You are on page 1of 46

Author's Accepted Manuscript

A systematic literature review of the supply


chain Operations reference (SCOR) model
application with special attention to environ-
mental issues
E.N. Ntabe, L. LeBel, A.D. Munson, L.A. Santa-
Eulalia

www.elsevier.com/locate/ijpe

PII: S0925-5273(15)00293-5
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpe.2015.08.008
Reference: PROECO6181

To appear in: Int. J. Production Economics

Received date: 28 October 2013


Revised date: 24 February 2015
Accepted date: 12 August 2015

Cite this article as: E.N. Ntabe, L. LeBel, A.D. Munson, L.A. Santa-Eulalia, A
systematic literature review of the supply chain Operations reference (SCOR)
model application with special attention to environmental issues, Int. J.
Production Economics, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpe.2015.08.008

This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for
publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of
the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and
review of the resulting galley proof before it is published in its final citable form.
Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which
could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal
pertain.
A systematic literature review of the Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR)
model application with special attention to environmental issues

E. N. Ntabea*, L. LeBela, A. D. Munsona and L.A. Santa-Eulaliab


a
Dpartement des Sciences du Bois et de la Fort, Universit Laval, Canada
b
Dpartement de systmes d'information et mthodes quantitatives de gestion, Universit de Sherbrooke,
Sherbrooke, Canada

Corresponding author: E. N. Ntabe


Dpartement des Sciences du Bois et de la Fort, Universit Laval, Canada
Tel: +14186562131-8329
E-mail: eric-ngbanye.ntabe.1@ulaval.ca

Co-authors:
<Luc.Lebel@sbf.ulaval.ca>; <alison.munson@sbf.ulaval.ca>; <L.Santa-Eulalia@USherbrooke.ca>

Abstract

Present day concerns with climate change have imposed the consideration of environment-friendly
practices as a competitive requisite for supply chains. Consequently, it is increasingly mandatory for
business organisations to make a transition toward integrating environmental performance as a
constituent element for success. With its GreenSCOR component, the SCOR model, which is a
diagnostic tool for supply chains, can serve as a strategic tool for such environmental performance.
However, evidence of environmental considerations in the application of the model within an array of
industries in the last decade has not been investigated. This article uses a number of SCOR assessment
criteria and elements to review selected SCOR model application papers, published between 2000 and
2012 with special attention to environmental criteria. Results indicate that although the innovative
paradigm of moving from single firms to supply chain outfits has been embraced by business
organisations, no paper experimented the model based on an end-to-end supply chain approach. While
a generally timid interest in the model was observed, annual distribution of the articles shows a
positive trend in the number of environment and return process related papers. 11.1% of the papers
attempted the environmental dimension of the model while 24.4% attempted the return process. The
study notes that while the SCOR model is suitable for supply chain financial performance evaluation,
it is also a practical decision support tool for environmental assessment and competing decision
alternatives along the chain.

Keywords: SCOR model, Supply Chain Management, Environmental performance, Enterprise engineering.
1. Introduction

The effects of climate change have imposed the consideration of green practices alongside
the financial performance of business processes as a competitive requirement in the global
market. Ahi and Searcy (2013) note that focus on environmental issues in supply chain research is a
build-up towards sustainable supply chain management. Consequently, it is increasingly
compelling for traditional supply chains to make a transition toward integrating environmental
performance as a constituent element for their value adding processes and organizational
success (Gifford, 1997; Hwang et al., 2010, Walton et al., 1998). While several concepts and
modelling frameworks have been developed to improve supply chain performance, the
characteristics needed by its partners to understand the mechanics and processes of the supply
chain are mandatory in the model development process.
Some models in the literature (e.g. the GSCF Global Supply Chain Forum framework
(Lambert et al. 2005), the Value Reference Model (VRM) developed by the trade consortium
Value Chain Group, the Process Classification Framework (PCF) from The American
Productivity and Quality Center (APQC, 2013), the Sustainable Balanced Scorecard (Hsu et
al., 2011; Kima et al., 2013) and Life Cycle Analysis (Sethi et al., 2011; Kucukvar et al., 2014)
have been experimented and established as reference frameworks for green enterprise business
process modelling. Nonetheless, the Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model (SCC,
2010), is considered by some scholars (e.g Huan et al. 2004; Hwang et al. 2010;
Zangoueinezhad et al. 2011) as the de facto standard employed in academia and industry in the
SCM arena. It is also seen as the most promising for strategic decision-making and the most
rigorous for supply chain performance evaluation. Other authors (e.g. McCormack et al.,
2008), conclude that SCOR is becoming the common language for benchmarking and
comparing supply chains and supply chain management practices.
The SCOR model maximizes supply chain visibility including efficiency, measurable and
actionable outcomes when the visibility strategy of the supply chain is aligned with the SCOR
model. The first effort of the SCOR model to take environmental concerns into account was
the introduction of the Return process in its early version. With its recent extension to include
GreenSCOR, it is gradually being applied in the natural resource management field and for the
environmental performance of supply chain processes (Schnetzler et al., 2009; Bai et al., 2010;
Hwang et al. 2010; Bai et al. 2012; Xiaoa et al., 2012).

1.1. The SCOR model

The SCOR model is a diagnostic tool for Supply Chain Management (SCM) that enables
users to understand the processes involved in a business organization and to identify the vital
features that lead to customer satisfaction. Under construction since 1996, the template was
initially developed by PRTM; a management consulting firm, now part of
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC). It was later endorsed by the Supply Chain Council
(SCC), an independent and nonprofit organization and its affiliated members as a cross-
industry de facto standard diagnostic tool for supply chain management. Today, the SCC has
published its eleventh version. Figure 1.1 illustrates the SCOR model and its management
processes.

Plan

Plan Plan
Deliver
Source Make Deliver Source
Source Make Deliver Source Make Deliver
Return Return Return Return Return Return Return Return

Suppliers Suppliers Your Company Customer Customers


Supplier Internal or External Internal or External Customer

Figure 1.1: Schematic representation of SCOR management processes (Adapted from SCC, 2010)

SCOR is organized around five management processes (Plan, Source, Make, Deliver, and
Return) that are further subdivided into process categories, elements, tasks and activities
(Huang et al., 2005; Hwang et al., 2010; Kasi, 2005; Schnetzler et al., 2009; SCC, 2008).
According to Li et al., (2011), SCOR enables companies to examine the configuration of their
supply chains. It also identifies and eliminates redundant and wasteful practices along supply
chains. As a business process architecture, it defines the way these processes interact, how
they perform and how they are configured from a suppliers supplier to a customers customer
(Min and Zhou, 2002; Huang et al., 2005; SCC, 2010). The GreenSCOR extension of the
model was first introduced in its fifth version. Cheng et al., (2010) and Schoeman and Sanchez
(2009) note that, GreenSCOR is a modification that integrates environmental considerations
through processes, metrics and best practices into SCM processes, while taking into account
the impacts of operations at each stage of the product life cycle. However, our literature search
reveals that focus on the SCOR model research is primarily on its financial component.
The application of the SCOR model has been reported in the following industries to name
a few: the lamp industry (Vanany et al., 2005), transistor-liquid crystal display (Hwang et al.,
2008), the ethanol and petroleum industry (Russel et al., 2009), geographic information
systems (Schmitz, 2007), the construction industry (Cheng et al., 2010; Pan et al., 2010),
automotive industry (Potthast et al., 2010), the professional services industry (Ellram and
Billinton, 2004), the wood industry (Schnetzler et al., 2009), information technology and
technology consulting (Dong et al., 2006), the tourism industry (Yilmaz and Bititci, 2006) and
shipbuilding (Zangoueinezhad et al. 2011). With a wide range of the SCOR model application
already reported in supply chain optimization (Bolstorff and Rosenbaum, 2003; Cai et al.,
2009; Huan et al., 2004), SCC (2010) notes that the model also provides a foundation for
environmental accounting in the supply chain. Paradoxically, research combining green
performance evaluation and the SCOR model has remained rare (Hwang et al., 2010).
Consequently, Dutta and Westenhoefer (2008) conclude that there is little evidence associating
the application of the model with environmental performance. While Huan et al., (2004)
consider SCOR as a rigorous tool for the evaluation of supply chains, Reyes and Giachetti
(2010) claim that its popularity is limited as it merely reflects the practices of stronger
economies.
The objective of this paper is to provide supply chain researchers and managers with
baseline information on the industry applications of the model with special emphasis on
environmental considerations. A critical analysis of recent application papers of the model,
published in the last 13 years is conducted and research gaps identified. This is a unique
synthesis, as we did not find any similar review of SCOR applications during our literature
search.
This paper is organized as follows: Section 2 briefly presents the key questions addressed
and the approach for the literature review. Section 3 presents the results subdivided into three
parts: Part one reviews environment related papers. Part two reviews other papers based on the
different research methodologies applied while part three identifies research gaps and presents
the findings. Finally, Section 4 outlines the conclusions and recommendations for future
research initiatives.

2. Materials and methods

This review is carried-out to survey the industrial applications of the SCOR model published
in peer-reviewed papers between 2000 and 2012. Subsequently, our results are presented using
qualitative and quantitative evidence. Since the scope of this paper is limited to the SCOR
model, the review process does not cut across a full range of issues treated in some of the
papers. It is conducted from a single viewpoint, as only SCOR model related aspects have
been highlighted in the selected papers.

2.1. Questions addressed


The main questions addressed by the present review are:
1. Which research methodologies are employed by the authors?
2. What are the key findings?
3. How are the various SCOR elements addressed in the papers?
4. What proportion of the papers address the environmental component of the model?
5. Are any particular interests expressed in the different SCOR management processes?
6. What are the principal research gaps after more than a decade of development and
application of this reference model?

