Stein Masunda, Amanda Rudo Chiweshe, Gabriel Mhonyera
PurposeThis study seeks to examine the determinants of export sophistication in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), with a specific focus on evaluating whether foreign direct investment (FDI), in combination with human capital (HC) and institutional quality, enhances export sophistication.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses the system generalised method of moments on a balanced panel of 35 SSA countries for the period 2010–2023.FindingsThe results show that while FDI alone has no significant effect, its interaction with HC and institutional quality significantly boosts export sophistication. Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita and trade openness are also positively associated with export sophistication, while population has no effect. These findings suggest that the benefits of FDI depend on a country’s absorptive capacity.Research limitations/implicationsThe study contributes new empirical evidence to the limited literature on FDI and export sophistication in SSA. It underscores the need for deveoping policies that prioritise advanced education, encourage institutional reform and promote strategic trade to foster sustained structural transformation in the region.Originality/valueThe study contributes new empirical evidence to the limited literature on FDI and export sophistication in SSA and underscores the need for integrated policies that prioritise education, institutional reform and strategic trade to drive sustained structural transformation in the region.
Regulation of industry, trade, and commerce. Occupational law, Economic growth, development, planning
The criminal procedure, as a collective ritual, has long been based on the face-to-face interaction of activists. However, the current requirements of human life and responding to crises such as the coronavirus epidemic force the judicial systems to take advantage of technological advancement in order to adapt to the current conditions. Meanwhile, using new technologies in holding public hearings facilitates the presence of criminal justice activists -including citizens- regardless of their location. However, the reality is that the entrance of technology brings new challenges that can question the establishment and objective realization of public procedure. In this regard, the present research was written with the aim of investigating these challenges and with the descriptive-analytical method. The findings indicate that although electronicization of public procedure can overcome some problems such as spending money and time to physically present in court or limitation in the space of the courts for public participation, But at the same time, new challenges such as the disproportion of the space of criminal courtrooms with the simultaneity of public and electronic proceedings, intensification of the defendant's feeling of exclusion and inequality in front of the court, imposing limitations of existing technology on procedure, risk of privacy violations, threat to the security of proceedings and taking citizens' electronic presence in public procedure as a principle instead of physical presence them. Based on this, it is necessary for the criminal justice system - both at the level of legislation and policy-making and at the executive level - in addition to adhering to the standards of public proceedings, it should also adapt to the new requirements of electronic proceedings.1. Introduction
"Publicity of the Procedures" is recognized as a means of realizing judicial transparency and a manifestation of fair proceedings in international human rights documents and principles 165 and 168 of the Iranian Constitution and Article 352 of the Criminal Procedure Law in this country. However, the Corona crisis and the closure of courts to protect public health created a serious obstacle in holding public proceedings in the traditional way and the possibility of physical presence of the public in the courts. In fact, the experience of Corona proved that the use of new technologies and the holding of remote hearings, along with its traditional method, is a solution and even a requirement; Therefore, in the face of this crisis, the use of the videoconference mechanism in proceedings - especially in public hearings - was widely welcomed by countries. In Iran, the prescription of hearing through videoconference, according to Article 659 of the Criminal Procedure Code approved in 2012. Due to the lack of necessary infrastructure and the lack of feeling the need to implement this sample of digital transformation in the judicial system of the country, the implementation of this regulation was practically delayed until the end of 2019. With the rise of the Corona crisis, the closing of the courts and the need of meeting between public health and the administration of justice, the necessity of revitalizing this regulation and implementing it in the country has shown. This led to the approval and notification of instructions on how to investigate and deal with the use of electronic communication systems in the last days of 2019.
Now, according to the current practice in Iran's criminal courts, hearings are held electronically only if the defendant is in prison due to a temporary arrest decision or previous his prison convictions; In such circumstances, the presence of the defendant in the hearings is only available electronically, but citizens and members of the media, as representatives of public opinion, will be able to physical participate in the public hearings of the criminal court, in addition to being able to have an electronic presence in the proceedings through videoconference technology.
2. Methodology
This research, with the descriptive-analytical method and the use of library and documentary sources, seeks to answer the question that if hearings are held in the context of modern technologies, what challenges will the right to public trials face? What makes this research necessary and important is that so far no specific, comprehensive and extensive research has been done regarding the challenges facing the right to public trials in electronic hearings.
