The Impact of Modular Assembly on Supply Chain Efficiency

This article studies the impact of modular assembly on supply chain efficiency. In the modular assembly approach, a manufacturer acquires pre‐assembled modules from its suppliers, rather than the individual components, as in the traditional assembly approach. We analyze the competitive behavior of a two‐stage modular assembly system consisting of a manufacturer, and a supplier who pre‐assembles two components into a module. The firms can choose their own inventory policies and we show the existence of Nash equilibrium in the inventory game. Moving from the traditional to the modular approach has a twofold effect on the supply chain. First, we investigate the effect of centralizing the component suppliers. It can be shown that when there is no production time shift, the module supplier always holds more component inventories than suppliers do in the traditional approach, which yields a lower cost for the manufacturer. However, the suppliers, and therefore the supply chain may incur a higher cost in the modular approach. Second, we study the effect of a shift in production time from the manufacturing stage to the supplier stage. From numerical studies, it has been found that such a lead time shift always benefits a centralized supply chain, but not necessarily so for a decentralized system. Combining the two effects, we find that the modular approach generally reduces the cost to the manufacturer and the supply chain, which explains the prevalence of modular assembly from the perspective of inventory management. These results also provide some insight into how firms can improve supply chain efficiency by choosing the right decision structure and lead time configuration.     

The value of complaints mechanisms in the private labour regulation of GVCs: A case study of the Fair Labor Association

Can complaints mechanisms strengthen the private labour regulation of global value chains (GVCs)? This article empirically investigates the results produced by the Fair Labor Association's (FLA) complaints mechanism, which alone allows outcomes to be verified from the complainant's perspective. Although the vast majority of complainants find this mechanism to be valuable, it also has a number of limitations that seriously affect outcomes for workers. The authors utilize the concept of “grounding” to explore how national, social and corporate dimensions affect the performance of the FLA complaints mechanism for workers. The implications of these findings are then considered for complaints mechanisms in other GVCs.     

Evolution of industry 4.0 and international business: A systematic literature review and a research agenda

Industry 4.0 has attracted significant attention from researchers in the international business field for a decade. This paper critically analyzes the literature on the relationships between Industry 4.0 and international business. A systematic literature review of 59 studies published between 2011 and December 2020 is conducted. Using the Theory, Context, Characteristics, and Method (TCCM) framework, the review identifies various gaps in research and proposes future research agenda. The results show that (1) Industry 4.0 modifies specific domains in the field of international competitiveness and organization and (2) international business affects the choices and opportunities of adopting Industry 4.0. The need for further theoretical development in the relationships between international business and Industry 4.0 is observed especially in terms of location choices, global value chains, international organizations and international trade. The results contribute to the relevant research field and provide substantial managerial implications.     

秦汉市场商品来源与商业形式

秦汉市场经济较繁荣,商品丰富,主要有四个来源:一是小农的农产品及家庭副业产品,二是私营手工业者生产的手工业产品,三是官营作坊生产的工业产品,四是周边各少数民族及外国输入的商品。而商品流通的形式主要有三种。     

非对称信息条件下的水资源供应链库存模型研究

水量库存控制问题是水资源供应链研究的重要内容.文章以南水北调水资源供应链的子链作为研究对象,根据我国目前水资源配置的实际情况,以下游节点提出的订水量作为决策变量,研究并得出了非对称信息条件下水资源供应链的库存集中控制决策模型.     

A note on “Cooperative advertising,game theory and manufacturer–retailer supply chains”

This note extends the results in the manufacturer-dominated game model of the paper by Li et al. (Omega 30 (2002) 347) to the case where the manufacturer's marginal profit is not large enough. In such situations, the profit of the entire supply chain under the co-op advertising mode is higher than the one under the Stackelberg game, which is consistent with the results of the original paper. However, the advertising expenditures of the manufacturer and the retailer under the co-op advertising model are not always larger than those under the Stackelberg game, which is different from the results of the original paper. Furthermore, the results are also compared with the simultaneous move game of the paper by Huang and Li (Eur. J. Oper. Res. 135 (2001) 527). The manufacturer always prefers the leader–follower structure rather than the simultaneous move structure, which is consistent with the results of the original paper. However, the retailer always prefers the simultaneous move structure rather than the leader–follower structure, which differs from the results of the original paper.     

Managing “forced” technology transfer in emerging markets: The case of China

This paper explores how foreign multinational corporations (MNCs) manage risks associated with “forced” technology transfer (“FTT”) policies in emerging markets. Although MNCs are increasingly exposed to appropriability risks from these policies, how they respond is relatively understudied in international business (IB) research. We explore this topic based upon a survey and interviews with Western MNCs doing business in China, as well as a discussion about the recent US-China trade war. We find that, as traditional IB theory would predict, internally-oriented strategies (e.g., internalization, maintenance of informal intellectual property (IP), and control of technological centrality and sophistication) are often used to respond to FTT policies; however, the risks from such policies can sometimes be more efficiently managed by externally-oriented strategies (e.g., non-market activities and reliance on formal IP). We discuss how the co-evolution of MNCs' risk management strategies alongside changing value chains, IP institutions, and conditions determining the leverage of FTT policies appear to contribute to this phenomenon. We argue that IB research should more prominently recognize the role of externally-oriented strategies, not only internally-oriented ones, in managing the complex IP-related institutional challenges present in emerging markets today.     

基于DE-APIOBPCS策略的牛鞭效应和库存方差

本文就一般补充规则即APIOBPCS策略,从控制理论的角度,推导出牛鞭效应的一个分析表达式,由该式知道,采用增大预测平均时间和库存差异(或者渠道差异)增益以及减少生产提前期的控制手段,可以减少牛鞭效应,本文还推导出库存方差的一个分析表达式,把它与牛鞭效应分析表达式一起使用时,就两种方差之间一系列权重值,讨论了牛鞭效应和库存方差之间的平衡,基于这种平衡,生产和库存控制者可以设计一些恰当的供应链系统。     

基于网络外部性的商品税与产品差异化分析

利用纵向产品差异模型,研究了在具有网络外部性特征的双寡头市场结构的产业中,产品税收和网络外部性对产品纵向差异化的影响.考虑政府对所有产品实行统一税率的情形,政府首先制定税率;然后,企业选择其产品质量;最后,企业进行价格竞争.研究结果表明,网络外部性和税收将使企业产品质量差异偏离社会最优质量差异,小量税收将提高社会福利,并随网络外部性的增强而增加.     

浅析旅游商品市场中的信息不对称问题

旅游产业是一项具有良好经济效益和社会效益的朝阳产业,但目前旅游商品市场存在着诸多问题。文章认为信息不对称是造成旅游商品市场不良现状的主要根源,通过建立相应的效用函数模型,分析信息不对称在旅游商品市场中的表现,探讨规避这一问题的基本策略。