The efficient operation of a country's economy depends, inter alia, on an efficient logistical system to ensure that goods can be transported efficiently between producers and users. The costs of logistics include aspects such as the transport, storage, inventory and management costs. Of these, the transport costs are directly influenced by the condition of the transport infrastructure. In this paper the effects of specifically road riding quality on the costs of logistics is evaluated. This is done through analysis of data obtained from a Logistics Service Provider on actual truck costs (specifically vehicle damage and maintenance) as well as road riding quality data for the routes used by the company. Analysis of the data indicated that the vehicle operating costs increased with decreasing riding quality (as would be expected). The benefit of spending adequate resources on maintenance of routes in a country to decrease the vehicle operations costs of vehicle fleets and ultimately the logistical costs of the country has been verified. It is recommended that the study be broadened to incorporate a larger sample of vehicles and road conditions.
Background: The greenhouse gas emissions of South Africa are the largest contribution by a country in the African continent. If the carbon emissions are not reduced, they will continue to grow exponentially. South Africa’s emissions are placed in the top 20 in the world when considering per capita emissions.Objectives: The aim of the research article was to investigate how the impact of implementing environmental initiatives on business profitability and sustainability can best be quantified in a South African business.Method: Various methods, theories and best practices were researched to aid in the development of the green business profitability framework. This framework was applied to two case studies in different areas of the supply chain of a South African fast-moving consumer goods business.Results: Results indicated that the green profitability framework can be used successfully to quantify both the environmental and profitability impact of green supply chain initiatives. The framework is therefore more suitable for the South African company than other existing frameworks in the literature because of its ability to quantify both profitability and sustainability in short- and long-term planning scenarios.Conclusion: The results from the case studies indicated that the green business profitability framework enabled the tracking of environmental initiatives back to logistics operations and profitability, which makes it easier to understand and implement. The developed framework also helped to link the carbon emissions to source, and to translate green supply chain actions into goals.
Natural disasters -and even those caused by people -are largely unpredictable. So disasters need to be researched and their impact fully understood, so that the aid supplies required to ensure survival during and after disaster events will be available. The member states of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) are the countries of interest for this paper, as insufficient research has been conducted into inventory pre-positioning for disaster response in these countries. It is vital to anticipate the needs of disaster victims in potential disasters. These needs are evaluated according to the types and amounts of aid supplies required. This paper proposes a stochastic inventory model that can be applied in a generic way to any SADC country, providing a means to improve disaster preparedness through keeping aid supplies in pre-positioned facilities in the SADC region, at reasonable and affordable cost. OPSOMMINGNatuurlike en mensgemaakte rampe is grootliks onvoorspelbaar. Gevolglik moet rampe nagevors en hul impak ten volle begryp word, sodat noodvoorrade wat benodig word vir oorlewing doeltreffend beplan kan word vir aanwending tydens en na rampgebeure. Die lede van die Suid-Afrikaanse Ontwikkelingsgemeenskap (SAOG) is die lande van belang vir hierdie artikel omrede navorsing oor voorraadhouding vir rampreaksie in hierdie betrokke lande tot nog toe onvoldoende was. Dit is noodsaaklik om doeltreffend in die behoeftes van rampslagoffers te voorsien. Hierdie behoeftes word beoordeel na aanleiding van die aard en hoeveelhede van noodvoorrade wat benodig mag word in ramptoestande. Hierdie artikel stel 'n stochastiese voorraadmodel voor vir toepassing op 'n generiese wyse in enige SAOG land, om sodoende 'n metode te verskaf om rampvoorbereiding te verbeter deur die opgaar van noodvoorrade in vooraf-geïdentifiseerde fasiliteite binne die SAOG, teen redelike en bekostigbare koste.
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