Comparative analysis of reverse e-logistics’ solution in Asia and Europe

Abstract

Purpose – to make comparative analysis of the most successful reverse e-logistics’ solution in Asia and Europe to identify models and methods for solving efficiency and sustainability issues in these areas. Research methodology – the research methodology implemented is composed of literature review, synthesis, and comparative analysis. Findings – certain solutions implemented such as omni-channels, and Multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) in Asia, and selecting the best third-party reverse logistics providers (3PRLPs), and green suppliers in Europe were able to increase the efficiency of reverse e-logistics’ performance. Research limitations – the lack of enough researches done in the field of RL in the Middle East created obstacles in double checking the work presented in this paper because more resources are needed to confirm significantly the results. As for future recommendations, further researches should be conducted in the Middle East. Practical implications – the results found can be implemented in those firms who are still suffering inefficiencies and high costs in their reverse e-logistics’ activities. Originality/Value – this research made a comparison study between solutions implemented in Europe and Asia in head-to-head comparison in such a way it gave an originalitity of these values since no previous researches and studies were conducted in that comparative way before.

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COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF REVERSE E-LOGISTICS’ SOLUTION
IN ASIA AND EUROPE
Mohamad AL MAJZOUB1, Vida DAVIDAVIČIENĖ 2*
1, 2Department of Business Technologies and Entrepreneurship, Faculty of Business Management,
Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Saulėtekio al. 11, LT-10223, Vilnius, Lithuania
*E-mail: vida.davidaviciene@vgtu.lt
Abstract. Purpose – to make comparative analysis of the most successful reverse e-logistics’ solution in Asia and
Europe to identify models and methods for solving efficiency and sustainability issues in these areas.
Research methodology – the research methodology implemented is composed of literature review, synthesis, and com-
parative analysis.
Findings – certain solutions implemented such as omni-channels, and Multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) in Asia,
and selecting the best third-party reverse logistics providers (3PRLPs), and green suppliers in Europe were able to
increase the efficiency of reverse e-logistics’ performance.
Research limitations – the lack of enough researches done in the field of RL in the Middle East created obstacles in
double checking the work presented in this paper because more resources are needed to confirm significantly the results.
As for future recommendations, further researches should be conducted in the Middle East.
Practical implications – the results found can be implemented in those firms who are still suffering inefficiencies and
high costs in their reverse e-logistics’ activities.
Originality/Value – this research made a comparison study between solutions implemented in Europe and Asia in head-
to-head comparison in such a way it gave an originalitity of these values since no previous researches and studies were
conducted in that comparative way before.
Keywords: reverse logistics, e-logistics, e-commerce, reverse e-logistics, supply chain.
JEL Classification: M16, M160.
Conference topic: Digitalization of Business Processes: Trends, Challenges, and Solutions.
Introduction
Reverse Logistics (RL) is the summation of processes of gathering, examination, categorization, fixing, refurbishing,
remanufacturing, recycling as well as clearance, of the products to take them back from their current source of con-
sumption to their original source of manufacturing or delivering (Agarwal, Govindan, Darbari, & Jha, 2016). Reverse
logistics is initiated from the consumer into the raw material supplier, and it focuses on well-planning, operating, and
handling the efficient flow of different materials, information, and money, recovering at the same time the residual
value from end-of-life and end-of-use products (Yu & Solvang, 2016). There exist four main categories of reverse
logistics methods. They are the direct reuse, remanufacturing, recycle, and landfill (Chinda, 2017). Reverse e-logistics’
costs from returned products registered for 2015 an amount of 130.6 billion U.S. dollars in Asia-pacific, and 223.6
billion U.S. dollars in the EMEA region, and these costs are expected to continue increasing. Moreover, the costs of
returned goods alone worldwide are more than $260 billion a year and an average profit loss of 10%. Actually, 87%
of firms stated that the effective management of the RL was tremendously important to their operational and financial
performance (Shaik & Abdul-Kader, 2018)). Return’s rate has been enlarged by 57% for retailers and 43% for manu-
facturers respectively during the last three to five years. Several firms suffer significantly from ineffective management
of returned goods. The costs of returned goods alone worldwide are more than $260 billion a year and an average profit
loss of 10% (Han & Trimi, 2018). Approximately 8% of retailers’ total sales are attri buted to rev erse l ogist ics. A ctual ly,
about 10% of online transactions comprise what is called “return sales”, annulment, and repayment demands (Taven-
gerwei, 2018). Thus, this necessitates the fast, efficient, and effective solutions to be applied. Because of its operations’
