Managing closed-loop supply chains

The increasing number of returns of products and the items used for their distribution has become an important topic for many companies all over the world due to increasing competition and environmental legislation. Closed-Loop Supply Chains (CLSC)may offer companies an unique opportunity to improve their profits on the one hand and to serve societal responsibility on the other hand. The management of CLSCdiffers in a number of ways from managing supply chains in general. The book gives insight in these differences and how these differences may be dealt with in practice, by offeringa concrete framework, introducing the different aspects related toCLSC (technical, organisational, planning and control, information, environmental and business economic) and their mutual relations, in a systematic logical way as well as cases clustered according to the inputs for a CLSC, like commercial returns, end-of-life returns, where for each case attention is paid to all the above mentioned aspects. The frame work and especially the cases from successful companies offer the reader an invalueable help to build up and improve CLSC. TOC:Introduction to closed loop supply chains: Managerial aspects of closed loop supply chains. Commercial returns in closed loop supply chains: Commercial returns related to sales actions: the L'Oreal case.- Commercial returns in computer electronics: the HP case.- Commercial returns related to long distance sales: the Wehkamp case. Repair and replacement in closed loop supply chains: The repair of electronic equipment: the Omron case.- Closed loop supply chain based contracts: the RetreadCo case.- The closed loop supply chain of service parts: the Whirlpool case. End-of-use closed loop supply chains: At the end of lease contracts: the Oce case.- Reusing mobile phones: the Cellular case.- Reusing car engines: the Daimler-Chrysler case. End-of-life closed loop supply chains: The Dutch network for end-of-life large white goods.- The closed loop supply chain of tires: the Thessaloniki initiative. Production in closed loop supply chains: Reversed logistics in the pharmaceutical industry: the Schering case.- Reversed logistics in the electronics industry: the NEC case. Distribution in closed loop supply chains: The chip in crate: the Heineken case.- Maritime returns: the Blue Container case. Cabotage: the Port of Rotterdam case. Summary and conclusions on closed loop supply chains: Lessons learned and future developments.