Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.

Several studies have shown that the performance of a supply chain is heavily influenced by the pattern of relationships among firms. This paper analyzes the structure of relationships (network topology) that leads to the highest agility of a food supply chain when sudden demand changes occur. To do...

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Main Authors: Juan M Hernández, Carmen Pedroza-Gutiérrez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2019-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0218958
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author Juan M Hernández
Carmen Pedroza-Gutiérrez
author_facet Juan M Hernández
Carmen Pedroza-Gutiérrez
author_sort Juan M Hernández
collection DOAJ
description Several studies have shown that the performance of a supply chain is heavily influenced by the pattern of relationships among firms. This paper analyzes the structure of relationships (network topology) that leads to the highest agility of a food supply chain when sudden demand changes occur. To do this, a simulation model that represents a supply chain and specific rules to allocate orders is built. The supply chain in the model follows the specific characteristics of trade in the primary sector. The model is fitted to the conditions of a real seafood supply chain in Mexico. Agility is measured through the effect on the order fulfillment of a sudden demand shock and the recovery time of this rate to previous values. The simulation results show that the most suitable structure depends on how product is distributed among suppliers. If product is evenly shared, supply chains with homogeneous topologies are more agile than supply chains with heterogeneous topologies, but the result is the opposite if product is unevenly shared among suppliers. Other previous recommendations, such as having multiple suppliers and horizontal links, are confirmed by the simulations. These findings contribute to the general debate on which is the optimal topology for an agile supply chain.
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spelling doaj.art-eaea821e990b43f099a6be3ee166c6972022-12-21T19:11:32ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032019-01-01147e021895810.1371/journal.pone.0218958Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.Juan M HernándezCarmen Pedroza-GutiérrezSeveral studies have shown that the performance of a supply chain is heavily influenced by the pattern of relationships among firms. This paper analyzes the structure of relationships (network topology) that leads to the highest agility of a food supply chain when sudden demand changes occur. To do this, a simulation model that represents a supply chain and specific rules to allocate orders is built. The supply chain in the model follows the specific characteristics of trade in the primary sector. The model is fitted to the conditions of a real seafood supply chain in Mexico. Agility is measured through the effect on the order fulfillment of a sudden demand shock and the recovery time of this rate to previous values. The simulation results show that the most suitable structure depends on how product is distributed among suppliers. If product is evenly shared, supply chains with homogeneous topologies are more agile than supply chains with heterogeneous topologies, but the result is the opposite if product is unevenly shared among suppliers. Other previous recommendations, such as having multiple suppliers and horizontal links, are confirmed by the simulations. These findings contribute to the general debate on which is the optimal topology for an agile supply chain.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0218958
spellingShingle Juan M Hernández
Carmen Pedroza-Gutiérrez
Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.
PLoS ONE
title Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.
title_full Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.
title_fullStr Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.
title_full_unstemmed Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.
title_short Estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains.
title_sort estimating the influence of the network topology on the agility of food supply chains
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0218958
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