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Modelling of Outbound Logistics Barriers of Rubberwood Processing Industries

Avinesh Abraham, R. Sasikumar

Rubberwood has established itself as one of the major timbers mainly for the production of panelboards, furniture and other furniture components within a period of 20 years. By analysing the supply chain of the industry, it is clear that the outbound logistics system has various barriers that hinder the growth of market share of the industry. Hence it is essential to identify the criticality of these barriers to improve the supply chain efficiency of the system. A detailed review related with outbound logistics barriers has been conducted. After identifying 44 barriers from the literature review, the next step was to determine the critical barriers, by means of brainstorming technique. It was identified that 15 barriers were critical to outbound logistics of industry and interrelations between them were established using ISM (Interpretive Structural Modelling) Methodology. Driving and dependence power analysis (DDPA) /MICMAC analysis is used to classify the critical barriers. An Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was then used to weigh the critical barriers and to prioritize them. Microsoft Excel simulation Software and Super Decision Software were used to conduct the assessments. The judgements were found to be consistent in both cases. Further, ISM-AHP integrated model was developed to improve the outbound logistics of rubberwood processing industries and thus overall market share. It was observed that lack of customer focus, selling of product only through dealers and absence of direct contact with end customers were valued as the top priorities among critical barriers. Arrangement of outbound logistics barriers in a hierarchy and their categorization are the exclusive effort in the area of rubberwood processing industry. The study concludes with implications about analyses of outbound logistics barriers of the industry.