ambiguity and complexity, the performance measurement of RL is rarely studied (Brüning Larsen, Masi, & Cordes

Al Majzoub, M.; Davidavičienė, V. 2019. Comparative analysis of reverse e-logistics’ solution in Asia and Europe
891
Feiber, 2017; Shaik & Abdul-Kader, 2018). RL is considered as a strategic tool for manufacturing firms since it permits
them to gain a competitive advantage by granting a reputable image, customer loyalty, as well as an improvement in
their relative market presence. Moreover, RL leads to a reduction in the operational costs by make the most of the
recovery from used-goods (Agarwal et al., 2016). Reverse Logistics decreases waste of resources and thus increases
efficiency. This is done by improving the quality of secondary materials and enhancing the utilization of natural re-
sources (Chileshe, Rameezdeen, Hosseini, Martek, Li, & Panjehbashi-Aghdam, 2018). Furthermore, reverse logistics
initiatives with social commerce including e-commerce and social networks. This will give opportunities for enter-
prises to have other sources to increase their sales, and to play a role in their corporate social responsibility via social,
green, and environmental activities, as well (Han & Trimi, 2018). The reduction of costs that RL supports is due to the
saving of raw materials and spare parts when RL is performed efficiently. Moreover, RL yield revenues by reselling
materials and products after being scrapped. Indeed, the effective process management of RL in its product returning
allows the enhancement of productivity, thus gaining a competitive advantage by that, in addition to the costs’ reduc-
tion. An important result of effective RL will be the customer satisfaction that can be achieved that in turn will yield
customer loyalty and thus retention. Customer satisfaction is attained when resources are used to develop process
capabilities and service quality (Panigrahi, Kar, Fen, Hoe, & Wong, 2018). Actually, a substantial profit accompanying
with RL is also related to the recovery value of the goods being returned. An important advantage of RL is that deals
with both economic and environmental aspects, whereas in the normal forward supply chain, economic aspects are
only considered (Tosarkani & Amin, 2018). Inappropriately, the literature regarding preceding works as well as the
results in RL progress is rare (Euchi, Bouzidi, & Bouzid, 2018). Slight attention has been focused on the factors af-
fecting the effective implementation of RL practices in developing countries (Prakash & Barua, 2015.). Returns man-
agement is probably the most abandoned part in thee-logistics’ practices (Panigrahi et al., 2018). Numerous firms have
implemented reverse logistics RL in their strategies and policies to ensure continuous improvement and development
by concentrating on decreasing of resources’ wasting and by providing value from returned used-products (Sirisawat
& Kiatcharoenpol, 2018). Designing a well-planned RL system will lead to several benefits such as economic and
environmental ones. Nevertheless, an inadequately designed reverse logistics system will decrease firms’ profitability
and at the same time causing significant environmental and social problems. Hence, developing an innovative decision-
making instrument for RL system is of significant importance (Yu & Solvang, 2017). RL reflects a very effective
solution for value recovery from end-of-life and end-of-use products (Yu & Solvang, 2016). Despite the fact that there
are several factors that can impact RL, yet but what contributes the most to impact the effective implementation of RL
is the understanding of the opportunities granted by reverse logistics supply chain itself in development of customers’
loyalty as well as satisfaction and loyalty (Prakash & Barua, 2015). Effective RL performance will yield efficient
resource using, in addition to pollution prevention by decreasing an environmental load of end-of-life (EOL) at its
foundation (Prakash & Barua, 2015). There are several factors that hinder the effective implementation and integration
of RL with the current forward supply chain system. Some of the most important factors include lack of knowledge
and lack of government support, financial limitations, and market constraints. In addition to that, there exists a case of
“lack of awareness” among the consumers as well as manufacturers regarding the possible benefits of engaging in
reverse logistics (Agarwal et al., 2016). Other numerous barriers that make RL implementation difficult are Manage-
ment barriers, bad infrastructure, legal, economical organizational, and market-related. The problem is that the effect
of these barriers cannot be overcome at the same time (Prakash & Barua, 2015). A big concern in an RL system is
handling of the returned products (either because they are defective or obsolete) through an efficient reverse logistics
system, in a way that these returned products arrive at their final destinations with the lowest costs possible (Eskandar-
pour, Masehian, Soltani, & Khosrojerdi, 2014). Furthermore, in the majority of models in RL system, the seller is the
one who is held responsible for the costs incurred because of returned goods, and this might be strongly hectic for
companies and especially MSMEs. In certain situations, there is a kind of transparency in customs procedures that ease
the processes, yet still, not all are satisfactory (Tavengerwei, 2018). However, some gaps exist in measuring the per-
formance of a reverse logistics firm. In order to fill those gaps by identifying weak areas, therefore adequate programs
should be developed.
