Resumen de A methodology and a mathematical model for reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the suppply chain redesign
Virtually the entire scientific, political, business, and social community is aware of the importance of climate change. Countries adhering to the Kyoto Protocol have taken up the challenge of reducing carbon emission, implementing national policies that include the introduction of carbon emissions trading programs, voluntary programs, taxes on carbon emissions and energy efficiency standards.
In this context, the business world must be able to generate a carbon reduction strategy to ensure long-term success, considering also that customers (and investors) are ever more interested in the well-being of the environment, and increasingly demand their suppliers to be eco-friendly.
This thesis has addressed the problem of designing (or redesigning) the supply chain to reduce carbon emission in an economically viable and, as far as possible, optimal way. The thesis addresses the problem by designing a complete and formalized methodology, which also includes a mathematical model to determine the best decisions to take.
The research begins, as usual, with a review of the basic terminology, standards and the scientific literature related to the topic. From the review of the literature, it has been concluded that, although there are authors who propose models related to the design of the supply chain including carbon reduction, there is a lack of formalized methodologies that can be applied to real cases .
The methodology consists of 4 stages: 1) The creation of a corporate carbon strategy; 2) The alignment with strategic financial planning; 3) The development of a mathematical model; and 4) The implementation and tracking.
In the first stage a six-step guide is developed to create a corporate carbon strategy. The steps are: 1) Determine the type of emission; 2) Boundaries definition; 3) Planning and performance information; 4) ldentify carbon reduction opportunities; 5) Determine carbon reduction goals; 6) Participating in programs and carbon markets .
In the second stage, the corporate carbon strategy is evaluated from a financial point of view and integrated into the strategic planning. In the third stage, a Mixed lnteger Linear Programming (MILP) model is proposed to obtain a plan for the supply chain redesign, so that: 1) the carbon reduction targets are achieved; 2) the strategic financial plan is taken into account; 3) all the real possibilities are contemplated to redesign the supply chain; and 4) a solution is achieved to optimize the economic results of the company.
The carbon reduction methodology , including the mathematical model, has been applied to three case studies that are useful for adjusting sorne elements and for its validation . The first case study corresponds to a company that operates in the Home and Personal Care sector in Brazil, where the system of taxes is more complex than in other countries and illustrates how the mathematical model can be adapted to any context. The second case study deals with a multinational company which operates in the Foods sector in Spain and requires a redesign of the supply chain to improve its product cost. Finally, the third case used a company in the U.S. to show the effect of the scope definition on the carbon strategy.
In the three cases, the solution of the mathematical model maximizes the net profit, whilst the carbon reduction target is achieved. Therefore, the carbon reduction methodology is useful for achieving economic and environmental benefits, as well as providing benefits related to the improvement of the corporate image, strengthening of brands and avoiding possible carbon taxes risks.
In conclusion, the carbon reduction methodology proposed in this thesis, was developed to support companies that want to generate a competitive advantage and a sustainable development. In addition, it was designed to be flexible enough to adapt to the needs of each business and facilitate its execution in the business world.