2.2. Article search and selection procedure

A search of the ABI/INFORM global database, Google Scholar, SCOPUS and the ISI
Web of Science search engines yielded a number of papers each with several of them
appearing in more than one search engine. In order to allow an in-depth analysis of each
article, we narrowed our choice to 45 full-length peer-reviewed papers dealing with the SCOR
modelling framework and cutting across a spectrum of industrial applications. In order to
obtain first-rate articles from the lot, a number of keywords were identified. Consequently, the
expressions SCOR model and GreenSCOR were introduced into the search engines for papers
in all available disciplines. The search for each paper was facilitated by the use of
accompanying terms like SCOR model, GreenSCOR model and SCOR model and
environmental issues. The study applied Ahi and Searcy (2013) literature search approach in
which other references cited in the papers that were identified were used as secondary sources
to find other relevant articles. The selection exercise was guided by the following criteria: 1)
Must be a scientific article, published in a peer-reviewed journal. 2) Dealing with the SCOR
model application. 3) Article not older than the year 2000. Since the GreenSCOR component
of the model was developed in 2002 and introduced into SCOR version 5.0, the base year for
the articles was limited to 2000. Our purpose was to have the maximum possible number of
GreenSCOR-based articles for the review exercise. Consequently, keywords were tailored
while bearing in mind environmental considerations. The following keywords were used for
the article search process: SCOR model, GreenSCOR model, GreenSCOR model application,
SCOR model and environmental issues. An appraisal of the scientific contribution of each
article was conducted taking into account the SCOR management components. In order to
meet the requirement for scholarly review of the papers, the dual approach to literature review
(Kekle et al., 2009) was employed. It requires a synthesis of each paper, followed by a
critical analysis of its content including the theories and methodologies that are employed.
Characterization and gap analysis took into consideration article distribution by author(s),
journal, year of publication, methodology applied, environmental concerns, SCOR
components and management processes. A number of SCOR-based criteria assessment
elements were developed into an evaluation framework for critical analysis of the research
gaps. Table 2.1 provides detailed information on the assessment criteria elements that were
used.
The framework applied three assessment criteria elements (category, criteria and
description) for the evaluation exercise. These elements were the different SCOR model
components and attributes that interested the various authors of the reviewed papers. They
were used in illustrating the scope and depth of SCOR model application in each of the
papers. The SCOR items that were selected were those that provided greater insight in
understanding the application of the model. A synthesis of the findings was presented and
interpreted under section 3. The structure and organisation of the review process is based on
the assessment criteria elements on Table 2.1.
Table 2.1: Definition of assessment criteria elements used
Category Criteria Description
General Information Inter-temporal Time-based supply chain decision levels, including strategic, tactical,
developed by Santa- dimension operational and execution decision-making levels.
Eulalia et al. (2012) Spatial dimension Geographic layout of supply chain units, i.e. vendors, facilities, clients
based on Shapiro and customers
(2000) Functional dimension Procurement, manufacturing, distribution and sales.
Processes The five management processes of the SCOR model
Performance attributes A combination of metrics for setting strategic direction of supply chains
Metric Level A hierarchical configuration of the SCOR model performance evaluation
process
Process types Made-up of Plan, Execution and Enable. They are process categories
assigned to planning support to the allocation of resources to expected
demand, plus process categories triggered by current or planned demand
SCOR and process categories that serve as support to the other processes
Characteristics Supply chain strategy It is the decoupling point of a product which can be MTS (Make-to-
Stock), MTO (Make-to-Order) or ETO (Engineer-to-Order) product.
Practices Best practices and Leading practices which are conducts that are applied to
safeguard supply chain performance
Return A process of planning, implementing and controlling the inbound flow
of defect or excess products to either recover value or ensure proper of
disposal.
SCOR version The different periodical releases of the SCOR model.
Modelling Software Any toolkit that is used in the modelling exercise
Application and technology
information Modelling coupling Interoperability of the conceptual characteristics of the SCOR model
with other tools to provide modelling clarity and increased capabilities.
Industry sector Field or domain in which the SCOR model is applied.

The general information section on Table 2.1 is based on the model developed by Santa-
Eulalia et al. (2012). The authors develop a distributed planning analysis (DPA) model using
supply chain integration concepts by Shapiro (2000) that can be translated into a multi-agent
society. The DPA identifies the possible supply chain planning, scheduling and control
functions at different levels of a typical supply chain. They equally introduce a new level (the
decision dimension) to complement the three by Shapiro (2000). These autonomous supply
chain entities are then built-up into a model known as the supply chain planning and
scheduling cube where they can interact with one another.

3. Results

3.1. Article characterization based on environmental considerations

According to Seuring and Muller (2008), the environmental cost of production should
come in line with the value of the product. It is thus essential to introduce such cost into the
business model of a supply chain to avoid undervaluation and price deflation of products.
Our first objective was therefore to assess the contribution of the application papers in
establishing the link between environmentally conscious business practices and supply chain
performance. However, out of the 45 papers that were reviewed, only five (Schnetzler et al.,
2009; Bai et al., 2010; Hwang et al., 2010; Bai et al., 2012; Xiaoa et al., 2012) attempted a
green performance evaluation of the SCOR management processes while 11 attempted the
return process. The five environment-related papers and 11 return process papers are analysed
below.
The applicability and the environmental benefits of the SCOR model in the Swiss forestry
sector are investigated by Schnetzler et al., (2009). The authors examine whether the second
level of the model can be standardised and used for the description of the wood supply chain.
Standard SCOR process elements are modified to involve harvesting, delivery, and forestall
planning. The study impinges on the Source process, taking into account specific management
practices that influence tree growth in plantations. While the Make process is translated into
wood harvesting activities such as felling, delimbing, debarking, cutting, hacking, sorting of
logs and skidding, the authors consider the Return process as irrelevant in the forest value
chain.
A second paper (Hwang et al., 2010) illustrates the importance of green purchasing
among green label products manufacturers in Taiwan. The authors portray green purchasing
as a useful tool for the mitigation of environmental impacts of consumption and for the
promotion of clean production technology. A link between the Deming cycle (the plan-do-
study-act cycle of green purchasing) and the SCOR sourcing process as well as its
performance metrics is established using a structural equation model of 13 hypotheses. The
relationship also reveals that under green purchasing, overall corporate performance can be
improved if the environmental performance of suppliers of the chain is evaluated.
In Bai et al., (2010), rough set theory (Pawlak, 1982), which is a multicriteria decision
analysis method to deal with imprecise categories and approximations, is applied for joint
ecological and business performance measurement. The authors apply a three stage process
consisting of supplier selection, evaluation and development using three separate rough set
theories in green supplier management. Rough set methodology is depicted as a flexible
application for supplier selection, performance measurement evaluation and programme
development evaluation. The article also illustrates that green performance measurement of
suppliers can be accomplished using a neighbourhood rough set with two factors: distance and
a threshold value. Business and environmental scores are used as decision attributes to
determine the performance of each supplier. The rough set methodology is consequently
recommended to decision makers for the performance evaluation of their suppliers.
Xiaoa et al., (2012) apply the SCOR model to construct a standardized closed-loop
logistics operation reference model. The model provides supply chain managers with general
analysis on the profit function and decision-making on potential risks within forward and
reverse logistics. The authors demonstrate that in green logistics operation, all logistics
processes form a bidirectional closed-loop topology within which, all materials are regarded
as resources that can be repeatedly used through recycling loops. Such recycling loops help in
improving resource use efficiency and reduction of environmental resource exploitation.
Bai et al., (2012) integrate grey systems theory (a concept for solving problems in
systems with poor or incomplete information) elements with neighbourhood rough set theory
to improve the environmental performance of supply chains. The authors apply the SCOR
model to determine core sets of environmental and business performance measures for supply
chain sourcing based on historical and external (to the supply chain) outcomes. The SCOR-
based sourcing function performance measures are based on five dimensions (cost, time,
quality, flexibility and innovation). The methodology helps to evaluate, select, and monitor
sustainable supply chain performance measurement that can be integrated into a performance
management system.
Although environmental concerns are treated in the five application papers described
above, the review observes a predominantly theoretical submission, i.e. one case study, one
simulation and three conceptual papers. The return process is also discussed in 11 other
papers although they lay emphasis solely on the financial implications of supply chains.
Stephens (2001) describes the return process as presented in the SCOR template while
Lambert et al. (2005) present its significance and outline the different activities involved in
the execution of the process. Mclaren and Vuong (2008) consider the Return process as a
functional attribute that provides support for primary supply chain processes, data
management, decision support, relationship management, and performance improvement.
Rabelo et al. (2006) demonstrate how the manufacturing facility handles the sourcing of
returned defective products (SR1), the sourcing of maintenance required operations (MRO)
for sold products (SR2) from all local warehouses, and the delivery of MROs back to
warehouses (DR2). The warehouse and service facilities handle the sourcing of returned
defective products (SR1), the sourcing of MROs for sold products (SR2) from customers, and
the delivery of MROs back to customers (DR2). In another simulation, Stavrulaki and Davis
(2010) note that within the Build-To-Stock and Assemble-To-Order supply chains, the return
management philosophy is based on centralised processing that is efficiency-driven while in a
Make-To-Order and Design-To-Order supply chains, the return process is based on
decentralised processing that is customer service driven.
Li et al. (2011) extend the Return process by integrating quality assurance measures into
the process. Variables relating to the process are analysed and it is observed that reliability
and responsiveness are important quality indicators for the process. Two hypotheses on
supply chain return decisions are used in testing the process and a number of decision
constructs retained. The authors observe that the process has a positive impact on customer
facing supply chain quality performance and internal facing business performance. Within the
construction material supply chain, Pan et al. (2011) examine steel bars, concrete and steel
tendons that are disqualified and disposed as waste. Qualified and disqualified steel bars are
determined using discriminant analysis probability. The C260 steel bar incoming acceptance
report indicates a defect occurrence probability of 0.00001 that is recycled. In another paper,
Xiao et al. (2012) demonstrate that all logistics processes form a bidirectional closed-loop
topology. They integrate the return process with forward logistics and focus on non-
conforming products, customer recovery and other products generated in the forward
logistics. The process is composed of aspects such as recycling, sorting, cleaning, purification,
maintenance return, re-packaging processing, re-using and waste disposal.
The review also observes that despite the importance of all management processes in
environmental performance evaluation, authors showed more interest in the SCOR sourcing
process. None of the studies also proposed a mechanism for addressing or improving the
environmental performance of supply chain processes. There is need for a practical approach
that safeguards against environmental concerns along the different value adding processes of
supply chains.
3.2. Article characterization by methodological considerations

This section is subdivided into five subgroups, based on the methodological approaches
that were applied by the authors. They are examined under conceptual methodology, case
study, simulation, survey and other empirical methods (exploratory and the Delphi).

