| The strategic design of a green supply chain for a multinational company is studied in this dissertation. A model that incorporates forward logistics arcs, reverse logistics arcs, and international trade issues is developed. Due to the international linkages in the supply chain, economic issues such as taxes, tariffs, and exchange rates are included in the model, with the aim of maximizing net profit. The mixed integer programming model considers aspects of the facility location problem, inventory problem, shipping problem, transportation provider selection, demand satisfaction, and take-back issues for multi-products. Both before-tax and after-tax analyses are discussed. The model is a single time period model which can be easily extended to multi-period form.; For model validation and verification purposes, a case study of a representative computer company (based on Dell Computer Corporation) is provided. The representative data is gathered through publicly available data in Dell's website along with various government and private information sources. A design of experiments is executed. For the case study, the results show that levels of customer demand and transportation costs have the most impact on the net profit of the company. Take back rate, exchange rate hedge, and tariff rates are also found to be significant. Interaction effects are found to exist between (1) transportation costs and demand, and (2) take back rate and demand.; This study also provides a method to compare logistics network structures. A similarity measure is developed. Structural commonality analysis is conducted based on the similarity analysis. A structurally common network is configured such that the infrastructure will not require significant alteration if the environment (e.g., demand, costs, etc.) changes. This helps to save start-up and shut-down costs for facilities. The results show that a “structurally common” network configuration compared to a “robust” network configuration may be a better solution for structural design issue of companies.; The model developed in this dissertation facilitates strategic analysis of a logistics system in today's complex global business world. It is expected to improve forward logistics decision making while evaluating entrance into international markets and investment in reverse logistics systems. |
