Term Paper: Interim Report on

Modelling approaches in
Sustainable Supply chain
Management
Praveen G (1401040)
Introduction
The world commission on environment and development puts
sustainability as The needs of the present without compromising the
ability of future generations to meet their needs [1]. The term paper will
dwell into the concept of sustainable supply chain management and
various approaches to model sustainable supply chain management. The
interrelationships
among
society,
the
environment,
and
economic/industrial development are integral to the concept of
sustainability[2] . Also the relationship between the three dimensions are
analysed in the paper. Four modelling approaches consisting of various
elements and dimensions will be covered by performing a literature
review of most cited articles within each category.
The four categories are :
1.
2.
3.
4.

Life-cycle assessment based models

Equilibrium models
Multi-criteria decision making (MCDM)
Applications of the analytical hierarchy process (AHP).

Modelling Approaches
Modelling of a sustainable supply chain involves research where models
of causal relationships between control variables and performance
variables are developed, analysed and tested1. There are basically four
different approaches to modelling a sustainable supply chain. These are
a) Economic dimension: This involves economic issues and includes
aspects of costs and revenues. Researches in this dimension follow a
Life cycle Assessment (LCA) approach.
b) Environmental dimension: Here energy demand and CO2
emissions are chief criteria under observation. Here too one can find
1 [1] Wced. Our common future. NewYork: Oxford University Press; 1987. [2] Margot J.
Hutchins, John W. Sutherland ,An exploration of measures of social sustainability and
their application to supply chain decisions, Journal of cleaner production

LCA based approaches towards modelling the sustainable supply

chain.
c) Social dimension: The social dimension includes aspects such as
Corporate Social Responsibility and the relationship which business
needs to have with society including aspects such as income
redistribution, unemployment etc.
d) Integration of all dimensions: This is perhaps the most important
approach to model a sustainable supply chain. Most often, this
studies aspects of trade-offs between the three dimensions2
The term paper would cover these four aspects. Once this is done,
suggestions about future research in the area of sustainable supply chains
will follow.

2 Seuring, Stefan. "A review of modeling approaches for sustainable

supply chain management." Decision support systems 54, no. 4 (2013):
1513-1520.