Regarding the holding of criminal hearings with two "electronic" and "public" characteristics, a combination of physical and electronic presence is possible for different actors of the proceedings; Therefore, depending on which of the actors attends the hearing electronically and which physically attends that, multiple situations can be imagined. Therefore, this research aims to study these situations separately and examine the challenges facing each of them, according to the current legal practice in the country.
Based on this, this article is organized in three parts: first, it explains "the situation of electronic presence of the defendant in the hearing due to his imprisonment and the physical presence of citizens in the courtroom"; Then, in the second part, "the situation of electronic presence of the defendant and citizens in the hearing" has been analyzed, and finally in the third part, "the situation of the physical presence of the defendant in the court and the electronic presence of citizens" has been evaluated.
3. Results and Discussion
The electronicization of public hearings provides the possibility of the presence of criminal proceedings actors - including the parties to the crime, their lawyers, witnesses and informants, prosecutor's representatives and the citizens - regardless of their location and their physical distance from the court; Therefore, this transformation is able to overcome problems such as the distance dimension and spending money and time to physically attend the court or the limitation in the space of the courts for public participation and has significant benefits such as facilitating public access to the courts, realizing public justice and increasing judicial transparency.
At the same time, the electronicization of public hearings brings new challenges; The incompatibility of the environment of criminal courts with the symmetrical state of public and electronic proceedings, the intensification of the defendant's feeling of rejection and inequality in front of the court by separating him from the place of the hearing and the lack of physical access to the judicial authority or his lawyer, the definition of new restrictions for public access to court hearings such as the limitation in the number of participants in each hearing, technical problems, lack of skill in working with electronic systems, the risk of violating the privacy of people related to a criminal case due to the ease of recording and publishing the proceedings and even the identity and private information of people and on the other hand, the impossibility of completely preventing the recording of public electronic proceedings, the threat to the security of the proceedings due to the sharing of the access link to the online hearing for the public, and most importantly, the focus of the legislator, judicial managers and judges on the electronic presence of citizens in public hearings and marginalize the policies based on facilitating their physical access to courts in order to achieve maximum public justice are the challenges that was examined in this article.
4. Conclusions and Future Research
By increasing progress of technology and the need to adapt judicial systems to the requirements of human life and even to respond to crises such as the corona virus epidemic, the criminal proceedings as a collective ritual which have long been based on the face-to-face interaction of activists in the place of hearing, now must be realized in the context of new technologies and with the virtual communication of activists with each other.
On the other hand, although the publicity of proceedings in its true sense means taking steps so that the citizens can monitor the proceedings by physically attending the courts, the limited capacity of criminal courts for the presence of them and the reluctance of many citizens to participate in the court for reasons such as being busy or being far from the courts, has led to the holding of public hearings in the context of remote communication technologies becomes to one of the most important ways for a large number of people to access the information of the proceedings and their supervision on the function of the judicial system. Based on this, the concept of publicness of the proceedings has also gone beyond its traditional framework under the influence of new technologies and has found a wider meaning.
Although the nature of public proceedings does not change with the use of videoconferencing, it should be noted that the purpose of its use is to facilitate public access to such hearings. Therefore, if the mentioned challenges are ignored, it can be said that the use of new technologies in holding public hearings can be a violation of public justice and its accessories despite its many benefits.
Based on this, it is necessary for the criminal justice system - both at the level of legislation and policy-making and at the executive level - in addition to adhering to the standards of public proceedings -such as public access to hearings and the orallity of proceedings-, it should also adapt to the new requirements of electronic proceedings like equipping and adapting the court space, providing up-to-date technical infrastructures, establishing safe and user-oriented systems, stable and continuous connection of activists on the line of proceedings with the court and providing support and training to them. In that conditions, it is possible to overcome the mentioned challenges while taking advantage of the undeniable benefits of new technologies in improving access to justice and judicial transparency.
