Sustainable supply chain management of automotive sector in context to the circular economy: A strategic framework

In the era of circular economy (CE), sustainability in the supply chain provides a competitive edge over other organizations in a globally competitive environment. There have been an increasing number of studies in sustainable supply chain practices in the recent past. Limited studies have been done to identify the key strategic factors for sustainable operations of automotive sector in context to developing countries like India. The primary goal of this research is to undertake a thorough assessment and give a brief understanding of the barriers of sustainability in the automotive supply chain. Various barriers are identified from experts' interviews and past academic literature. An integrated approach comprising of the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory method (DEMATEL) and interpretive structural modelling (ISM) method is employed to develop a contextual and hierarchical relationship among the identified barriers. The lack of awareness concerning reverse logistics adoption has the greatest causal effect. This is followed by a lack of information sharing on sustainable practices and complexity in measurement and monitoring of suppliers' environmental activities. To ensure the robustness of the model, sensitivity analysis has been also performed. The novelty of this work is that it identified several barriers towards a sustainable supply chain in automotive sector with a special focus on India. This work will help the practitioners to prioritize the strategic actions needed to be taken for developing sustainable supply chain management. This research has crucial policy implications for stakeholders working to build a sustainable CE by remanufacturing and reusing production waste.

Automated summary

This research aims to assess and understand the barriers to sustainability in the automotive supply chain, using the DEMATEL and ISM methods to analyze the relationships among these barriers. The lack of awareness about reverse logistics adoption, inadequate information sharing on sustainable practices, and the complexity in measuring and monitoring suppliers' environmental activities were identified as the main barriers. The novelty of this research lies in its specific focus on the automotive sector in India. This study has important implications for prioritizing strategic actions and establishing a sustainable circular economy.