3.2.1. Conceptual papers

Stephens (2001) presents the first SCOR model publication that describes its
development and application; the five management processes and their hierarchical
configuration are studied. In furtherance of the latter study, a supply chain model for tracking
performance using causal relationships between SCOR metrics is developed by Ganga and
Carpinetti (2011). The authors apply fuzzy logic to deal with problems of uncertainty and
subjectivity within the supply chain by predicting performance using SCOR levels 1 and 2.
Statistical analysis of the prediction model results confirm the relevance of the causal
relationships embedded in the SCOR model. The results also strengthen the claim that the
adoption of a prediction model based on fuzzy logic and on metrics of the SCOR model is a
feasible technique that can help managers in the decision making process of supply chain
management. In a similar study, Theeranuphattana and Tang (2008) apply an existing fuzzy
set measurement algorithm by combining the strengths of the SCOR model and Chan and
Qis measurement algorithm to develop an empirical and efficient measurement model for
resolving problems of supply chain performance. Ashayeri et al., (2012) present an
intuitionistic fuzzy Choquet integral operator based approach that allows interactions,
correlations or dependencies among decision making criteria to select supply chain partners
and configuration in order to increase value within the chain. The authors apply the SCOR
model to structure the supplier selection process. Sensitivity analyses are also conducted to
determine the evaluation results of the sensitiveness of configurations to the criteria weights.
Optimization and coordination of activities through information sharing is considered as a
main philosophy of the SCOR model. Khoo and Yin (2003) propose an extended graph-based
virtual clustering-enhanced technique for simplifying and optimizing supply chains. It is done
by modelling a complex supply chain with multiple level assemblies comprising
geographically distributed suppliers, warehouses, factories, distribution centres, transportation
and customers.
Another network optimization model by Huan et al., (2004) integrates SCOR
performance metrics and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) while Stavrulaki and Davis
(2011) use a conceptual model to expound the need for alignment between key aspects of a
product and its supply chain processes including the links between the processes and supply
chain strategy. The authors demonstrate that products can be produced with one of four
supply chain structures: make to stock, assemble to order, built to order and design to order.
They also substantiate that the suitability of each structure for the various products depends
on their demand characteristics. The study reveals that every supply chain structure
determines its production and logistics processes depending on its strategic priorities. In a
related study, an extended reference model covering the SCOR process map is proposed by
Milleta et al., (2009) to describe all physical and informational dependencies, in a multi-view
of business process mapping. The authors notice that existing alignment risks neglecting
important process dependencies within a business process management and enterprise. They
also analyse individual SCOR items according to their existing degrees of standardisation.
James (2005) uses a three phase systematic methodology involving SCOR-built supply chain
typology analysis, performance analysis and operations model design for the efficient
exploration and design of the SCOR model. Clivill and Berrah (2012) use MACBETH
methodology (a multi-criteria approach) to illustrate the processes and overall performance of
a principal manufacturer within a supply chain. The overall performance of the supply chain
is identified by combining the performances of other supply chain partners plus integrating
the performance of an impacting supplier into the prime manufacturers performance. A risk
factor analysis model is also adopted in which, risk sources are divided into six types (people,
facility, materials, law, information and environment).
The SCOR model is tested in another study alongside four other models by Lambert et
al., (2005) to identify the most appropriate for supply chain management (SCM) while Ellram
et al., (2004) assess the applicability of the SCOR model together with two product-based
manufacturing models: the Global Supply Chain Forum Framework and Hewlett Packards
Supply Chain Management Model. Potthast et al., (2010) use six SCOR-based standard
logistics sourcing models to conceive a user friendly decision support system for the sourcing
component. The models which are divided into three distinct features: sourcing with stock-
keeping by the customer, sourcing with stock-keeping by the supplier or service provider and
sourcing customer-order-related (without stock-keeping) model in which the supply chain has
no warehouse buffer between the supplier and customer to reduce cost and improve the
logistic performance of an automotive industry. A sourcing model is nonetheless based on the
principle of continuous flow production in which the supplier's production is synchronized
according to the customer's production demand, amount and the time he is ready to wait for
his command.
Elgazzar et al., (2012) apply the Dempster Shafer-AHP model (a mathematical theory of
evidence for multi-criteria decision-making that improves traditional approaches to multi-
criteria decision modelling) to develop a performance measurement method that links supply
chain process performance to a companys financial strategy. Authors highlight the
relationship between supply chain process performance and a companys financial
performance. A Supply Chain Financial Link Index (SCFLI) is also developed to test the link
between supply chain process performance and a companys financial strategic objectives.
Wang et al., (2010) combine Business Process Reengineering (BPR) and SCM to conduct a
comparative analysis of post and pro-performance indices as a basis for business process
modification for assessment of SCOR model top-down approach. The authors discuss the
limitations of current SCOR analysis and provide a mapping technique based on cause and
effect, the SCOR Standard, and Mutual Solution for gap mapping, problem prioritization, and
business process modification in a supply chain setting. A panoramic description of the SCOR
model is offered by Huan et al., (2004) in which its strengths and weaknesses are analysed,
and methods of application discussed. Zdravkovic et al., (2011) apply a value chain method to
compare the performance measurement of manufacturing and tourism industries. The scope of
research of the SCOR model is extended by developing a conceptual model for the industry.
The authors identify the competitive requirement summary of the planning process of the
industry is identified while that of level 3 is presented with a number of process details given
by work streams.
Irrespective of the methodological configuration however, most papers (Bai et al., 2010;
Hwang et al., 2008; Hwang et al., 2010; Li et al., 2011; Potthast et al., 2011) emphasize the
importance of the sourcing function in supply chain performance. This section summarizes
major contributions and provides various theoretical approaches that can be used in the
application of the template. They also provide useful information on the importance of the
conceptual approach to supply chain problems.

3.2.2. Case study methodology

This section seeks to understand and to highlight approaches that have been applied in the
operationalization of the SCOR model. It also throws light on case study outcomes and the
key contribution of each paper to supply chain performance improvement in the last decade.
Han and Chu (2009) assess the relative effectiveness of the collaborative supply chain
operations reference model using a regional electricity industry in China. It extends the SCOR
model by integrating collaborative product commerce and project management to propose a
comprehensive collaborative supply chain operations reference (CSCOR) model consisting of
four hierarchical levels: business, cooperative, process and operational models. Still within
the collaborative context of supply chain operations, Cheng et al., (2010) present a case study
example on the modelling of construction supply chains using the SCOR model in the
mechanical, electrical and plumbing processes of a construction project. The authors present a
model-based service oriented framework termed, the Supply Chain Collaborator in which
each supply chain process element is implemented as a discrete web service component. They
argue that representing supply chains using a network model can help understand the
complexity, support reconfiguration, bottlenecks identification, prioritization of company
resources, as well as value addition to the management of construction supply chains.
Persson (2011) equally develops a simplified method for analysing a supply chain
through the introduction of a new building block - the metric module. This development
provides a more comprehensive SCOR template for capturing the dynamics of supply chain
operations. In another study, the balanced scorecard and SCOR model are combined by
Thakkar et al., (2009) to propose a comprehensive and integrated supply chain performance
measurement framework for small and medium size enterprise clusters in India based on
qualitative and quantitative views. Other authors Irfan et al., (2008) develop a SCOR-based
supply chain flow synchronization of Pakistans tobacco industry that presents key
challenges, SCM efforts, and opportunities in the physical, information and financial flows of
the chain. Burgess and Singh (2006) fashion an integrated supply chain analysis framework
by means of the grounded theory (an inductive research method that moves from specifics to
generalizations). They use the SCOR template to develop the framework for analysing supply
chains within a multi-disciplinary and multi-method research paradigm in an Australian
public utility industry. Key actors within the chain are identified and interviewed for insights
into the social and political factors that determine supply chain performance. Soffer and Wand
(2007) limit their investigations to the delivery decision area of the SCOR-model. An analysis
of delivery activities for the Make-To-Order manufacturing strategy finds that customer order,
payment schedule, product, shipping documentation, product receiving and verification are
key performance metrics.
This review section establishes that the SCOR model is practical and can be adapted in
different contexts. The case study approach can be used in extending the SCOR model as well
as verifying the suitability of developed models. The application domain of the template is
equally wide ranging.

3.2.3. Simulation methodology

The authors focused on System Dynamics, Discrete Event and Hybrid Simulation
techniques to attain their objectives. Some SCM studies (Rder and Tibken, 2006; Rabelo et
al., 2007; Persson and Araldi, 2009) apply system dynamics, discrete event simulation and
hybrid simulation models to examine various configurations within the chain and what-if
scenarios. Gulledge and Chavusholu (2008) and Huang et al., (2005) use the simulation
technique to automate the SCOR model as an enabler for process-oriented supply chain
business intelligence. They prove that automated support for key performance indicators
(KPIs) is feasible and achievable but difficult if data collection to support KPI construction is
not automated.
The simulation of a specific level of operation in a supply chain (Persson and Araldi,
2009) reveals that all companies share the same set of processes in SCOR level 3. The authors
develop a comprehensive tool that integrates SCOR and an ARENA discrete event simulation
for understanding static operations. The tool equally helps a supply chain analyst to
understand such dynamic effects of the chain as variations in the rate of production and raw
material quality. Guruprasad and Herrmann (2006) also develop a SCOR-based hierarchical
approach to simulation modelling for forecasting supply chain performance. The framework
enables the construction of simulation models with discrete event simulation.
A simulation decision support system using a modular modelling concept for intra and
inter-company process is developed by Rder and Tibken (2006). The system evaluates
different configurations of process chains with different sets of parameters on material and
information flows. Pan et al., (2010) combine the case study and simulation methods to
enhance the performance evaluation of construction supply chains using a SCOR performance
evaluation system. The authors use a bridge construction project to develop a hybrid dynamic
modelling methodology for the construction industry through computer simulation. The
manufacturing activities and services of the global supply chain of a multinational
construction equipment corporation are modelled through the integration of the AHP
technique, system dynamics and discrete-event simulation by Rabelo et al., (2007). With the
aid of the SCOR template, the authors develop models that enable managers to evaluate
competing decision alternatives and other qualitative factors within the supply chain. The
performance metrics of the SCOR model are simulated by Tang et al., (2004) based on an IT
methodology of three analytical techniques (SWOT analysis, value-chain analysis, and quality
function deployment technique that transforms user demands into design quality) and four
levels of analysis: strategic, process focus, people and technology.
In addition, a framework for avoiding SCOR model semantic inconsistencies and
incompleteness is developed by Zdravkovic et al., (2011) in the knowledge management of
supply chain networks. The paper describes a literal web ontology language of SCOR
concepts and expands the model application domain. Pan et al., (2011) construct a hybrid
model to study supply and demand behaviour. The authors apply the SIMPROCESS dynamic
simulation software to assist in establishing a hierarchical model that explores the behaviour
of the construction supply chain process.
Inferring from the above simulation based papers, it can be concluded that the integration
of system dynamics and discrete-event-simulation models can enable the modelling of the
value chain and the illustration of simulation results for profits, customer satisfaction and
value chain responsiveness. Despite the ease and cost effectiveness of simulation models and
the vital roles they play in supply chain management such as improving optimization and
enabling an integrated supply chain management, search results reveal a comparatively
limited number of papers during the study period.

