Supply chain management in the era of fast clockspeed crowdsourced transportation

• Main Author: Ng, Li Hui
• Other Authors: Teo Chee Chong
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Maritime studies
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/71179
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The world we are living in is changing at a rapid pace, and the industries and their supply chains are not an exception. An era of fast clockspeed has begun and this has brought about a set of challenges for the stakeholders in a supply chain. In order to survive in this competitive climate, they need to be able to tackle the challenges of increasing speed-to-market, employing faster but more expensive modes of transport, and keeping costs low such that prices are kept affordable for consumers. In the face of these new challenges, the trend of using crowdsourced logistics has emerged in the supply chain. More commonly seen are the use of crowdsourced warehouse space and crowdshipping for last mile delivery. The benefits of these two crowdsourced logistics services are well-established. These are, but are not limited to, greater flexibility in capacity, reduction in costs, and shorter delivery lead time. On the other hand, the use of crowdsourced truck services between businesses is still at its infancy stage. Many smaller logistics service providers are jumping on board and putting this idea to trial. In this report, the use of business-to-business crowdsourced transportation and its benefits will be examined. The concept of an agile supply chain is also introduced. The agile supply chain, in terms of its four capabilities (responsiveness, competency, flexibility, and quickness) and its end goal of cost, is used to help companies mitigate the challenges and survive in the era of fast clockspeed. Hence, through evidence collected from literatures and interviews, the model of a business-to-business crowdsourced transportation will be evaluated against its ability to achieve an agile supply chain. It is found that business-to-business crowdsourced transportation can not only improve the responsiveness, competency, flexibility and quickness of a supply chain, but also help a company reduce its cost spent on transport.