Cargando…

A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains

This paper investigates using simulation to predict the benefits and costs of digitalising cold distribution chains. The study focuses on the distribution of refrigerated beef in the UK, where digitalisation was implemented to re-route cargo carriers. By comparing simulations of both digitalised and...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Schiffmann, Oliver, Hicks, Ben, Nassehi, Aydin, Gopsill, James, Valero, Maria
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10141111/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37112487
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s23084147
_version_ 1785033314498772992
author Schiffmann, Oliver
Hicks, Ben
Nassehi, Aydin
Gopsill, James
Valero, Maria
author_facet Schiffmann, Oliver
Hicks, Ben
Nassehi, Aydin
Gopsill, James
Valero, Maria
author_sort Schiffmann, Oliver
collection PubMed
description This paper investigates using simulation to predict the benefits and costs of digitalising cold distribution chains. The study focuses on the distribution of refrigerated beef in the UK, where digitalisation was implemented to re-route cargo carriers. By comparing simulations of both digitalised and non-digitalised supply chains, the study found that digitalisation can reduce beef waste and decrease the number of miles driven per successful delivery, leading to potential cost savings. Note that this work is not attempting to prove that digitalisation is appropriate for the chosen scenario, only to justify a simulation approach as a decision making tool. The proposed modelling approach provides decision-makers with more accurate predictions of the cost–benefit of increased sensorisation in supply chains. By accounting for stochastic and variable parameters, such as weather and demand fluctuations, simulation can be used to identify potential challenges and estimate the economic benefits of digitalisation. Moreover, qualitative assessments of the impact on customer satisfaction and product quality can help decision-makers consider the broader impacts of digitalisation. Overall, the study suggests that simulation can play a crucial role in facilitating informed decisions about the implementation of digital technologies in the food supply chain. By providing a better understanding of the potential costs and benefits of digitalisation, simulation can help organisations make more strategic and effective decisions.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-10141111
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2023
publisher MDPI
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-101411112023-04-29 A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains Schiffmann, Oliver Hicks, Ben Nassehi, Aydin Gopsill, James Valero, Maria Sensors (Basel) Article This paper investigates using simulation to predict the benefits and costs of digitalising cold distribution chains. The study focuses on the distribution of refrigerated beef in the UK, where digitalisation was implemented to re-route cargo carriers. By comparing simulations of both digitalised and non-digitalised supply chains, the study found that digitalisation can reduce beef waste and decrease the number of miles driven per successful delivery, leading to potential cost savings. Note that this work is not attempting to prove that digitalisation is appropriate for the chosen scenario, only to justify a simulation approach as a decision making tool. The proposed modelling approach provides decision-makers with more accurate predictions of the cost–benefit of increased sensorisation in supply chains. By accounting for stochastic and variable parameters, such as weather and demand fluctuations, simulation can be used to identify potential challenges and estimate the economic benefits of digitalisation. Moreover, qualitative assessments of the impact on customer satisfaction and product quality can help decision-makers consider the broader impacts of digitalisation. Overall, the study suggests that simulation can play a crucial role in facilitating informed decisions about the implementation of digital technologies in the food supply chain. By providing a better understanding of the potential costs and benefits of digitalisation, simulation can help organisations make more strategic and effective decisions. MDPI 2023-04-20 /pmc/articles/PMC10141111/ /pubmed/37112487 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s23084147 Text en © 2023 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Schiffmann, Oliver
Hicks, Ben
Nassehi, Aydin
Gopsill, James
Valero, Maria
A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains
title A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains
title_full A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains
title_fullStr A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains
title_full_unstemmed A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains
title_short A Cost–Benefit Analysis Simulation for the Digitalisation of Cold Supply Chains
title_sort cost–benefit analysis simulation for the digitalisation of cold supply chains
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10141111/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37112487
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s23084147
work_keys_str_mv AT schiffmannoliver acostbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT hicksben acostbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT nassehiaydin acostbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT gopsilljames acostbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT valeromaria acostbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT schiffmannoliver costbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT hicksben costbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT nassehiaydin costbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT gopsilljames costbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains
AT valeromaria costbenefitanalysissimulationforthedigitalisationofcoldsupplychains