3.2.4. Survey methodology

Li et al., (2011) use survey data from 232 ISO 9000 certified companies to extend the
five decision areas (Plan, Source, Make, Deliver, and Return) of the SCOR model by
incorporating quality assurance measures in the supply chain process. While the results reveal
that the decision areas positively and individually influence both customer-facing supply
chain quality performance and internal-facing firm level business performance, Plan and
Source decisions show a greater positive effect on customer-facing supply chain performance
(reliability, response, and flexibility), while Make decisions are more influential on internal-
facing performance metrics (cost and asset). The authors propose an approach for
operationalizing the SCOR model while a list of critical supply chain operations metrics is
presented. Based on the results, causal relationships between supply chain process decisions
and performance are developed. The authors also apply a factor analysis approach that
examines the underlying patterns for a large number of variables and regression analysis to
test hypothesised relationships. The stepwise regression technique is applied by Hwang et al.,
(2008) to investigate sourcing processes and their performance metrics through an analysis of
the dependency of measures. The authors employ the questionnaire survey technique to
collect empirical information on the application of the regression model to examine the level
2 SCOR sourcing process and its performance metrics in a Taiwanese thin film transistor-
liquid crystal display industry using SCOR version 7.0. A time-based supply chain
performance assessment tool for key activities using two SCOR performance dimensions
(cost and reliability) for Taiwanese small and medium size enterprises is developed and tested
by Banomyong and Supatn (2011). Results from McCormack (2008) indicate a highly
significant statistical correlation between supply chain maturity and performance. Their
results portray the Deliver process maturity as having a higher impact on the overall
performance when compared to the other supply chain processes.
While the survey research approach may be termed subjective, since it limits data
collection to a selected portion of the population, the authors effectively applied the method in
assessing and setting supply chain needs and goals.
3.2.5. Other empirical methods

Other empirical methods that were observed in the review included the exploratory and
the Delphi methods. Within the exploratory design, Lockamby and McCormack (2004) use
regression analysis to investigate the causal relationships between process management and
supply chain performance. The authors develop four SCOR decision areas to characterize
supply-chain management practices and processes and determine those that have the most
influence on the chains performance. Based on a study of 90 firms and 523 individuals
within eleven industry sectors, the authors observe that planning processes are central in all
SCOR supply chain planning decision areas while collaboration is the most important in the
Plan, Source and Make planning decision areas.
In another study, Mclaren and Vuong (2008) apply grounded theory to develop a
hierarchical model for understanding and analyzing functional attributes contained in large
supply chain management Information Systems (SCM IS) software packages. A genomic
classification of functional attributes of SCOR level I processes of Source, Make, Deliver and
Return is conducted for SCM IS. Within the model, SCOR metrics and KPIs are demonstrated
as tools for supply chain performance analysis. The hierarchical nature of the model enables
the description of attributes in successive levels as in the SCOR model. Within the levels, 83
functional attributes of five top level supply chain categories that include primary supply
chain processes, data management, decision support, relationship management and
performance improvement are classified. The authors observed that although the SCOR
model is useful for organizing SCM IS functionality that supports primary supply chain
processes, many of the 83 identified attributes did not fall under the model.
The Delphi method of forecasting (A method based on the results of several rounds of
questionnaires referred to a panel of experts who interact incognito, and arrive at a consensus
based on their independent analyses) is another method used by Reyes and Giachetti (2010).
The method integrates multiple perceptions on supply chain operations and outlines a path to
attain group consensus using a sample of 80 experts. The authors develop a meta-model, (the
supply chain maturity model) that describes supply chain maturity at five levels across
multiple competency areas. A maturity model for the evaluation of supply chain operations
and definition of road-maps in Mexican firms is constructed for the purpose.
While exploratory research involves investigation into a problem where little or
no information exists or where there are few or no earlier studies to serve as reference, it
remains a fact-finding approach.

3.3. Identification and analysis of gaps

A framework on the general knowledge of SCM and SCOR concepts was employed for
the identification of the assessment criteria. Despite our interest in reviewing articles that
integrated environmental considerations, the search yielded only 5 environment-based and 11
return process-based papers. The review observes that the authors handled both empirical and
hypothetical issues in the manufacturing industry, most of which were centred on the financial
efficiency of supply chains.

3.3.1: Definition and analysis of gap assessment criteria elements

The structure and organisation of the review process is based on Table 3.1 below which
relates each of the 45 papers to the assessment criteria elements in Table 2.1. The first
assessment criteria element (category) was subdivided into three (general information, SCOR
characteristics and application information). These subdivisions were further separated into
specific SCOR model characteristics defined on this table as criteria. In addition, Table 3.2
provides a summary of Table 3.1, organized in accordance with Table 2.1. However, only
those aspects on Table 2.1 that are treated in each of the reviewed papers are presented in
Table 3.1 while those that are not treated are omitted.
Table 3.1: Article review by SCOR-based assessment criteria elements