The purpose of this study is to find solutions to increase the efficiency of reverse logistics implementation and to
solve effectively the resource shortage that most firms face. Thus the objective is two-fold: (1) to identify the factors
that influence the efficiency reverse logistics and to know their impact on RL, and (2) to make a comparative analysis
of RL solution that have been already been implemented in both Asia and Europe to increase efficiency of RL’s per-
formance and to promote development sustainability. Hence, the following research questions could be posed to un-
derstand more the underlying causes. Research Question 1: What are the factors that affect the perceived efficiency
of RL and to what extent do these factors affect RL’s performance. For Research Question 2: What are the methods
and solutions implemented in Europe and Asia and how would a comparison analysis between the applied solutions in
these areas help in increasing the efficiency of RL’s performance?
The methods used in this study are, literature review, synthesis, and comparative analysis. In the next sections in
this article we will first discuss the main essence of reverse logistics, then next the factors that have a direct influence
on reverse logistics’ performance, then the basic solutions implemented effectively in Europe and Asia and a compar-
ison study will be discussed.

Al Majzoub, M.; Davidavičienė, V. 2019. Comparative analysis of reverse e-logistics’ solution in Asia and Europe
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1. The main essence of different reverse logistics’ perspectives
RL is seen from different perspectives according to different authors and this is manifested in the different definitions
that exist for RL. For instance, RL is known as the process of planning, employing, and adjusting the efficient, cost-
effective movement of raw materials, in-process inventory, finished goods and linked information from the consumer
to the origin site in an attempt to recollect products or to dispose of them (Sirisawat & Kiatcharoenpol, 2018). Moreo-
ver, Reverse logistics is considered to be not only these steps mentioned above but it is perceived as the whole proce-
dure for effectively handling the material, info and money stream so as to renew value from the end-of-use (EOU) and
end-of-life (EOL) products via repairing, reutilizing, remanufacturing, recycling and reinstatement to the marketplace.
Furthermore, RL comprises the suitable handling of the non-reusable and nonrecyclable components (Yu & Solvang,
2017). Reverse logistics contain activities linked to product recovery containing returned product acquisition, product
disassembly, remanufacturing, and remarketing (Tosarkani & Amin, 2018). The main basic definitions of reverse lo-
gistics are summarized in Table 1.
Table 1. Different definitions of reverse logistics compiled by author (source: composed by authors)
Definition of Reverse Logistics Author
Summation of processes of gathering, examination, categorization, fixing, refurbishing, remanufac-
turing, recycling as well as clearance, of the products to take them back from their current source of
consumption to their original source of manufacturing or delivering.
Agarwal et al., 2016
The process of planning, employing and adjusting the efficient, cost-effective movement of raw ma-
terials, in-process inventory, finished goods and linked information from the consumer to the origin
site in an attempt to recollect products or to dispose of them.
Sirisawat and
Kiatcharoenpol, 2018
Reverse logistics is the whole procedure for effectively handling the material, info and money
stream so as to renew value from the end-of-use (EOU) and end-of-life (EOL) products via repair-
ing, reutilizing, remanufacturing, recycling and reinstatement to the marketplace. Furthermore, RL
comprises the suitable handling of the non-reusable and non-recyclable components.