Regulation of industry, trade, and commerce. Occupational law, Islamic law
In every system, many organs and institutions are involved in the process of reaching an economic commercial utopia. This process can be described as a chain whichconsists of many loops that are mutual prerequisites, e.g., customs administrations, knowledge-based companies operating in modern technologies, trade facilitation, smuggling prevention, smuggling detection, national production support, and international trade expansion. However, Iran differs significantly from developed countries in the use of modern technologies at the customs. In some cases, the dominant approach is still the traditional one. In this paper, the I.R. Iran’s Customs Administration (IRICA) is viewed as an economic boundary guardian at Iran’s inbound and outbound gates and an effective organization in international trade. Accordingly, this paper seeks to explain legislation changes, especially in the Law of Customs Affairs (approved in 2011) and the Law of Fight against Smuggling of Goods and Currency (approved in 2013 and modified in 2021), through the use of modern technologies for the situational prevention of smuggling and the facilitation of international trade. For this purpose, bibliographical and Internet-based references were employed in a descriptive-analytical approach. The results indicate that using modern technologies and shifting from traditional approaches to recent technological approaches can offer a single tool with multiple efficiencies to facilitate international trade, prevent smuggling, and detect smuggling.1. Introduction
Due to its geographical location and position as a transit hub for goods, as well as the volume of commercial activities, including imports and exports, the Islamic Republic of Iran has historically been susceptible to the smuggling of goods, both inbound and outbound, as well as the illegal unloading of transit goods within the country. According to the reports of the Central Headquarters for Combating the Smuggling of Goods and Currency, since 2013, the total volume of inbound and outbound smuggling has exceeded $12 billion annually, at a minimum, which constitutes a significant portion compared to the country’s formal trade. A wide range of goods, including clothing, footwear, cigarettes, household appliances, cosmetics, and hygiene products, fall within the scope of smuggling activities.
Undoubtedly, technological advancements and the expansion of international trade have led to diversification of smuggling methods. Therefore, establishing a transparent economic framework, whose primary goal is economic security, has always been a focus for the most progressive governments. This involves monitoring the flow of goods from pre-entry points through transportation, storage, distribution, retail, and financial transactions, which facilitates international trade processes and enhances anti-smuggling efforts. Consequently, adopting technology-driven preventive and control measures has become an inevitable necessity. One of the most effective means of utilizing modern technologies in combating smuggling involves leveraging the capabilities of knowledge-based enterprises. This study seeks to address the following questions: 1) Is there a logical correlation between the use of modern technologies in combating smuggling and the expansion of international trade relations? 2) Given the undeniable proliferation of modern technologies in today’s world, how can such technologies be employed to prevent smuggling? By answering these questions, this analysis aims to substantiate the hypothesis that “The use of modern technologies significantly contributes to the regulation and effectiveness of anti-smuggling efforts and these technologies, rather than merely serving as counteractive tools, play a crucial role in trade facilitation and preventive measures against smuggling.” To achieve these objectives, the study first examined the concepts of “knowledge-based enterprises” and “modern technologies,” specifically detailing their functions, advantages, and applications in customs affairs. Furthermore, it assessed the effectiveness of these technologies by comparing customs conditions before and after their implementation.
In 2018, papers titled “Increasing the Risk of Technological Detection: A Novel Approach to Smuggling Prevention” by Goodarzi and Abbasi, “Pathology of Electronic Supervision in the Fight Against Goods and Currency Smuggling” by Shah Mohammadi and Alishahi, and “Situational-Technological Prevention in the 2013 Customs Act” by Salajegheh et al. were published. Additionally, the Economic Research Department of the Iranian Parliament released a report titled “How Inefficient Bureaucracy Hinders Law Enforcement: A Case Study on the Electronic Implementation of Cross-Border Trade Processes in Iran” in the same year. Koosha and Jafari (2021) also published a paper titled “Smart Prevention of Goods Smuggling: Manifestations and Challenges.” Findings of these studies highlight the efficacy of modern technologies in anti-smuggling initiatives. However, considering that the Law on Combating the Smuggling of Goods and Currency underwent a significant revision in 2021, the aforementioned studies have not incorporated these legal reforms. Moreover, their analyses remain one-dimensional. Therefore, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of the impact of modern technologies on international trade facilitation, smuggling detection, and situational prevention of smuggling within the framework of the Law on Combating the Smuggling of Goods and Currency and its amendment.