1. Author(s) Stephens (2001)


Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Presents the first introduction of the SCOR model, its development and
use.
Inter-temporal Strategic, tactical and operational levels
dimension
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver and Return
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1, 2 and 3.
Process Types Plan
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Stock, Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
Practices Best practices which are the existing, structured, proven and repeatable
methods for making a positive impact on desired operational results
Return Describes the return process as presented in the SCOR template.
SCOR version 4.0 and 5.0
Application information Modelling Software ALPHA
Industry sector Not mentioned
2. Author(s) Khoo and Yin (2003)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Propose a graph representation to describe and analyse the business
processes of the SCOR model between customer orders and suppliers.
Superimpose logical relationships onto the graph for the modelling of
complex supply chains and optimisation problems with multiple level
assembly, transportation types and multiple split and merge of orders.
Inter-temporal Operational
dimension
Spatial dimension Vendors, facilities, warehouses, clients and customers
Functional dimension Manufacturing
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source, Make, Deliver
Metric Level(s) 1, 2
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
SCOR version 5.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation and analytical models
Industry sector Not mentioned
3. Author(s) Ellram et al., (2004)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Compare the SCOR model with the Global Supply Chain Forum
Framework and The Hewlett Packard model. Also present a framework
for exploring the services supply chain along with specific services
sector applications.
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make and Deliver
SCOR version 5.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Services
4. Author(s) Tang et al., (2004)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Describe a research programme concerned with the development of an
enterprise simulator that will provide a more fundamental understanding
of the impact of e-Solutions across operational supply chains, in terms
of standard operational and financial measures of performance
Inter-temporal Strategic and operational
dimension
SCOR Characteristics Metric Level(s) 1, 2, 3,4
Process Types Plan
SCOR version 6.0
Application information Modelling Software e-SCOR
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Information Technology
5. Author(s) Lockamy III and McCormack (2004)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Establish the influence of SCM planning practices on SC performance
of the Source, Make and Deliver processes of the SCOR model
Inter-temporal Strategic and operational
dimension
Functional dimension Procurement, manufacturing and distribution functions
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan
Metric Level(s) 1
Process Types Plan, Execution
Practices Best practices which are the existing, structured, proven and repeatable
methods for making a positive impact on desired operational results
SCOR version 4.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical model
Industry sector Not mentioned
6. Author(s) Huan et al., (2004)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the SCOR model and discuss
how it can be applied to assist supply chain managers for strategic
decision making
Inter-temporal Strategic and operational
dimension
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make and Deliver
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1, 2 and 3
Process Types Plan and Execution
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
SCOR version 3.0
Industry sector Not mentioned
7. Author(s) Huang et al., (2005)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Summarize the SCOR model, its benefits including illustrative scenarios
and describe a computer-assisted tool for the configuration of supply
chain threaded diagram based on each SCOR specification
Inter-temporal Strategic
dimension
Functional dimension Manufacturing
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source
Performance Attributes Responsiveness, Agility
Metric Level(s) 1, 2 and 3.
Process Types Plan, Execution and Enable
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product
Practices Best practices which are the existing, structured, proven and repeatable
methods for making a positive impact on desired operational results.
SCOR version 5.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Not mentioned
8. Author(s) James et al., (2005)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Propose a systematic methodology for corporate organisations to
analysis and design their supply chain operations.
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Cost, Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 2
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order
SCOR version 6.0
Application information Modelling Software e-SCOR
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Thin-film-transistor liquid-crystal display
9. Author(s) Lambert et al., (2005)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Identify and evaluate two supply chain management frameworks to
provide managers with the strengths and weaknesses of each approach
and academics with a better understanding of process-oriented supply
chain management frameworks.
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver and Return
Return Describe the significance of the return process and outlines the different
activities involved in the execution of the process.
SCOR version 6.0
Industry sector Not mentioned
10. Author(s) Guruprasad and Herrmann (2006)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Attempt the improvement of standard simulation elements that
accurately represent the activities in a supply chain by describing a
novel supply chain simulation framework that follows the SCOR model.
Functional dimension Procurement, Manufacturing, Distribution
SCOR Characteristics Performance Attributes Responsiveness and Cost
Metric Level(s) 3
Process Types Plan, Execution and Enable
SCOR version 4.0
Application information Modelling Software Arena
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Not mentioned
11. Author(s) Rder and Tibken (2006)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Use the SCOR model to develop a seamless methodology of a
simulation-based decision support system that is grounded on a modular
modelling concept for intra- and inter-company process chains.
Inter-temporal Strategic
dimension
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source, Make, Deliver
Performance Attributes Agility
Metric Level(s) 1, 2
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Order
SCOR version 5.0
Application information Modelling Software MATLAB
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Automotive
12. Author(s) Rabelo et al., (2006)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Integrate the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) technique, system
dynamics and discrete event simulation to model the service and
manufacturing activities of the global supply chain of a multinational
construction equipment corporation.
Inter-temporal Strategic, tactical and operational
dimension
Spatial dimension Facilities
Functional dimension Manufacturing and Distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, source, make, deliver and return
Performance Attributes Responsiveness and Cost
Metric Level(s) 2
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product and Make-to-Order
Return The manufacturing facility handles the sourcing of returned defective
products (SR1), the sourcing of maintenance required operations (MRO)
for sold products (SR2) from all local warehouses, and the delivery of
MROs back to warehouses (DR2). The warehouse and service facilities
handle the sourcing of returned defective products (SR1), the sourcing
of MROs for sold products (SR2) from customers, and the delivery of
MROs back to customers (DR2)
SCOR version 6.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation and Analytical models
Industry sector Construction equipment
13. Author(s) Burgess and Singh (2006)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Use a case study to develop an integrated framework for analysing
supply chains within a multi-disciplinary and multi-method research
paradigm to understand how complex social and political factors impact
the performance of a supply chain.
Inter-temporal Operational
dimension
Spatial dimension Facilities
SCOR Characteristics Process Types Plan and Execution
SCOR version 5.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical models
Industry sector Steel products manufacturing, Transportation and a public utility
14. Author(s) Yilmaz and Bititci (2006)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Apply a value chain method to compare the performance measurement
of manufacturing and tourism industries.
Spatial dimension Clients
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source, Make, Deliver
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness and Cost
Metric Level(s) 1, 2 and 3.
Process Types Execution
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
Application information Industry sector Manufacturing and tourism
15. Author(s) Theeranuphattana and Tang (2007)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Combine the strengths of the SCOR model and Chan and Qis
measurement algorithm to develop an empirical and efficient
measurement model for resolving problems of Supply Chain
performance.
Spatial dimension Facilities
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make and Deliver
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Order
SCOR version 8.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical
Industry sector Cement manufacturing
16. Author(s) Soffer and Wand (2007)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Extend the validity analysis of a single process to a cluster of processes
related by the exchange of physical entities or information. Also develop
validity criteria and demonstrate their application to models taken from
the SCOR. Formal concepts are used to analyse the role of an
information system in inter-process communication and its possible
effects on process cluster validity.
Functional dimension Distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Deliver
Metric Level(s) 2 and 3
Process Types Execution
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Order
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical
Industry sector Not mentioned
17. Author(s) Irfan et al., (2008)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Use the SCOR model to present supply chain management efforts,
key challenges and opportunities involved
Inter-temporal Strategic and operational
dimension
Spatial dimension Vendors and facilities
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1,2 and 3
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical model
Industry sector Tobacco
18. Author(s) Gulledge and Chavusholu (2008)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Automate the SCOR model as an enabler for process-oriented supply
chain business intelligence.
Functional dimension Procurement, Manufacturing and Distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan and Source
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1, 2, 3 and 4.
Process Types Plan
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
Practices Best practices
Application information Modelling Software Oracle E-Business suite
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Not mentioned
19. Author(s) Hwang et al., (2008)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Improve the performance of the sourcing process
Inter-temporal Tactical and operational
dimension
Spatial dimension Facilities and clients
Functional dimension Manufacturing planning
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 2
Process Types Execution
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order and Engineer-to-Order
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical model
Industry sector Thin film transistor-liquid crystal display
20. Author(s) McCormack et al., (2008)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Investigate the relationship between supply chain maturity and
performance, with specific references to the business process orientation
maturity model and the SCOR model
Inter-temporal Strategic
dimension
Spatial dimension Facilities, clients and customers
Functional dimension Manufacturing, distribution and sales
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make and Deliver
Performance Attributes Reliability and Cost
Practices Best practices through extended supplier and customer focused tools and
techniques. Also define basic SCM tools methods and discipline.
SCOR version 8.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical
Industry sector Manufacturing, Construction, Retail, Graphics, Mining,
Communication, Information technology, Utilities, and Distribution
industries.
21. Author(s) Mclaren and Vuong (2008)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Develop a theoretical model that describes 83 key functional attributes
of the five top-level categories of supply chain processes described in
the SCOR model by applying a modified grounded theory methodology.
Inter-temporal Operational and execution
dimension
Spatial dimension Vendors
Functional dimension Procurement, distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver, Return
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1
Process Types Plan
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
Return Consider the Return process as a functional attribute that provides
support for primary supply chain processes, data management, decision
support, relationship management and performance improvement.
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Software QSR NVivo software
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Not mentioned
22. Author(s) Persson and Araldi (2009)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Develop a comprehensive tool that integrates SCOR and the ARENA
discrete event simulation for understanding static operations. The tool
helps supply chain analysts to understand such dynamic effects of the
chain as variations in the rate of production and raw material quality.
Spatial dimension Facilities
Functional dimension Manufacturing
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make and Deliver
Metric Level(s) 1and 2
Process Types Plan and Execution
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product and Make-to-Order
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Software ARENA
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Telecommunications equipment manufacturing and Automotive
industry
23. Author(s) Thakkar et al., (2009)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Combine the SCOR model and the Balanced Scorecard to develop an
integrated supply chain performance measurement framework for small
and medium size enterprises
Inter-temporal Strategic, tactical and operational
dimension
Functional dimension Procurement, manufacturing, customer
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan
Performance Attributes Responsiveness
Metric Level(s) 1
Process Types Plan, Execution and Enable
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Manufacturing
24. Author(s) Milleta et al., (2009)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Analyse the role of the SCOR template in the alignment of business
processes and information systems and propose an extended reference
model, including the structuring of information exchanged between
processes.
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, source, make, deliver and return
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
Return Only mentioned
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Software IDEF0 and ARIS
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Not mentioned
25. Author(s) Schnetzler et al., (2009)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Apply the SCOR model to describe and standardise the second level of
the wood supply chain and map the forest wood chain to safeguard and
improve its inter-organisational logistics processes.
Inter-temporal Strategic, tactical and operational dimensions
dimension
Spatial dimension Vendors, facilities, clients and customers
Functional dimension Procurement, manufacturing, distribution and sales
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make and Deliver
Metric Level(s) 1and 2
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product and Make-to-Order product
SCOR version 9.0
Application information Industry sector Forestry
26. Author(s) Han et al., (2009)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Integrate the concepts of supply chain, collaborative product commerce,
and the SCOR model to propose a hierarchical Collaborative Supply
Chain Operations Reference (CSCOR) model in the product lifecycle of
a regional industry
Inter-temporal Strategic, tactical and operational
dimension
Functional dimension Manufacturing, Distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver and Return
Performance Attributes Responsiveness and agility
Metric Level(s) 1, 2, 3,4
Process Types Execution
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product
Return Only mentioned
SCOR version 1.0
Application information Modelling Software XML, UDDI and WSDL
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Electronics
27. Author(s) Stavrulaki and Davis (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Develop a SCOR-based conceptual framework that assists managers in
having a better understanding of the alignment between products, supply
chain processes and supply chain strategy, including the improvement of
competitive advantage
Functional dimension Manufacturing and logistics
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, source, make, deliver and return
Performance Attributes Agility
Supply chain strategy Make To-Stock, Assemble-To Order, Built-To-Order and Design-To-
Order
Return The authors note that within the Build-To-Stock and Assemble-To-
Order supply chains, the return management philosophy is based on
centralised processing that is efficiency-driven while in a Make-To-
Order and Design-To-Order supply chains, the return process is based
on decentralised processing that is customer service driven.
SCOR version 8.0
Industry sector Not mentioned
28. Author(s) Hwang et al., (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Improve the performance of the green purchasing process and establish
a relationship between the plan-do-study-act cycle of green purchasing,
the SCOR Sourcing process and its performance indices
Spatial dimension Suppliers
Functional dimension Procurement planning
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan and source
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1, 2 and 3.
Process Types Plan
Supply chain strategy Stocked product
Practices Best practices
SCOR version 5.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical model
Industry sector Manufacturing
29. Author(s) Potthast et al., (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Apply Sourcing models for improvement of logistic performance
between the supplier and the customer
Inter-temporal Tactical and operational dimensions
dimension
Spatial dimension Suppliers and customers
Functional dimension Procurement and distribution planning
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source
Performance Attributes Flexibility and Responsiveness
Metric Level(s) 1
Process Types Plan and Execution
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product and Make-to-Order product
SCOR version 9.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Automotive industry
30. Author(s) Bai et al., (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Use SCOR model characteristics to apply neighbourhood rough set
methodology as a comprehensive evaluation tool for managing green
suppliers.
Functional dimension procurement
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source
Practices Best practices
Modelling Coupling Analytical model
Industry sector Not mentioned
31. Author(s) Pan et al., (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Integrate the SCOR model and dynamic simulation to create a hybrid
model that enables supply chain participants to define their roles,
facilitate communication and helps management in identifying
bottlenecks and improving the performance of the chain
Inter-temporal Operational
dimension
Functional dimension procurement, manufacturing,
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, source, make, deliver, return
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1
Return Only mentioned
Application information Modelling Software Simprocess
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Construction
32. Author(s) Reyes and Giachetti (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Use the Delphi method to develop a supply chain maturity model that
enables firms to evaluate their supply chain operations and to develop
improvement road-maps.
Inter-temporal Strategic, tactical, operational
dimension
SCOR Characteristics Performance Attributes Only mentioned
Practices Leading
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical
Industry sector Not mentioned
33. Author(s) Wang et al., (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Adapt the SCOR model to implement supply chain management among
trading partners and subsidiaries within enterprise boundaries.
Inter-temporal Strategic
dimension
Spatial dimension Facilities, clients and customers
Functional dimension Procurement, manufacturing, distribution and sales
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver
Metric Level(s) 1and 2
Process Types Plan, Execution
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Order
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Textile
34. Author(s) Cheng et al., (2010)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Present a model-based service oriented framework that leverages the
SCOR model for performance monitoring of construction supply chains.
Spatial dimension Clients and customers
Functional dimension procurement and distribution
SCOR characteristics Performance Attributes Reliability and Responsiveness
Metric Level(s) 1, 2, 3and 4
Process Types Plan
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product and Make-to-Order
SCOR version 9.0
Application information Modelling Software Supply Chain Collaborator
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Construction
35. Author(s) Zdravkovi et al., (2011)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Propose an approach for semantic enrichment of the SCOR model, by
using ontologies and enabling effective knowledge management in
supply chain network. The proposed approach improves the model
effectiveness and expands its application domain.
Functional dimension Distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver
Performance Attributes Only mentioned
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
Practices Best practice
Application information Modelling Software SCOR-KOS OWL
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Snow making facility product engineering
36. Author(s) Li et al., (2011)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Propose a practical approach to operationalisze the SCOR model as well
as present supply chain operations metrics that ensure lean production
and extend the SCOR model by integrating it with ISO 9000 series.
Spatial dimension Facilities
Functional dimension Procurement, manufacturing and distribution planning
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver and Return
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1
Process Types Plan, Execution and Enable
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product, Make-to-Order, Engineer-to-Order
Return Determining product condition, requesting authorisation for product
return, scheduling shipment, preparing return receipt, acknowledging
product receipt and transfer of defective products. Reliability and
responsiveness are identified by authors as important quality indicators
for the return process. Two hypotheses (Supply chain return decisions
will affect supply chain quality performance; Supply chain return
decisions will affect the firm level business performance) are used in
testing return. Return planning scale represents tracing defective items
from source, following returned excess products to the source and
collecting data on regulatory requirements and compliance.
SCOR version 9.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Analytical model
Industry sector Not mentioned
37. Author(s) Banomyong and Supatn (2011)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Develop and test the reliability of a Supply Chain tool for the
performance evaluation of supply chain activities with different
performance dimensions in Small and Medium Size Enterprises
Spatial dimension Clients
SCOR Characteristics Performance Attributes Reliability and Cost
Practices Best practices
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Automotive, electronics, jewellery, furniture and rubber industry
38. Author(s) Persson (2011)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Develops and tests a simulation based dynamic supply chain analysis
tool using the SCOR template. Also introduces 13 simulation building
blocks called modules in the second level of the SCOR model.
Spatial dimension Vendors and facilities
Functional dimension Procurement, manufacturing, distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make and Deliver
Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Costs, and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1and2
Process Types Plan, Execution and Enable
Supply chain strategy Stocked Product and Make-to-Order
SCOR version 7.0
Application information Modelling Software Arena
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Manufacturing
39. Author(s) Gang and Carpinetti (2011)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Apply Fuzzy logic to predict performance based on causal relationships
between metric levels 1 and 2 of the SCOR model and performance of
supply chain processes.
SCOR Characteristics Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Cost and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1 and2
SCOR version 8.0
Application information Modelling Software SCORmark
Modelling Coupling Simulation and Analytical models
Industry sector Not mentioned
40. Author(s) Pan et al., (2011)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Provide a systematic methodology for design and behaviour analysis of
construction supply chain operation models by establishing a
hierarchical model that integrates the SCOR model and dynamic
simulation.
Inter-temporal Operational
dimension
Functional dimension Procurement, Manufacturing, Distribution
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver, Return
Performance Attributes Cost and Reliability
Metric Level(s) 1, 2, 3
Process Types Plan, Execution and Enable
Supply chain strategy Make-to-Stock and Engineer-to-Order
Return Steel bars that were disqualified were disposed of as waste, with
concrete and steel tendon treated alike. Qualified steel bars and
disqualified ones were discriminated in probability. The C260 steel bar
incoming acceptance report provided by the Steel Bar hence steel bar
defect occurrence probability in the system was set at 0.00001.company
indicated a defect rate of 0.00001.
Application information Modelling Software SI MPROCESS
Modelling Coupling Simulation
Industry sector Rail construction
41. Author(s) Xiao et al., (2012)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Model and optimize a bidirectional closed-loop logistics topology by
constructing a standardized closed-loop logistics operation reference
model that provides supply chain managers with general analysis on the
profit function and decision-making on potential risks within closed-
loop logistics.
Functional dimension Facilities
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver, Return
Metric Level(s) 1 and 2
Supply chain strategy MTS, MTO, ETO
Practices Best practices which are the existing, structured, proven and repeatable
methods for making a positive impact on desired operational results
GreenSCOR Practices Recycling
Return Integrates the return process with forward logistics and focuses on non-
conforming products, customer recovery and other products generated in
the forward logistics. The process is composed of aspects such as
recycling, sorting, cleaning, purification, maintenance return, re-
packaging processing, re-using and waste disposal.
SCOR version 9.0
Application information Modelling Software Matlab 7.0
Modelling Coupling Simulation and Analytical models
Industry sector Electrical manufacturing and recycling
42. Author(s) Bai et al., (2012)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Integrate grey systems theory elements with neighbourhood rough set
theory to improve the environmental performance of the supply chain
activities associated with the SCOR model sourcing function.
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source
Performance Attributes Flexibility and Cost
GreenSCOR Practices The application of supplier environmental evaluation based on cost,
time, quality, flexibility and innovation dimension of the supplier
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation and Analytical
Industry sector Not mentioned
43. Author(s) Clivill and Berrah (2012)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Use MACBETH methodology to illustrate the processes and overall
performance of a principal manufacturer within a supply chain. The
overall performance of the supply chain is identified by combining the
performances of other supply chain partners plus integrating the
performance of an impacting supplier into the prime manufacturers
performance.
Inter-temporal Strategic
dimension
Functional dimension Manufacturing
SCOR Characteristics Processes Plan, Source, Make, Deliver, Return
Performance Attributes Responsiveness, Flexibility and Cost
Metric Level(s) 1
SCOR version 8.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation and Analytical
Industry sector Automotive and Aeronautics
44. Author(s) Ashayeri et al., (2012)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Present an intuitionistic fuzzy Choquet integral operator based approach
to select supply chain partners and configuration selection increases
value along the supply chain. The SCOR model is applied to structure
the supplier selection process while sensitivity analyses are also
conducted to determine the evaluation results of configurations
sensitiveness to the criteria weights.
Inter-temporal Strategic
dimension
SCOR Characteristics Processes Source, Make, Deliver
Performance Attributes Agility
Metric Level(s) 2
SCOR version 8.0
Application information Modelling Coupling Simulation and Analytical
45. Author(s) Elgazzar et al., (2012)
Category Criteria Description
General Information Main contribution Apply a Dempster Shafer/AHP model to develop a performance
measurement method that links supply chain process performance to a
companys financial strategy. A Supply Chain Financial Link Index is
developed to test the link between supply chain process performance
and the companys financial strategic objectives.
SCOR Characteristics Performance Attributes Reliability, Responsiveness, Agility, Cost and Asset Management
Metric Level(s) 1
Supply chain strategy MTO and ETO
SCOR version 9.0
Application information Modelling Software Dempster Shafer Engine 1.0

