Navigating Environmental Challenges through Supply Chain Quality Management 4.0 in Circular Economy: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

The infusion of circular economy (CE) principles into supply chain management has garnered significant attention from both scholars and industry professionals. Quality management and Industry 4.0 (SCQM 4.0) have emerged as central themes due to their potential to elevate supply chain efficiency and sustainability. In pursuit of this goal, a thorough literature review is conducted, with a specific focus on quality management within circular supply chains, placing a significant emphasis on Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies. By analyzing 126 papers spanning from 1998 to 2023, this systematic review discerns prevailing trends, identifies research gaps, and charts future avenues for investigation. These results highlight the growing academic interest in utilizing I4.0 technology to improve quality control in circular supply chains. SCQM 4.0 is thus proposed to aid in a better comprehension of Supply Chain Quality Management 4.0, which incorporates infrastructure practices rooted in various disruptive technologies and supply chain operations that link with sustainable performance with three key metrics of input management, waste handling, and preservation concentrating solely on the environmental aspect. Based on this research, we offer a four-tiered SCQM 4.0 practice path to achieve a CE.

A Traceability Platform for Monitoring Environmental and Social Sustainability in the Textile and Clothing Value Chain: Towards a Digital Passport for Textiles and Clothing

“…Several works have highlighted the opportunity that digital transformation of supply chains offers for the advancement of the circular economy and the resolution of environ-mental challenges [13,14]. The lack of a traceability platform for the textile and clothing sector, assessing the environmental, economic and social impact of the textile and clothing items, is a research gap that hinders the ability of the final consumer to select a product with less negative impact, in environmental, economic or social terms, as well as the ability of any business partner, at any level of the value chain, to select its suppliers or batches of intermediate products/materials based on information about their respective environmental, economic or social impact.…”

Forging Pathways to Circular Economy Excellence: Integrating Industry 4.0 with Quality Management

“…In simple words, supply chain quality management (SCQM) is about implementing quality management principles in supply chains, serving as a company's approach to partnering with suppliers and customers to enhance quality standards [7]. SCQM has transitioned from an activity-centric approach to a strategy-centric approach, working together and combining activities throughout the supply chain to detect and resolve quality concerns, with the ultimate goal of enhancing customer satisfaction and overall performance [8]. The shift to a CE is essential for production firms to accommodate rising consumer demands for practical implications.…”

Utilising Digital Twins to Bolster the Sustainability of Logistics Processes in Industry 4.0

“…Industry 4.0 is the implementation of cyber-physical systems for creating smart factories using the Internet of Things, big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and communication technologies for information and communication in real time over the value chain [3]. Industry 4.0 brought innovations that reshaped traditional production processes and influenced supply chain processes in various facets [4][5][6]. At the forefront of Industry 4.0. is the concept of digital twins (DTs).…”