2. Methodology
In this research, we tried to collect and gather information from the primary sources (including laws, regulations, directives, bylaws, judicial decisions, etc.) and secondary sources (such as books and articles, theses, research reports, etc.) in scientific research data centers, official and reputable websites, libraries, and similar resources.
From the perspective of the authors, the research title suggests, first, an examination of the legal foundations and the current utilization of modern and knowledge-based technologies in Iranian customs, and second, a comparative analysis of the performance of China in this domain. Consequently, the paper introduces the advantages and applications of modern and knowledge-based technologies in customs procedures and their role in preventing and combating smuggling, while evaluating the trade environment and anti-smuggling measures in Iran before and after the adoption of modern technologies.
3. Results and Discussion
Today, smuggling of goods is one of the critical challenges affecting the economic systems of most countries. This issue is particularly severe in developing nations. The adoption and localization of cutting-edge global advancements by knowledge-based enterprises in this field not only facilitates international trade but also prevents the illegal entry of goods into the country. Hence, modern technologies play a significant role in regulating anti-smuggling efforts, not merely as reactive tools but as preventive mechanisms that enhance trade facilitation. Articles 5, 6, and 13 of the Law on Combating the Smuggling of Goods and Currency address product identification and tracking, while Article 8 of the Law on Continuous Improvement of the Business Environment mandates the electronic implementation of trade processes. However, despite the enactment of executive regulations for Articles 5 and 6 and the designation of functions and operational mechanisms for these systems, progress in achieving their objectives has been slow. A primary issue appears to be the regulatory approach in management, which lacks a practical commitment to implementing technical and operational aspects in Iran. Given these considerations, the following recommendations are proposed: integrating product identification and data registration for all goods into commercial systems (according to Article 13 of the 2013 Anti-Smuggling Law and its 2021 amendment) in conjunction with presented blockchain-based supply chain models, which would enhance supply chain management, improve product tracking, ensure transparency in trade processes, and optimize supply chain oversight through system-based monitoring. On the other hand, recognizing that the requirements for preventing and combating goods smuggling are not limited to a single product, a complementary ecosystem for technological products is necessary. Therefore, a second recommendation is to establish a consortium among knowledge-based enterprises with diverse expertise in trade and customs affairs.
4. Conclusions and Future Research
In conclusion, despite the significant efficiency of modern technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems, etc., their implementation in Iran remains limited due to the lack of explicit legislative frameworks, insufficient technical knowledge, inadequate infrastructure, and the high cost of related equipment. In fact, domestic legislators have yet to fully incorporate the potential of modern technologies into the formulation and execution of regulatory policies. Compared to leading global trade countries with sophisticated customs systems, including China, Iran still has considerable room for improvement in legal, structural, and operational policies to reach an optimal level of global trade competitiveness.
Regulation of industry, trade, and commerce. Occupational law, Islamic law
Today’s computer and telecommunications networks, irrespective of the technical solutions and technologies used to build them, are multi-service in nature. The modelling of networks and nodes in such networks is still an important research problem. The article presents the results of a simulation study of multi-service switching networks in which service-specific priorities are introduced. A specially developed and executed simulation programme was used to carry out the research. In the study, we considered the two most optimal placement of the switching elements performing the functions of multicast traffic splitting in a 3-stages Clos switching network. During the tests, it was assumed that the switching network supported a mixture of multiservice unicast and multicast traffic streams. The aim of the research conducted is to investigate the impact of the introduction of priorities on the loss probability of multicast traffic in a multiservice switching network. The results obtained from the simulation are presented on the graphs in the form of points with confidence intervals.
The demand for scalable, open and granular networks has enabled mobile networks such as 5G to adopt new concepts including NFV (Network Function Virtualization). NFV separates the dependency of network functions from the hardware component, allowing them to be deployed flexibly and dynamically across network slices. In this way, operators can deliver personalized services and optimize the use of network resources, contributing to greater operational efficiency and an enhanced end-user experience. However, there are several issues to be addressed, such as the security of VNFs and the way in which service provider customers instantiate NSSIs (Network Slice Subnet Instance). In this article, we present a new approach based on blockchain 2.0, which guarantees the immutability of VNFs and templates, as well as highly secure instantiation with access management and support for replay attacks.