Yu and Solvang, 2017
RL refers to operations and procedures for returning post-sale and post-consumption goods back
into the production cycle, by way of reversing distribution channels.
Chileshe et al., 2018
The process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient, cost-effective flow of raw ma-
terials, in-process inventory, finished goods and related information from the point of consumption
to the point of origin for the purpose of recapturing value or proper disposal.
Han and Trimi, 2018
Rogers and Tibben-Lembke (1999) define RL as the process of planning, implementing, and con-
trolling the efficient, cost-effective flow of raw materials, in-process inventory, finished goods, and
related information from the point of consumption to the point of origin for the purpose of recaptur-
ing or creating value or proper disposal.
Shaik and Abdul-
Kader, 2018
In reverse logistics systems, a product coming from the reuse of materials embedded into wastes re-
turns to the manufacturer after use and can be repaired or remanufactured to be delivered again to
make new products with secondary raw materials to the end consumers. The key processes are iden-
tified as product acquisition, collection, inspection and sorting, and disposition.
Sun, 2017
RL includes all activities associated with product recovery such as repairing, recycling, remanufac-
turing, and disposing of. Several partners are required to collaborate efficiently on account of ob-
taining optimal outcomes. Prakash and Barua (2016) categorized RL into the main activities of
waste logistics and recovery logistic.
Tosarkani and Amin,
2018
Reverse logistics as “returning defective, damaged or unused products to the retail outlets”. It en-
compasses all the processes described in the supply chain but in a reverse manner from customer to
retailer. Reverse logistics in the retail industry include recalled products, end of life products, sea-
son returns, and disposal.
Panigrahi et al., 2018
The goal of reverse logistics is to focus on the reverse flow of materials by maximizing their value. Han and Trimi, 2018
Reverse logistics contain activities linked to product recovery containing returned product acquisi-
tion, product disassembly, remanufacturing, and remarketing.
Tosarkani and Amin,
2018
Briefly, RL, as a matter of fact, includes products manifested into one of two categories. The first one is concerned
with goods which are returned by consumers to their corresponding point-of-origin either due to the fact that these
goods didn't succeed to function as intended and designed, or either because there is a lack of customer satisfaction,
regardless of what the reason really is. In such conditions, the goods returned are vented to a secondary market in either
a repaired-form or refurbished item. Concerning the second category, it has to do with everything related to products
gathered from their perspective consumers in order to process of “recovery” after they attained the end of their useful
lives efficiently (Batarfi, Jaber, & Aljazzar, 2017).

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2. Factors affecting reverse logistics
There are several authors that discussed the factors that affect reverse logistics (Lau & Wang, 2009; Lian, 207; Meixell
& Luoma, 2015). According to Prakash and Barua (2015), Sirisawat and Kiatcharoenpol (2018), the factors affecting
the efficient implementation of reverse logistics in developing countries are managerial, organizational, economic,
legal, technological, infrastructural, and market-related factors. According to Bogataj and Grubbström (2013), trans-
portation still is playing a negative role in developing countries. This is happening due to the high costs of transporta-
tion in reverse activities especially to far dislocations because of the bad transportation system of merchandise and
logistics. From another perspective, Government policies and Organizational structure are the greatest guiding ele-
ments that have the utmost effect in driving others factors and systems the base of explanatory structure exemplary
(Euchi et al., 2018). Distance factors motivate firms to apply reverse logistics into their operational business activities.
Such factors are categorized into three key factors, the legislative, profit-oriented driver, and corporate citizenship
factors, respectively (Chinda, 2017). From another perspective, choosing the best reverse logistics’ partners directly
affects reverse logistics activities and needs a multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approach to solve. Thus, apply-
ing this solution will help reach the ideal third-party reverse logistics provider (Tosarkani & Amin, 2018). Neverthe-
less, there are selective factors that directly influence the effective growth and improvement of reverse logistics. These
are: lack of natural resources, environmental laws, the understanding of backward flow value, e-commerce enhance-
ment, decent reputation necessities, consumer satisfaction, and the quality of information systems including social
commerce platform such as social networking services/sites, management such as customer relationship and quality
control, technology such as social media, and social activities such as forums and communities (Han & Trimi, 2018).
