implementation of reverse supply chain coordination and for this thesis, it is deemed necessary to (i) study and analyze various coordination mechanisms for reverse supply chain, (ii) develop coordination models for the effective reverse supply chain, (iii) study the impact of various coordination issues on reverse supply chain performance, (iv) study & analyze the Indian consumer electronics industry concerning reverse supply chain performance, and (v) to explore the coordination issues through the case study. A systematic literature review has been conducted to comprehend the above issues, and the Theory, Context, and Methodology framework have been used to identify the research gaps for future research directions. This literature review has identified the characteristics of reverse supply chain coordination. It consists of channel structures, coordination mechanisms, performance measuring parameters, the applied methodology, and industries that have been researched. The literature review adds value by examining reverse supply chain issues from strategic, governance, consumer behavior, and functionality decision-making perspectives. Surprisingly, few studies have been conducted on reverse supply chain coordination issues. Through the literature review, it is observed that contracts are considered the most crucial coordination vii mechanism. The most widely used contract is the revenue-sharing contract. In the reviewed study, some studies have employed more than one type of coordination mechanism. Most studies used profit maximization as a yardstick to measure the effectiveness of the RSC to maximize performance. The literature review analysis demonstrates that game-theoretical modeling in reverse supply chain coordination is the most prevalent approach for coordinating the channels. Accordingly, game theoretical modeling has been selected to develop coordination models for the effective reverse supply chain and to study the impact of various coordination issues on reverse supply chain performance. To study and analyze the consumer electronics industry concerning reverse supply chain performance and to investigate coordination issues, a game theory-based analytic study is conducted after gaining insights from interviews with industry stakeholders and a case study in the Indian context. Industry 4.0 technology facilitates the development of a coordinated supply chain to enhance channel performance. Accordingly, the present work has mainly used contract mechanisms. Information technology and information-sharing mechanisms of supply chain coordination have been integrated with contract mechanisms to expedite the exchange of products, information, and funds and optimize supply chain operations through collaborative methods. A two-echelon circular supply chain is investigated using a game-theoretic approach to investigate the coordination problem. The centralized and decentralized model findings are compared, and observed that the decentralized model shows potential for improvement. It is found that the coordinated structure can improve the performance of the supply chain. The issue of channel conflicts, pricing of refurbished products, and sustainability has been addressed. In continuation of the above, another model considering a two-echelon circular supply chain has been conducted to investigate the effects of extending product life and resource value of end-of-life/end-of-use products on channel performance using mobile technology in the era of Industry 4.0. The issue of channel conflicts, pricing of refurbished products, and the quality and guarantee of refurbished products have been addressed. A Stackelberg game model is built to optimize supply chain decisions. The study also created centralized, decentralized, revenue-sharing, and two-part tariff contract models and compared the outcomes to determine the optimal scenario. The viii findings revealed that a two-part tariff contract is the most successful contracting strategy for implementing expanded producer responsibility rules in the circular economy. It has also been found that mobile technology may be used for coordination purposes in the Industry 4.0 environment. In addition, a mixed-method approach using analytical modeling, interviews with supply chain stakeholders, and a case study of the Indian consumer electronics industry is used to evaluate reverse supply chain performance and coordination concerns between stakeholders in implementing extended producer responsibility in India to streamline e-waste management and disposal of used consumer electronics products. The issue was examined using a consignment contract with revenue sharing for various channel structures. The decentralized channel is coordinated using a hybrid contract in a cooperative game paradigm. The findings demonstrate that the consignment contract cannot coordinate a decentralized firm. The recommerce platform achieves perfect coordination and a unique Pareto optimization through the hybrid contract. A system facilitated by the Internet of Things is proposed as a data collection and integration solution. It turns out that resources have not been lost, so businesses can use the circular economy idea to reach their sustainable objectives.