Purpose – In light of Bangladesh’s economy, the goal of this study is to examine the “Twin Deficit Hypothesis (TDH),” which refers to a link between the budget deficit and the current account deficit. This study used yearly time series data from 1980 to 2020 to investigate the phenomena. Design/methodology/approach – A multivariate autoregressive distributive lag (ARDL) model has been presented for empirical investigation, with the ARDL bound test investigating the co-integration between the inadequacies. As some of the variables in the bound test lack co-integration, the study adds a multivariate vector autoregressive (VAR) model later on. Findings – With evidence of the result, the study supports the validation of twin deficit hypothesis in Bangladesh economy since both current account deficit and fiscal deficit affects each other significantly whereas Granger causality test confirms that fiscal deficit causes current account deficit but not the other way around. Practical implications – The government should maintain a restrictive monetary policy in order to stabilize the current account deficit. Originality/value – The novelty of this study is the incorporation of inflation, real exchange rate and GDP per capital to TDH that together form the basis for a macroeconomic snapshot of the economy.
Regulation of industry, trade, and commerce. Occupational law, Economic growth, development, planning
<i>Background</i>: In container terminals, optimizing the scheduling of external trucks and yard cranes is crucial as it directly impacts the truck turnaround time, which is one of the most critical performance measures. Furthermore, proper scheduling of external trucks contributes to reducing <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><msub><mi>CO</mi><mn>2</mn></msub></semantics></math></inline-formula> emissions. <i>Methods</i>: This paper proposes a new approach based on a mixed integer programming model to schedule external trucks and yard cranes with the objective of minimizing <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><msub><mi>CO</mi><mn>2</mn></msub></semantics></math></inline-formula> emissions and reducing truck turnaround time, the gap between trucking companies’ preferred arrival time and appointed time, and the energy consumption of yard cranes. The proposed approach combines data analysis and operations research techniques. Specifically, it employs a K-means clustering algorithm to reduce the number of necessary truck trips for container handling. Additionally, a two-stage mathematical model is applied. The first stage employs a bi-objective mathematical model to plan the arrival of external trucks at the terminal gates. The second stage involves a mathematical model that schedules yard cranes’ movements between different yard blocks. <i>Results</i>: The results show that implementing this methodology in a hypothetical case study may lead to a substantial daily reduction of approximately 31% in <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><msub><mi>CO</mi><mn>2</mn></msub></semantics></math></inline-formula> emissions. Additionally, the results provide valuable insights into the trade-off between satisfying the trucking companies’ preferred arrival time and the total turnaround time. <i>Conclusions</i>: The integration of data clustering with mathematical modeling demonstrates a notable reduction in emissions, underscoring the viability of this strategy in promoting sustainability in port-related activities.
Transportation and communication, Management. Industrial management
Layanne Nara Parente Cardoso, Karla Danyelle de Oliveira Miranda, Ednael Francisco Vieira da Silva
et al.
<i>Background</i>: The Brazilian National Solid Waste Policy establishes the shared responsibility of all actors involved in e-waste generation and management; however, some conflicts of interest need interventions and approaches for preventing them. <i>Objective</i>: This paper proposes using a graph model for conflict resolution (GMCR) decision support system to simulate the analysis and resolution of realistic e-waste management conflicts. <i>Method</i>: A systematic literature review focused on e-waste management, shared responsibility and conflict management was conducted, and a graph model for conflict resolution (GMCR) decision support system was applied to generate a framework to address this context. <i>Results</i>: The need for commitment agreements promoted by government institutions in partnerships with companies involved in the process is essential since the principle of shared responsibility requires educational actions, favoring efficiency in the reverse logistics recovery procedures for e-waste. Understanding the interconnected causes of conflicts and their facets is crucial for effective resolution and prevention, aiding comprehension, focused interventions, and evidence-based decision-making for transformative change amidst conflicting stakeholder objectives in the case of WEEE management. These results can be helpful for academics and practitioners working in this area.