In another study done by Govindan and Bouzon (2018), factors affecting RL are categorized as either internal or ex-
ternal. External ones comprise barriers from outside of the organizations that interrupt the proper implementation of
RL, whereas the internal ones comprise opportunities such as internal technology and infrastructure, governance and
supply chain activities, economic, knowledge, policy, market and competitors, and management associated subjects.
Factors affecting reverse logistics can also be categorized in terms of product, inventory, warranty, and core returns in
addition to reusable containers, damaged goods (which represent highest one of 20% of returns), seasonal items, haz-
ardous materials, and stock adjustments (Panigrahi et al., 2018). Finally, it is worth mentioning that customers return
products due to commercial return, end of use return, end of life return, repair and warranty return over the product
life cycle (Tosarkani & Amin, 2018). In another study done, the critical factors that affect reverse logistics are split
Table 2. Factors affecting reverse logistics compiled by author (source: composed by authors)
Main Factors that affect RL’s performance Authors
Managerial, organizational, economic, legal, technological, infrastructural, and market-related fac-
tors.
Prakash and Barua,
2015; Sirisawat and
Kiatcharoenpol, 2018
Transportation Bogataj and
Grubbström, 2013
Government policies and Organizational structure Euchi et al., 2018
Three main categories, including 1) legislative driver, 2) profit-oriented driver, and 3) corporate citi-
zenship driver
Chinda, 2017
Selection of partners/ third-party reverse logistics provider Tosarkani and Amin,
2018
Natural resources, environmental law, the realization of backward flow value, e-business develop-
ment, good reputation requirement, customer satisfaction, quality of information systems including
social commerce platform such as social networking services/sites.
Han and Trimi, 2018
External factors such as the environment, and internal factors such as technology infrastructure,
governance, economic, knowledge, and competitors.
Govindan and Bou-
zon, 2018
Product recalls (goods that manufacturers recall), inventory returns (to minimize inventory in the
retail outlet), warranty returns (goods required by retailers), core returns (goods that can be reused),
reusable containers (returning the shipment to the manufacturers), damaged goods (goods damaged
on site), seasonal items (after season return), hazardous materials (items that are considered as haz-
ardous to be return) and stock adjustments (transfer of stocks to correct a situation).
Panigrahi et al., 2018
Commercial return, end of use return, end of life return, repair and warranty return over the product
life cycle.
Tosarkani and Amin,
2018
the finance and economic factors that lead to high cost in reverse logistics, second is the lack of
knowledge and experience, third is lack of government policies (law and regulation), fourth is in the
management and culture (management), fifth is lack of human resources, infrastructure and technol-
ogy, lack of environmental awareness, lack of community pressure, and company policies
Waqas et al., 2018

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894
into the following several categories: the finance and economic factors that lead to high cost in reverse logistics, second
is the lack of knowledge and experience, third is lack of government policies (law and regulation), fourth is in the
management and culture (management), fifth is lack of human resources, infrastructure and technology, lack of envi-
ronmental awareness, lack of community pressure, and company policies (Waqas, Dong, Ahmad, Zhu, & Nadeem,
2018). Table 2 below summarizes the main factors affecting reverse logistics.
As noted from the above table, several differences exist between the important factors that should be considered
and included in reverse logistics operations. However, despite these distinctions, there still exist several common points
as well, that is worth building on to create an integrative perspective of a solution model to increase the efficiency of
reverse logistics’ performance.
3. Solutions implemented for increasing efficiency of reverse logistics performance
The following section deals with solutions implemented in both Europe and Asia. Firms deal with RL and product
returns in a completely different manner. Every firm chooses the method according to its needs, capabilities, and the
way it affects its revenues (Panigrahi et al., 2018). Certain solutions implemented were able to increase the efficiency
of reverse e-logistics, others didn't make that huge effect. Only the most important solutions will be discussed in this
article.