Modelling Coupling Analytical

Results of Table 3.1 reveal that there was timid interest in the application of GreenSCOR.
Furthermore, no paper attempted the practical application of any of the five GreenSCOR
strategic metrics. It should be noted that where any assessment criteria element is not
indicated in Figure 3.1 above, it implies such an element was not treated in the paper in
question. Results (Table 3.1) of the three assessment criteria elements (general information,
SCOR characteristics and the application information) are summarized on Table 3.2 below.
Table 3.2: Summary of assessment results

Category Criteria Number of appearances in the papers

Inter-temporal Strategic: 16 Tactical: 8 Operational: 16


General dimension
Information Spatial dimension Facilities: 13 Warehouse: 1 Vendors: 5 Clients: 5
Functional dimension Processing: 16; Manufacturing: 19; Distribution: 18; Sales: 3
Processes Plan: 24; Source: 30; Make: 24; Deliver: 24; Return: 11
Performance Reliability: 18; Responsiveness: 21; Agility: 17; Cost: 18; Asset
Attributes Management: 13
Metric Level Level 1: 29 Level 2: 22 Level 3: 13 Level 4: 4
SCOR Process Types Plan: 18 Execution: 16 Enable: 6
Characteristics Supply chain strategy MTS: 21 MTO: 23 ETO: 12
Practices Best Practices: 9; Leading Practices: 1
Return Application method specified : 4; Application method not specified : 7
SCOR version V1 : 2; V2 : 0; V3 : 2; V4 : 3; V5 : 6; V6 : 4; V7 : 8; V8 : 6; V9 : 6

Modelling Software ALPHA, e-SCOR, ARENA, MATLAB, Oracle e-Business suite, QSR
and technology NVivo software, IDEFO, ARIS, XML, UDDI, WSDL, SIMPROCESS,
Supply chain collaborator, SCOR-COS OWL, SCORmark and Dempster
Shafer Engine 1.0
Application
Information Industry sector Services, IT, Thin film transistor, Automotive, Construction, Steel
production, Transport, Public utility, Manufacturing, Tourism, Cement
manufacturing, Jewellery, Furniture, Rubber, Tobacco, Retail, Graphics,
Mining, Forestry, Communication, Distribution, Telecommunications
equipment, Rail construction, Electronics, Textile, Snow making factory
production, Recycling and Aeronautics.

Table 3.2 shows that the authors expressed interest in various SCOR assessment elements.
The papers applied eight SCOR model versions and 16 toolkits in 28 industry sectors. The
study establishes time as an important variant in SCM where three supply chain dimensions
(inter-temporal, spatial and functional dimensions) were applied in the papers.
The review also reveals that within the inter-temporal dimension, strategic and
operational issues interested researchers more than tactical issues. Likewise, procurement,
manufacturing and distribution appeared more important than sales, customer and logistics
within the functional dimension, while facilities and clients were more important than
warehouse and vendors within the spatial dimension. The inter-temporal dimension papers
were made-up of 35.5% strategic decision level papers, 17.7% tactical decision level papers
and 35.5% operational decision level papers. The spatial dimension papers comprised of the
following: facilities (28.8%), vendors (11.1%), warehouse (2.2%) and clients (17.7%). The
functional dimension papers were dominated by manufacturing (42.2%), procurement
(35.5%), distribution planning (40%) and sales (6.6%), thus indication that the manufacturing
and procurement functions are as well more important. All these variations could be
accounted for by author preference or the link between each assessment element and the
supply chain problem that was being investigated.
All 5 SCOR processes, the 5 performance attributes, 3 process types and 4 metric levels
were applied by the various authors. Another assessment criterion of interest was the supply
chain strategy (Table 3.1). By supply chain strategy, we mean the decoupling point that is
chosen by a management team and which is determined by the type of customer demands and
the cost effectiveness of the strategy on the operational components of the chain. Three supply
chain strategies: Make-To-Stock (MTS), Make-To-Order (MTO) and Engineer-To-Order
(ETO) were applied. 48.9% of the papers dealt with MTS, 55.6% with MTO and 31.1% with
ETO supply chain strategy while 8.8% discussed more than one supply chain strategy (Hybrid
case). Figure 3.1 illustrates the percentage distribution of articles by supply chain strategy.

60
50
Percentage

40
30
20
10
0
MTS MTO ETO HB

Fig. 3.1: Percentage distribution of articles by supply chain strategy

The increase in the number of MTO papers is evocative of the importance of the agile
manufacturing design and the need to reduce inventory and waste along the supply chain. The
papers applied eight SCOR model versions and 22 toolkits in 28 industry sectors.

3.3.2. Gap analysis journal, methodology and year of publication

The papers were published in 32 journals, giving a mean distribution of 1.4 articles per
journal. Out of the 45 papers that were reviewed, 5 were published by the International
Journal of Production Economics, giving a percentage representation of 11.11 for the journal.
Out of the 32 journals that were identified, 24 had just a single paper each, 6 had two each, 1
had four papers and one had five papers, giving a total of 45. A total of six methodological
approaches were employed by the authors to attend their objectives. Conceptual papers with
statistical procedures dominated the list. Although most papers made significant contributions
to supply chain performance, no single paper treated the three SCOR components (The
Process Modelling factor, Performance Measurement and Best Practices) and the five
management processes of Plan, Source, Make, Deliver and Return except Stephens (2001)
who presents the first publication on the development and application of the template. The
review also divulges that SCOR research is mostly centred on hypothetical issues (Fig. 3.2),
which reduces its strategic importance in supply chain management. A synthesis of the
methodologies applied is presented in Fig. 3.2.

