The potential of emergent disruptive technologies for humanitarian supply chains: the integration of blockchain, Artificial Intelligence and 3D printing

Abstract

The growing importance of humanitarian operations has created an imperative to overcome the complications currently recorded in the field. Challenges such as delays, congestion, poor communication and lack of accountability may represent opportunities to test the reported advantages of emergent disruptive technologies. Meanwhile, the literature on humanitarian supply chains looks at isolated applications of technology and lacks a framework for understanding challenges and solutions, a gap that this article aims to fill. Using a case study based on the flood of Tabasco of 2007 in Mexico, this research identifies solutions based on the use of emergent disruptive technologies. Furthermore, this article argues that the integration of different technologies is essential to deliver real benefits to the humanitarian supply chain. As a result, it proposes a framework to improve the flow of information, products and financial resources in humanitarian supply chains integrating three emergent disruptive technologies; Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain and 3D Printing. The analysis presented shows the potential of the framework to reduce congestion in the supply chain, enhance simultaneous collaboration of different stakeholders, decrease lead times, increase transparency, traceability and accountability of material and financial resources, and allow victims to get involved in the fulfilment of their own needs.

Artificial intelligence-driven innovation for enhancing supply chain resilience and performance under the effect of supply chain dynamism: an empirical investigation

“…This provides empirical evidence to past studies (e.g. Baryannis et al 2019 ; Wamba andAkter 2019 ; Macías-Escrivá et al 2013 ; Leitao 2009 ) regarding the ability of AI-driven adaptive capabilities to build SCRes alongside those who postulate that AI enhances visibility and real-time coordination (Rodríguez-Espíndola et al 2020 ; Baryannis et al 2019 ), resulting in reinforcement of supply chain collaboration and building of SCRes.…”

“…Firms developing AI-based Information processing capabilities such as self-adaptive algorithms, prediction, and learning techniques are witnessing their adaptive skills enhanced in the pre-disruption era due to predictive and forecasting capabilities (Baryannis et al 2019 ). Besides, they could develop collaboration mechanisms with their partners through sharing real-time forecasts of inventories and production capacities and informing them of the risk of upcoming events (Rodríguez-Espíndola et al 2020 ). Those firms can swiftly adapt their strategies during disruptive event and collaborate with their suppliers and customers through AI-driven and shared decision-making (Dubey et al 2020 ).…”

“…Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the ability of a system to acquire learnings by analyzing the external environment's data and using acquired learnings to adjust or make new plans against the environmental changes (Grover et al 2020). This includes techniques and algorithms that enable us to learn from input data, with or without being informed about the eventual output forms (Baryannis et al 2019;Rodríguez-Espíndola et al 2020). The field of AI is not new in itself.…”

“…Despite the scarcity of studies addressing the relationship between AI and SCC, past literature positively links SCC to AI techniques. For instance, Rodríguez-Espíndola et al (2020) and Baryannis et al (2019) emphasized the potential of AI techniques to provide reliable and updated forecasts and near real-time visibility of inventories which resolve collaboration issues among stakeholders that arise from uncertain supply and demand. Hence, we can assume that: H4a AI has a significant and positive effect on SCC.…”

Sustainable supply chain management towards disruption and organizational ambidexterity: A data driven analysis

“… I4 Disaster management The concept of disaster management can be defined as the correct set of actions and activities taken during each phase of the disaster extending between preventing the disaster from happening to overcoming its effects. Abulnour (2014); Dwivedi et al (2018) ; Ganguly et al (2017) ; Rodríguez-Espíndola et al (2020) ; Ghorashi et al (2019) ; Gupta et al (2020) ; Khalilpourazari et al (2020) ; Govindan et al (2020b) ; Sarma et al (2020) ; Schätter et al (2019) . I5 Green supply chain Green supply chain management is defined as a set of programs adopted within the supply chain to improve environmental performance of processes and products in the forms of environmental management system, life-cycle analysis, design for environment, environmental certification.…”