Table 3

Changes and their impacts on supply chain resilience and sustainability

Smart technologyImpacts on supply chain resilience and sustainabilitySource
Big dataCan help supply chain actors to perform better sale forecasts to optimize inventory levels and avoid the “bullwhip” effect, which saves resourcesE3; E6; E8; E10; E15
Can help organizations to monitor environmental indicators (e.g. CO2 emissions, air pollutants)E5; E7; E9
Can aid in understanding environmental impacts on supply chains and consequently develop more precise environmental impact assessmentsE1; E5; E10
Can be used to promote ethical behavior among supply chain actors by providing higher transparency and traceability, which may positively influence commitment to sustainable business practicesE3; E8; E9
Can assist in ensuring suppliers' cooperation in applying sustainable (social and environmental) practicesE1; E5; E11
Can help in decision-making as it plays a key role in supply chain strategic and operational planning. In strategic planning, big data can aid in decisions regarding sourcing, network design, product design, and development. In operational planning, it can help improve forecasting, procurement, production, and logisticsE4; E9; E10; E12; E15
Can help in the smart selection of environmentally friendly raw materials for productionE4; E7; E14
IoTCan help to minimize delivery errors, waiting times, and damaged products. This helps reduce resource consumption and carbon emissionsE2; E3; E10; E15
Can assist in improving resource utilization (e.g. energy, raw materials, employees) in supply chain processesE4; E6; E9; E11
Blockchain technologiesCan assist in reducing product rework and recall because of its tracking capabilitiesE2; E7; E9; E15
Can help to improve supply chain transparency and traceability, and avoid unethical behaviorE2; E7; E12
Can assist in governance disruption and information sharing including environmental and social aspects. It makes it easy to trace the footprint of products and reduce fraudE2; E7; E8
Can help to ensure trust among partners and smart-contract transactions, and reduce lead timesE2; E5; E6; E12
Digital twinsCan be used to model and simulate supply chains based on real-time data, allowing for complete end-to-end supply chain visibilityE4; E9; E13; E15
Can be used in planning and real-time control decisions including prediction of demand spikes and supply shocks, and making recommendations on required actions to ensure preparedness and resiliencyE4; E5; E8; E13

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