25
Number of articles

20

15

10

0
Conceptual Simulation Case study Survey Others

Fig. 3.2: Article distribution by research methodological approach

The research methodologies provided solutions to simple and complex supply chain
problems. Out of the 45 papers, conceptual articles dominated the search with 22 (48.88%)
articles followed by 12 (26.66%) simulation-based papers, 4 (8.88%) survey articles, 4
(8.88%) case studies, 3 (6.66%) exploratory and Delphi method papers. The study notes that
researchers of the SCOR model are yet to show interest in case study, survey, exploratory and
Delphi research methods. However, the articles can be characterised by subgroups and by
themes such as general trends in SCOR model research, modelling methodologies, SCOR
model evaluation and experiential applications.
No articles published in 2000 and 2002 were selected because those available did not
meet the three selection criteria described under section 2.2. In the last decade and particularly
after the review of the SCOR model by Huan et al., (2004), results show a growing interest in
the use of the model and an increase in the number of application papers (Fig. 3.3) with a
stabilization (5-8 papers per year) from 2008.

10

Number of articles 8

6
4

0
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Fig. 3.3: Article distribution by year of publication

3.3.3. Gap analysis based on environmental considerations and the return process

In spite of the emphasis that we proposed on articles integrating environmental issues, papers
linking the SCOR model with the environment were comparatively limited. Barely 11% of the
papers discussed issues related to the environmental dimension of the model (Fig. 3.4) while
about 24 % discussed the return process. Although the GreenSCOR module was added to
SCOR version 9.0 that was released in 2008, the first author from the reviewed articles that
attempted the environmental dimension of the SCOR model was in 2009. Subsequently, 2
papers each were published in 2010 and 2012 respectively. Only 2 papers attempted the return
process between 2001 and 2006 while the other 9 were published between 2008 and 2012.

8.88
Focus on
environment
Focus on return
22.22
Environment
66.66 and Return
2.22
Others

Fig. 3.4: Distribution of environment and return related papers


This limited interest in the environmental component of the model could imply that the
environment was not the main focus of researchers. It could also be attributed to the generic
form of the present GreenSCOR model, which describes environmental elements from a
macro perspective, such as the carbon footprint.
Generally, the method of application of the return process by the authors can be classified
under the following four headings: Mentioned, described, simulated and applied. Figure 3.5
below illustrates the distribution of the papers based on the four approaches above.

3 3 Mentioned
Described
Simulated
2 Applied
3

Fig. 3.5: How the return process is used in the papers

Out of the 11 papers that discussed the return process, 3 simply mentioned the process, 3
others presented a descriptive analysis, 2 simulated and 3 attempted a practical application.
The review however reveals that although some authors discussed the environmental
dimension and the return process of the SCOR model, they were not motivated by
environmental concerns but by the cost implications of the supply chain. While the
application of the return process is relatively restricted, an upward trend in the number of
academic breakthroughs in eco-cycle operations such as Seuring (2004) is expected. With
increasing competition and the need for supply chain environmental performance, there is
need for the integration of the return process with traditional forward logistics chains.

3.3.4. Gap analysis by SCOR component


Authors showed varied interests in the different SCOR components and implementation
levels. Figure 3.6 illustrates article distribution by SCOR component applied. The process
modelling (ProM) factor was investigated in 34 (75.5%) papers.
40

Number of articles
30

20

10

0
ProM PM BP
Fig. 3.6: Article distribution by SCOR component

The study reveals that investigations were simply description-based or application


without modification of the model. The performance measurement (PM) component was
treated in 33 (73.3%) papers. The five attributes of the performance measurement component
were applied in the following order: 19 (42.2%), 23 (51%), 21 (46.6%), 19 (42.2%) and 14
(31%) for reliability, responsiveness, agility, cost and asset management respectively. Finally,
the Best Practices (BP) section was discussed in 11 (24.4%) papers

3.3.5. Gap analysis by SCOR management process

Although most organizations have embraced the innovative paradigm of moving from
individual firms to supply chains as the means for creating value, no single paper applied the
SCOR model using an end-to-end supply chain approach. Fig. 3.7 illustrates article
distribution by the SCOR management processes that were investigated.

40
35
Number of articles

30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Plan Source Make Deliver Return

Fig. 3.7: Article distribution by SCOR management process

Out of the five management processes reviewed, the Source process interested the majority of
authors with 34 (75.5%) application papers followed by the Make and Deliver processes with
27 (60%) papers each, 26 (58%) for the Plan process and 11 (24%) papers for the Return
process. The focus of papers (Hwang et al., 2008; Hwang et al., 2010; Potthast et al., 2010)
on the sourcing component is likely due to its strategic upstream role in supply chain
performance management.

4. Conclusion
This paper reviews selected application papers of the SCOR modelling framework in the
Supply Chain Management literature between 2000 and 2012. The rationale was to provide
supply chain researchers and managers with environmental information on the industry
applications of the model. We therefore focused on providing information that could
contribute to the improvement of the model, particularly its GreenSCOR component. A
number of SCOR-based assessment criteria elements involving three standards (category,
criteria and description) were developed into an evaluation framework for critical analysis of
research gaps of the template. Despite our efforts in reviewing articles that integrated
environmental considerations, the search yielded only 5 (11.1%) environment related papers
and 11 (24.4%) papers that handled the return process. This is reminiscent of the timid interest
of supply chain researchers in the GreenSCOR model and the limited studies that have been
conducted on the close loop supply chain approach. In some cases, the rational is that, the
Return process occurs several years after manufacture and delivery. More so, it is not yet a
reality for many companies and supply chains. Some companies (e.g. electronics industry) and
consumers are only becoming aware of its importance now and its usage may increase in the
coming years. Some authors (e.g. McCormack et al., 2008) concur that the processes for
reverse logistics (i.e. the Return process) are not a significant factor in the supply chain of
many companies. However, the low rate of GreenSCOR papers may equally be attributed to
the limited year range of the papers (2000 to 2012) that were selected and the recent
introduction of GreenSCOR into SCOR version 9.0 that was released in 2008.
The review divulges six methodologies that were applied by authors to attain varied
objectives that ranged from hypothetical to empirical applications of the template. The
scientific contributions of the papers were presented and research gaps associated with SCOR
application identified. The study observes that no paper attempted the practical application of
any of the five GreenSCOR strategic metrics. While this generally timid interest in the model
was observed, annual distribution of the articles showed a positive trend in the number of
environment and return process related papers, particular after the 2008 GreenSCOR release.
Despite this increase, where green aspects were considered, they were apparently motivated
by the financial performance of supply chains and not by environmental concerns. The review
also demonstrates that the SCOR template is a useful tool for SCM. However, we observed
that authors did not express interest in exploratory, case study and survey research. The study
notes that, while the SCOR model is suitable for supply chain financial performance
evaluation, it can also be a practical decision support tool for environmental assessment of
qualitative factors and competing decision alternatives along the chain. In this regard, we
observed that those studies that employed the SCOR model with this goal in mind successfully
evaluated the supply chain from an environmental viewpoint.
Given the cumulative environmental impacts along the supply chain, and considering on-
going concerns with climate change and the need for integration of green practices in
industrial processes, the operationalization of a close-loop supply chain approach in future
studies would be expedient, particularly in industries and regions experiencing important
environmental impacts. Considering the importance of the subject from an applied
perspective, a literature review of professional papers or a survey of industrial companies from
a sustainable supply chain management standpoint provides a plausible avenue for
understanding the mechanics of the application of the SCOR model. It shall also expound
further evidence of the significance of the template as well as its industry application and
suitability as a scientific reference in the supply chain management arena. Finally, it would
perhaps be pertinent in future works to evaluate other relevant frameworks such as the Value
Reference Model which is considered by the Value Chain Group as the next
generation business process management tool for the academia and industrial milieu.

Acknowledgement
This work was carried out with financial support from FOGRN-BC and PREFORT of Universit
Laval.
References
Ahi, P., Searcy, C., 2013. A comparative literature analysis of definitions for green and
sustainable supply chain management. Journal of Cleaner Production. 52, 329-341.
Ashayeri, J., Tuzkaya, G., Tuzkaya, U.R., 2012. Supply chain partners and configuration
election: An intuitionistic fuzzy Choquet integral operator based approach. Expert
Systems with Applications 39, 3642-3649.
Bai, C., Sarkis, J., Wei, X., 2010. Addressing key sustainable supply chain management
issues using rough set methodology. Management Research Review 33(12), 1113-1127.
Bai, C., Sarkis, J., Wei, Z., Koh, L., 2012. Evaluating ecological sustainable performance
measures for supply chain management. Supply Chain Management: An International
Journal 17(1), 78-92.
Banomyong, R., Supatn, N., 2011. Developing a supply chain performance tool for SMEs in
Thailand. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal 16(1), 20-31.
Bolstorff, P., Rosenbaum, R., 2003. Supply Chain Excellence: A handbook for dramatic
improvement using the SCOR model, New York, Amacom, 273p.
Burgess, K., Singh, P.J., 2006. A proposed integrated framework for analysing supply chains.
Supply Chain Management: An International Journal 11(4), 337-344.
Cai, J., Liu, X., Xiao, Z., Liu, J., 2009. Improving supply chain performance management: a
systematic approach to analysing iterative KPI accomplishment. Decision Support
Systems 46(2), 512-521.
Cheng, J.C.P., Law, K.H., Bjornsson, H., Jones, A., Sriram, D., 2010. Modelling and
monitoring of construction supply chains. Advance Engineering Informatics 24, 435-
455.
Clivill, V., Berrah, L., 2012. Overall performance measurement in a supply chain: towards a
supplier-prime manufacturer based model. Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing 23,
2459-2469
Dong, J., Ding, H., Ren, C., Wang, W., 2006. IBM SmartSCOR - A SCOR based supply
chain transformation platform through simulation and optimization techniques.
Research Report, IBM Research Division, China (2006).
Dutta, S., Westenhoefer, W., 2008. Logistics news going green is not as easy as it all first
appears. GreenSCOR Supply Chain Council, (2008).
Elgazzar, S.H., Nicoleta, S.T., Hubbard, N.J., Leach, D.Z., 2012. Linking supply chain
processes performance to a companys financial strategic objectives. European Journal
of Operational Research 223, 276-289.
Ellram, L.M., Tate, W. L., Billinton, C., 2004. Understanding and Managing the Services
Supply Chain. The Journal of Supply Chain Management, 40(4), 17 32.
Ganga, G.M.D., Carpinetti, L.C.R., 2011. A fuzzy logic approach to supply chain
performance management. International Journal of Production Economics 134(1) 177-
187.
Gifford, D., 1997. The value of going green. Harvard Business Review 75(5), 11 12.
Gulledge, T., Chavusholu, T., 2008. Automating the construction of supply chain key
performance indicators. Industrial Management & Data Systems 108(6), 750-774.
Guruprasad, P., Herrmann, J. W., 2006. A hierarchical approach to supply chain simulation
modelling using the Supply Chain Operations Reference model. International Journal of
Simulation and Process Modelling 2 (3/4), 124-132.
Han, S.H., Chu, C.H., 2009. Developing a collaborative supply chain reference model for a
regional manufacturing industry in China. International Journal of Electronic Customer
Relationship Management 3(1) 52-70.
Hsu, C.W.; Hu, A.H.; Chiou, C.Y and Chen, T.C., 2011. Using the FDM and ANP to
construct a sustainability balanced scorecard for the semiconductor industry. Expert
Systems with Applications. 38(10) 12891-12899
Huan, H.S., Sheoran, K.S., Wang, G., 2004. Review and analysis of supply chain operations
reference (SCOR) model. Supply Chain Management 9(1), 23-29.
Huang, H.S., Sheoran, K.S., Kestar, H., 2005. Computer-assisted supply chain configuration
based on supply chain operations reference (SCOR) model. Computers and Industrial
Engineering 48, 377-394.
Hwang, Y.D., Lin, Y., Lyu, J., 2008. The performance evaluation of SCOR sourcing process:
The case study of Taiwans TFT-LCD industry. International Journal of Production
Economics 115, 411-423.
Hwang, Y.D., Wenb, Y.F., Chen, M.C., 2010. A study on the relationship between the PDSA
cycle of green purchasing and the performance of the SCOR model. Total Quality
Management 21(12), 1261-1278.
Irfan, D., Xu, X.F., Chun, D.S., 2008. SCOR Reference model of the supply chain
management system in an enterprise. International Arab Journal of Information
Technology 5(3), 288-295.
James, T., Lin, J.T ., Chen, T.L., Tsai, T., Lai, J.J., Huang, T. C., 2005. A SCOR-based
methodology for analysing and designing supply chain. International Electronic
Business Management 3(1), 1-7.
Kasi, V., 2005. Systemic Assessment of SCOR for Modeling Supply Chains: In Proceedings
of the 38th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. Centre for Process
Innovation, Georgia State University. 03-06 January 2005, 10P. ISSN: 1530-1605.
Accessed on 22 May, 2013 at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/HICSS.2005.574
Kekle, T., Weerd-Nederhof, P.D., Cervai, S., Borelli, M., 2009. The "dos and don'ts" of
writing a journal article. Journal of Workplace Learning 21(1), 71 80.
Khoo, L.P., Yin, X.F., 2003. An extended graph-based virtual clustering-enhanced approach
to supply chain optimisation. International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing
Technology. 22, 836-847.
Kima, J., and Rheeb J., 2013. An empirical study on the impact of critical success factors on
the balanced scorecard performance in Korean green supply chain management
enterprises. International Journal of Production Research 50(9) 2465-2483.