3.1. Solutions implemented for increasing efficiency of reverse Logistics performance in Europe
The complexity of reverse logistics always initiate solutions to be original and creative, and the methods applied to
improve reverse logistics’ performance have to be efficient and cost-effective (Shaik & Abdul-Kader, 2018). For in-
stance, the application of omin-channels in retail industry proved to be effective. However, if proper transportation is
missing and regulations are tight, this will not yield the intended results (Panigrahi et al., 2018). Another solution is
the application of a social commerce platform, a novel business method of e-commerce that takes advantage of social
media and Web 2.0 technologies in order to back social-related exchange activities. This platform allows consumers
to interact and stay connected with the firms thus integrating e-business, customer relationship management, technol-
ogy support, and information systems (Han & Trimi, 2018). Choosing best third-party reverse logistics is an important
factor that affects reverse logistics performance. This can be solved by applying Fuzzy Topsys through three basic
main steps. The first is manifested by choosing election of the best third-party reverse logistics providers (3PRLPs) or
green suppliers. Second is the location decision problem. The third one is Reverse logistics process (Han & Trimi,
2018). RL is a complex process by itself, thus sustaining its efficiency is not that easy. Sustainability is done in one of
two ways. The first is to sustain implementation and application or reverse logistics, whereas the second one is to
emphasize raising awareness in using resources more efficiently (Bal & Satoglu, 2018). Actually, achieving a sustain-
able supply chain is done through the duty that each fragment has in terms of being environmentally friendly in diverse
activities such as goods design, production, utilization, recycling, as well as transportation (Linton, Klassen, & Jaya-
raman, 2007). The solution applied to analyze and improve sustainability is the triple bottom line (TBL) approach,
which states that for reverse logistics to be sustainable, the economic, environmental and social requirements got be
attained at the lowest possible cost (Bal & Satoglu, 2018). Another advantage of this approach is that it does not only
reduce cost but reduces greenhouse gas emissions as well thus gaining an additional competitive advantage and being
socially responsible firm. Operational activities by themselves lead to high costs, if not managed properly, due to high
emissions of carbon dioxide (Tseng & Hung, 2014). Challenges of reverse logistics are plenty, but lack of effective
systems such as the performance management (PM) system, would render results catastrophic. PM will affect reverse
logistic’s efficiency when it allocates resources, responsibilities and decision making, setting the objectives of perfor-
mance, and providing the result by evaluating the targets’ attainment. However, firms should be aware not to fall in
the trap of studying the factors that affect RL only but should also be aware of the degree of such effect and their
interdependency. Thus, it is important for the PM to be linked with multi-criteria approaches especially balanced score-
card and analytic network process (ANP) based approach (Shaik & Abdul-Kader, 2018). Table 3 documents the most
important and effective solutions implemented in Aisa.
Table 3. Reverse Logistics solution implemented in Asia (source: composed by authors)
Method Description Author Country
Application of
Omni-channels
Omni-channel involves the integration of process, information flow,
inventory and measurement systems, which are taking care sepa-
rately by individual departments. It involves 4 stages: the first stage
is Inspection and Collection, second is Sorting and Testing, third is
Processing, and the final stage is storage.
Bad implementation of Omni-channels and tighter regulation make
reverse logistics more complex.
Ang and Tan,
2018
Panigrahi
et al., 2018
Malaysia
Malaysia

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End of Table 3
Method Description Author Country
fuzzy analytical hierarchy
process (Fuzzy AHP)
Fuzzy TOPSIS
First, identification of RL barriers should be included with proposed
alternative solutions from experts in the field and industry, in addi-
tion to the market research. Second, Fuzzy AHP will be utilized to
get the weight of criteria and sub-criteria of barriers and prioritize
barriers. The third phase applied fuzzy TOPSIS to prioritize and
rank the solutions of RL practice.
Sirisawat and
Kiatcharoen-
pol, 2018
Thailand
Decision-Making Trial
and Evaluation Labora-
tory (DEMATEL)
approach
DEMATEL methodology is utilized for the purpose of understand-
ing the mutual relationships between the strategies to extract the
most imperative ones. The DEMATEL approach derives the priori-
ties for the strategies for achieving a feasible partnership among the
stakeholders so that the desired RL network represents the voice and
opinion of every SC member involved. The result of DEMATEL
methodology is a visual representation in the form of an impact-re-
lations map (IRM) which can provide more clarity of the existing
interdependence between various criteria to the DMs. There are
main 4 steps of DEMATEL. Step 1: Construct the Direct relation
matrix. Step 2: Obtain the Normalized direct relation matrix. Step 3:
Calculate the Total relation matrix T. Step 4: Construct the IRM di-
agram.