Transportation and communication, Management. Industrial management
The psychological measurement method of college students is a hot issue in the field of educational management research. Based on the time series analysis theory, this paper constructs a psychological measurement model for college students. This paper analyzes the psychometric behavior data, uses the time series analysis method for behavior prediction, deeply mines the relevant component information of the psychometric data, and solves the problems of weak correlation between the functions of the psychometric platform and low data accuracy of the psychometric model. At the same time, taking the intervention target group and the intervention mode as the basic variables of the intervention classification system, combining these two dimensions, a two-dimensional classification framework for psychometric intervention was proposed, and four types of different psychometric intervention measures were applied. During the simulation process, a psychometric trajectory matrix was constructed, and a two-dimensional data extraction network was used to extract the psychometric pattern data of a certain period of time. The experimental results show that using the student mental state data as a label can obtain a low-coupling training set classification for psychometric effects of college students.
Devilson da Rocha Sousa, Cinthia Obladen de Almendra Freitas
Nos últimos anos, em decorrência dos avanços vivenciados no campo da Tecnologia da Informação e Comunicação, aliado ao interesse dos usuários brasileiros por aplicações tecnológicas, o Brasil vem buscando criar normas e regulamentos para racionalizar e delimitar, a partir de aspectos da responsabilidade civil e dos direitos fundamentais, o uso e emprego de novas tecnologias. Com a Internet das Coisas não tem sido diferente, prova disso foi o Decreto n. 9.854/2019 que veio instituir um Plano Nacional para esta matéria. Contudo, considerando os reflexos e a multifacetariedade do emprego dessa tecnologia e ciente das dificuldades e incompreensões que envolvem o processo de regulamentação de novas tecnologias, o presente trabalho identifica os aspectos que envolvem a IoT e sua regulação no cenário brasileiro. Metodologicamente adotou-se abordagem dedutiva, apoiada nas técnicas de pesquisa bibliográfica e legislativa. Como resultado da pesquisa, ficou evidenciado que apesar de seu caráter progressista e ousado, o atual arcabouço regulatório de IoT no Brasil encontra-se tolhido de qualquer efetividade e eficiência ante as lacunas e imprecisões do Decreto n. 9.854/2019, situação essa que afeta não só o desenvolvimento da tecnologia em solo nacional, mas também expõe seus usuários e destinatários a riscos.
Public law, Regulation of industry, trade, and commerce. Occupational law
Health supply chains aim to improve access to healthcare, and this can be attained only when health commodities appropriate to the health needs of the global population are developed, manufactured, and made available when and where needed. The weak links in the health supply chains are hindering the access of essential healthcare resulting in inefficient use of scarce resources and loss of lives. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and demand forecasting is one of the weakest links of health supply chains. Also, many of the existing bottlenecks in supply chains and health systems impede the accurate forecasting of demand, and without the ability to forecast demand with certainty, the stakeholders cannot plan and make commitments for the future. Forecasts are an important feeder for budgeting and logistics planning. Under this backdrop, the study examines how improved forecasting can lead to better short-term and long-term access to health commodities and outlines market-related risks. It explores further how incentives are misaligned creating an uneven distribution of risks, leading to the inability to match demand and supply. For this purpose, a systematic literature review was performed, analyzing 71 articles from a descriptive and content approach. Findings indicate the emerging trends in global health and the consequences of inaccurate demand forecasting for health supply chains. The content analysis identifies key factors that can pose a varying degree of risks for the health supply chain stakeholders. The study highlights how the key factors emerge as enablers and blockers, depending on the impact on the overall health supply chains. The study also provides recommendations for actions for reducing these risks. Consequently, limitations of this work are presented, and opportunities are identified for future lines of research. Finally, the conclusion confirms that by adopting a combination of approaches, stakeholders can ensure better information sharing, identify avenues of diversifying risks, and understand the implications.
Transportation and communication, Management. Industrial management
The involvement of more severe Highway-Railway Grade Crossing (HRGC) crashes between male and female drivers is controversial. The aim of this paper is to identify the differences in contributory factors to injury severity between male and female in these locations. The current research was implemented based on HRGC crash data in the United States from 2004 to 2013. Three separated prediction models were established through the Ordered Probit approach. Results showed that the driver gender considerably affected the injury severity of HRGC crashes; in particular, the female drivers had a higher probability of involving in a more severe crash than the male drivers. Besides the driver gender, it was determined that a number of causal factors such as train speed, vehicle speed and driver age could be influenced the crash severity. The presences of audio warning systems and crossbucks were contributed to the crash severity of the male and female drivers, respectively. Such results were an indication of the driver training and education improvement, so, the maintained safety performance at the HRGC.