Kucukvar, M.; Egilmez, G.; and Tatari, O., 2014. Evaluating environmental impacts of
alternative construction waste management approaches using supply chain-linked life-
cycle analysis. Waste Management & Research 32(6) 500508.

Lambert, D.M.., Garcia-Dastugue, S.J., Croxton, K.L., 2005. An evaluation of process-


oriented supply chain management frameworks. Journal of Business Logistics 26(1),
25-51.
Li, L., Su, Q., Chen, X., 2011. Ensuring supply chain quality performance through applying
the SCOR model. International Journal of Production Research 49(1), 33-57.
Lockamby III, A., McCormack, K., 2004. Linking SCOR planning practices to supply chain
performance: An exploratory study. International Journal of Operations and Production
Management 24(12), 1192-1218.
McCormack, K., Ladeira, M.B., Valadares de Oliveira, M. P., 2008. Supply chain maturity
and performance in Brazil. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal 13(4),
272-282.
McLaren, T.S., Vuong, D.C.H., 2008 A genomic classification scheme for supply chain
management information systems. Journal of Enterprise Information Management 21
(4), 409-423.
Milleta, P.A., Schmitta, P., Botta-Genoulaz, V., 2009. The SCOR model for the alignment of
business processes and information systems. Enterprise Information Systems 3(4), 393-
407.
Min, H., Zhou, G., 2002. Supply chain modelling: past, present and future. Computers &
Industrial Engineering 43(1-2), 231-249.
Pan, N.H., Lin, Y.Y., Pan, N.F., 2010. Enhancing construction project supply chains and
performance evaluation methods: a case study of a bridge construction project.
Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering 37, 1094-1116.
Pan, N.H., Lee, M.L., Chen, S.Q., 2011. Construction material supply chain process analysis
and optimization. Journal of Civil Engineering and Management 17(3), 357-370.
Pawlak, Z., 1982. Rough sets. International Journal of Information & Computer Sciences 11,
341- 356.
Persson, F., Araldi, M., 2009. The development of a dynamic supply chain analysis tool-
Integration of SCOR and discrete event simulation. International Journal of Production
Economics 121(2), 574-583.
Persson, F., 2011. SCOR template-A simulation based dynamic supply chain analysis tool.
International Journal of Production Economics.131(1), 288-294.
Potthast, J.M., Grtner, H., Hertrampf, F., 2010. Allocation for manufacturing companies.
Electronic Scientific Journal of Logistics 6(2) 19-24.
Rabelo, L., Eskandari, H., Shaalan, T., Helal, M., 2007. Value chain analysis using hybrid
simulation and AHP. International Journal of Production Economics 105(2), 536-547.
Reyes, H.G., Giachetti, R., 2010. Using experts to develop a supply chain maturity model in
Mexico. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal 15(6) 415-424.
Rder, A., Tibken, B., 2006. A methodology for modelling inter-company supply chains and
for evaluating a method of integrated product and process documentation. European
Journal of Operational Research 169(3) 1010-1029.
Russel, D.M., Ruamsook, K., Thomchick, E.A., 2009. Ethanol and the petroleum supply
chain of the future: five strategic priorities of integration. Transportation Journal 48(1),
5-22.
Santa-Eulalia L.A; D'Amours, S; Frayret J.M., 2012. Agent-based simulations for advanced
supply chain planning and scheduling: The FAMASS methodological framework for
requirements analysis. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing
25(10) 963-980.
Schmitz, P.M.U., 2008. The use of supply chains and supply chain management to improve
the efficiency and effectiveness of GIS unit, PhD thesis (unpublished), University of
Johannesburg, South Africa. 523 pp. Accessed 9 July 2013 at:
http://researchspace.csir.co.za/dspace/handle/10204/2511
Schnetzler, M.J., Lemm, R., Bonfils, P., Thees, O., 2009. The supply chain operations
reference (SCOR) model to describe the value-added chain in forestry. Allgemeine
Forst und Jagdzeitung, 180(1/2), 1-14.
Schoeman, C., Sanchez, V.R., 2009. Green supply chain overview and a South African case
study. In: Proceedings of the 28th Southern African Transport Conference (SATC) ISBN
978-1-920017-39-2 Pretoria S. Africa 6-9 July, 569-579.
Sethi, S. ; Emre, V.; Shapiro, H.; Olga, E. 2011. Mattel, Inc.: Global Manufacturing Principles
(GMP) A Life-Cycle Analysis of a Company-Based Code of Conduct in the Toy
Industry: Journal of business ethics 99(4): 483-517

Seuring, S and Muller, M (2008) From a literature review to a conceptual framework for
sustainable supply chain management. Journal of Cleaner Production 16 (2008) 1699
1710
Seuring, S., 2004. Industrial ecology, life cycles, supply chain differences and interrelations,
Business Strategy Environment. 13, 306-319.

Soffer, P., Wand, Y., 2007. Goal-driven multi-process analysis. Journal of the Association for
Information Systems 8(3), 175-204.
Stavrulaki, E., Davis, M., 2010. Aligning products with supply chain processes and strategy.
The International Journal of Logistics Management 21(1), 127-151.
Stephens, S., 2001. Supply Chain Operations Reference Model Version 5.0: A new tool to
improve Supply Chain efficiency and achieve best practice. Information Systems
Frontiers 3(4), 471-476.
Supply Chain Council., 2008. Introduction to GreenSCOR: Introducing environmental
considerations to the CSOR Model. Proceedings of the North America conference and
exposition March 17-19, 2008, Minneapolis, MN. 18p.
Supply Chain Council., 2010. Supply Chain Operations Reference Model Version 10.0. The
Supply Chain Council, Inc. 856p.
Tang, N. K. H., Benton, H., Love, D., Albores, P., Ball, P., MacBryde, J., Developing an
enterprise simulator to support electronic supply-chain management for B2B electronic
business. Production Planning & Control, 15(6), 572-583.
Thakkar, J., Patel, A.D., Kanda, A., Deshmukh, S.G., 2009. Supply chain performance
measurement framework for small and medium scale enterprises. Benchmarking: An
International Journal 16(5), 702-723.
The American Productivity and Quality Center (APQC), available at URL
http://www.apqc.org/, last visit on August 2013
Theeranuphattana, A., Tang, J.C.S., 2008. A conceptual model of performance measurement
for supply chains; alternative considerations. Journal of Manufacturing Technology
Management 19(1), 25-48.
Vanany, I., Suwignjo, P., Yulianto, D., 2005. Design of supply chain performance
measurement system for lamp industry. In: Proceedings of the 1st International
Conference on operations and supply chain management, Bali, (2005) H-78.
Walton, S.V., Handfield, R.B., Melnyk, S.A., 1998. The Green Supply Chain: Integrating
Suppliers into Environmental Management Processes. International Journal of
Purchasing and Materials Management 34(2), 2-11.
Wang, W.Y.C., Chan, H.K., Pauleen, D.J., 2010. Aligning business process reengineering in
implementing global supply chain systems by the SCOR model. International Journal of
Production Research 48(19) 5647-5669.
Wong, W. P., Wong, K.Y., 2007. Supply chain performance measurement system using DEA
modelling. Industrial Management and Data Systems 107(3), 361-381.
Xiaoa, R., Caib, Z., Zhangc, X., 2012. An optimization approach to risk decision-making of
closed-loop logistics based on SCOR model. Optimization 61(10) 1221-1251
Yilmaz, Y., Bititci, U., 2006. Performance measurement in the value chain: manufacturing
v.tourism. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management 55(5)
371-389.
Zangoueinezhad, A; y. Azary, A. and Kazaziz, A. (2011) Using SCOR model with fuzzy
MCDM approach to assess competitiveness positioning of supply chains: focus on
shipbuilding supply chains. Maritime Policy & Management 38(1), 93-109.
Zdravkovic, M., Panetto, H., Trajanovic, M., Aubry, A., 2011. An approach for formalising
the supply chain operations. Enterprise Information Systems 5(4), 401-421.
Highlights
We review 45 recent application papers of the SCOR model
Commonly applied methodologies in SCOR model research are reported
The end-to-end and close loop supply chain approaches are seldom experimented
There is a positive trend in the focus of green issues in supply chain management
SCOR model is suitable for the environmental performance evaluation of supply
chains

You might also like