Agarwal
et al., 2016
India
The augmented dickey
fuller (ADF) test, Johan-
sen cointegration test, and
impulse response.
These methods are utilized to interpret the relationship between re-
verse logistics carbon footprint and the influencing factors ADF is a
method for the root of unity test, is a common choice for testing sta-
tionery of the series. Johansen cointegration test is used to observe
whether future development has an integration impact on the en-
tirety. It is useful due to its ability to determine whether a long-term
stable equilibrium exists between variables. The impulse response
function can capture the dynamic changes of variables.
Sun, 2017 China
Multi-criteria decision
makings (MCDM) such
as the analytic hierarchy
process (AHP) and ana-
lytic network process
(ANP)
The roles of MCDM models are significant in industries and busi-
nesses. Some researchers have considered environmental factors in
MCDM techniques examined green supply chain management
(GSCM) to offer an environmental framework for supplier selection
in the automotive industry. DEMATEL, ANP, and TOPSIS meth-
ods were integrated with fuzzy sets theory to assist in the decision-
making process.
Tosarkani and
Amin, 2018
Thailand
Analytic Hierarchy Pro-
cess (AHP) and Entropy
Weight (EW) method.
Integration of AHP and EW for deriving criteria weights. The aim
of this hybrid method is to investigate the major relationship be-
tween criteria and it has 4 steps. Step 1: Standardization of criteria
data Step 2: Normalization of grey decision-making matrix. Step 3:
Determination of comprehensive weights. Step 4: Determination of
grey border approximation area matrix.
Wang et al.,
2019
China
Hybrid-information
multi-criteria decision
making (HI-MCDM) and
CPT
It solves the 3PRLP selection problem involving the psychological
behavior of a division team, where the evaluation criteria are de-
scribed as real numbers, interval numbers, and linguistic terms.
First, the goals of the decision team and criteria values in three for-
mats are normalized to deal with the incommensurability among the
different forms of criteria values. Given that the goals of the deci-
sion team inherit the CPT property, setting goals as RP is effective
and reasonable. Furthermore, again and loss matrix is built by meas-
uring the distance between the criteria value and relative RP utiliz-
ing the Euclidean distance function. Moreover, the prospect value of
each criterion can be calculated with the value function of CPT
based on the decision team’s risk preference toward gain and loss
scenarios. Thus, the overall prospect value of each alternative is as-
sessed by aggregating the prospect values and weights of the criteria
using a simple additive weighting (SAW) approach. Finally, a rank-
ing order of all 3PRLPs is determined according to the obtained
overall prospect values.
Li, Ying,
Chin, Yang,
and Xu, 2018
China
What’s quite interesting about the findings of these studies implemented in Europe, is that all of these methods
proved to be extremely effective in increasing the efficiency of reverse logistics’ performance in contrast to many
several other studies performed in the same field.

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3.2. Solutions implemented for increasing efficiency of reverse logistics performance in Asia
Diverse studies aimed to improve the efficiency of reverse logistics in Asia. For instance, configuring an electronic
reverse logistics network and third-party selection has proven to be effective when it comes to reverse logistics as well.
