Supply Chain Management in Industrial Symbiosis Networks

摘要

Sustainable supply chain management deals with the design and operation ofprofitable supply chains that also respect limitations on natural resources, dono harm to the environment, and consider the social systems they operate in.In academic research on sustainable supply chain management, as well as inpolicy documents from e.g. the European Union, the concepts of circular econ-omy and closed-loop supply chains have received significant attention. One ofthe manifestations of these developments are industrial symbiosis networks.These networks are a collaborative effort to more sustainable production op-erations, and are characterized by a supply chain reconfiguration that usesone company’s wastes or by-products as a raw material for another company,avoiding waste disposal while also reducing material requirements. The re-sulting networks of relationships contribute to regional sustainable develop-ment efforts, and emphasize synergistic relations, community, and collabora-tion.This thesis takes an operations and supply chain management perspec-tive on industrial symbiosis networks. More specifically, the thesis elaborateson the collaborative and competitive characteristics of industrial symbiosis.First, it discusses the supply chain integration and coordination challengesthat appear in industrial symbiosis, on both an organizational and operationallevel. Secondly, the thesis discusses the organizational capabilities and re-sources relevant for the competitiveness of industrial symbiosis networks onthree dimensions: the level of the firm, the network, and the business envi-ronment. Finally, the thesis elaborates on supply chain resiliency based on aformal model with multiple concurrent suppliers. The model includes fair-ness considerations in different by-product allocation strategies, which turnout to have different requirements and consequences for the organization andfacilitation of the collaborative efforts.Overall, this thesis aims to ground industrial symbiosis in operations andsupply chain management theory. The thesis thereby provides a basis forthe improved organization and operation of industrial symbiosis networks,and supports the development towards resource-efficient closed-loop mate-rial flows.