Barbara Oliveira Vieira, Patricia Guarnieri, Rose Nofal
et al.
Reverse logistics (RL) has emerged as a form of disposal and a conscious way to use products at the end of their use through the refurbishment, reuse, and recycling processes. Mainly in developing countries, there are still several barriers during the process of implementing reverse logistics, so decision-makers need to know what barriers to prioritize to propose a solution. This paper aims to investigate which multicriteria decision aid (MCDA) methods are most applied in the studies on barriers during the implementation of reverse logistics. For this purpose, we conducted a systematic literature review using a well-known and detailed protocol, considering various papers published in journals from the databases Science Direct, Emerald, Web of Science, and Google Scholar in the period from 2008 to 2019. As a result, a few studies discussing multicriteria methods were identified, analyzing the existing barriers to the implementation of reverse logistics. The main methods and criteria were gathered from the literature and were systematized and discussed to identify a research agenda. This paper contributes to the work carried out by researchers and practitioners in this field and can guide them in their choice of methods to approach decision-making related to reverse logistics.
Transportation and communication, Management. Industrial management
Alberto Camarero Orive, José Ignacio Parra Santiago, María Magdalena Esteban-Infantes Corral
et al.
The port system is immersed in a process of digital transformation towards the concept of Ports 4.0, under the new regulatory and connectivity requirements that are expected of them. As a result of the changes that the industrial revolution 4.0 is imposing, based on new information technologies and the change of energy model, the electrification of modes of transport from alternative energies and the total digitalization of the processes is occurring. This conversion to digital, intelligent, and green ports requires the implementation of the new technologies offered by the market. The inclusion of these enabling tools has allowed the development of automated terminals under a functional approach. This article aims to offer the responsible entities a new methodology (BOT) that allows them to successfully undertake the automation of terminals, taking into account the reality of the conditions of the environment in which they are developed. By quantifying the factors that facilitate or impede implementation, it will be possible to determine the strategy to be followed and the necessary measures to be adopted in the project; constituting, therefore, a novel management and planning tool.
Transportation and communication, Management. Industrial management
Mario Dobrovnik, David M. Herold, Elmar Fürst
et al.
Despite the claim that blockchain will revolutionise business and redefine logistics, existing research so far is limited concerning frameworks that categorise blockchain application potentials and their implications. In particular, academic literature in transport and logistics to date has not sufficiently distinguished between blockchain adoption (‘what to adopt’) and the identification of the right business opportunity (‘where to start’). In response, this paper (1) uses Rogers’ (2003) ‘attributes of innovation framework’ to identify potential blockchain applications and (2) presents a framework explicating four transformation phases to subsequently categorise the identified areas of application according to their effects on organisational structures and processes. Using academic and practitioner literature, we classify possible applications for adoption and provide a framework to identify blockchain opportunities in the logistics industry, thereby helping managers to systematically assess where to start building organisational capabilities in order to successfully adopt and deploy blockchain-based technology.
Transportation and communication, Management. Industrial management
Cyril Alias, Frank Eduardo Alarcón Olalla, Hauke Iwersen
et al.
In the course of the ongoing era of digitization, cyber-physical systems and complex event processing belong to the most discussed technologies nowadays. The huge challenge that digitization is forming to the transportation and logistics sector is largely accepted by the responsible organizations. Despite initial steps being taken towards digitized value-creation, many professionals wonder about how to realize the ideas and stumble with the precise steps to be taken. With the vision of smart logistics in mind and cost-efficient technologies available, they require a systematic methodology to exploit the potentials accompanying digitization. With the help of an effective and targeted workshop procedure, potentially appropriate application areas with promising benefit potentials can be identified effectively. Such a workshop procedure needs to be a stepwise approach in order to carefully consider all the relevant aspects and to allow for organizational acceptance to grow. In three real-world use case examples from different areas of the transportation and logistics industry, promising applications of cyber-physical systems and complex event processing are identified and pertaining event patterns of critical situations developed in order to make realization easier at a later stage. Each use case example exhibits a frequently occurring problem that can be effectively addressed by using the above-mentioned technology.
Transportation and communication, Management. Industrial management