A proposed solution states that one of the best methods for a better RL is to apply fuzzy analytic network process
(FANP) to change the environmental qualitative factors, that are causing huge costs on the firms, to quantitative. It is
made up of 3 steps, the 1st step is to prioritize 3rd parties based on their green performance. The second step is to
configure an electronic RL network and solve the mathematical equation. Finally, the third step is to compute non-
dominated solutions of the multi-objective optimization model to (Tosarkani et al., 2018). Another solution proposed
is using Omni-channels that includes incorporation of procedure, the flow of material and information flow, inventory
and measurement systems, by distinct departments. Omni-channels proved to be effective since today the customers’
trend is switching towards electronic purchases because almost everybody now has smartphones and can access it
easily. Another advantage is that it allows retailers to centralize their reverse logistics operations, thus benefiting from
economies of scale and lowering their costs (Ang & Tan, 2018). Reverse logistics system is a crucial system to deliver
efficient resource consumption and decreasing waste from the end of life (EOL) goods, especially in the electronics
industry. This is achieved by applying the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (Fuzzy AHP) and fuzzy technique for
order performance by similarity to ideal solution (Fuzzy TOPSIS) whereby the fuzzy AHP approach is implemented
to acquire the weights of each factor affecting reverse logistics’ performance by utilizing pairwise comparison, and
fuzzy TOPSIS is implemented to get the final ranking results of the solutions to increase the efficiency of reverse
logistics (Sirisawat et al., 2018). The role of the channel partners is very crucial for reverse logistics but is often over-
looked. Thus to solve this problem, a collaborative framework that comprises recognizing the convenient solutions for
the application of RL and choosing RL partners is required. This solution is the Decision Making Trial and Evaluation
Laboratory (DEMATEL) approach, which is an approach to comprehend the mutual relationships among the solutions
and implement the most effective ones by making a linear programming problem for the RL channels created under a
collaborative framework (Agarwal et al., 2016). Reverse logistics has a significant role in achieving and maintaining
sustainable development of competitive advantage especially in enhancing low carbon competitiveness and lower re-
sources usage. This is accomplished through implementation of the quantitative research methodology using ADF test,
Johansen cointegration test, and impulse response to analyze the connection between reverse logistics carbon footprint
and reverse logistics. Thus maintaining an energy-efficient, and the good remanufacturing rate is more adept of con-
straining reverse logistics carbon footprint high costs (Sun, 2017). An important aspect of reverse logistics is in deter-
mining the approximate number of products that will be returned. Thus, creating complexities not only with customers
but with suppliers and reverse logistics’ operations as well. This problem makes decision-making a complex process
that needs integration of the method that allows the optimal collection practice for used components, a demand-match-
ing oriented. This method, which is a type of Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM), is the (AHP) Analytic
Hierarchy Process and (AHP-EW) Entropy Weight method (Wang et al., 2019). Because of the challenges that reverse
logistics imposes due to its complex operations and the scarcity of resources, some firms prefer outsourcing reverse
logistics practices to the third-party reverse logistics provider (3PRLP). The most difficult part is choosing the optimal
partner. The 3PRLP choosing is commonly documented as a hybrid-information multi-criteria decision making
(HI-MCDM) problem integrating multiple factors which are typically in conflict with additional factors and articulated
by numerous layouts of information (Li et al., 2018). Table 4 summarizes the most effective solutions implemented in
Europe.
Table 4. Reverse logistics’ solution implemented in Europe (source: composed by authors)
Method Description Author Country
The carbon-constrained
stochastic optimization
model
Process for effectively managing the material, information, and cash flow
in order to regenerate value from EOU and EOL products through repair,
reuse, remanufacturing, recycling and reintroduction to the market, besides,
it also involves the proper treatment of the non-reusable and non-recyclable
parts. The reverse logistics network is comprised of the local collection
centers for EOU and EOL products, central collection center, remanufac-
turing and recycling center, energy recovery plant, waste treatment facility
and the market. First, the EOU and EOL products are collected at the local
collection centers which are located close to the customers, and this first-
level collection could be either a spontaneous customer return of EOU
and/or EOL products at the fixed depots or an organized return service per-
formed by the local waste management companies. Then, the locally col-
lected EOU and EOL products are sent to the central collection centers
where they will be inspected and disassembled for further distribution. The
disassembled parts will be sent for either remanufacturing/recycling or for
energy recovery through incineration/biochemical treatment, and the non-
reusable and non-recyclable parts will be sent for disposal at a landfill.
Yu and
Solvang,
2017
Turkey

Al Majzoub, M.; Davidavičienė, V. 2019. Comparative analysis of reverse e-logistics’ solution in Asia and Europe
897
End of Table 4
Method Description Author Country
Application of social
commerce platform and
Application of Fuzzy
TOPSYS for choosing
3PRLPs
The social commerce platform, a new business model of e-commerce,
makes use of Web 2.0 technologies and social media to support social-re-
lated exchange activities. It offers a platform connecting consumers and
companies integrating e-business, customer relationship management, tech-
nology support, and information systems.
Selection of third-party reverse logistics providers (3PRLPs), which is
done by application of Fuzzy TOPSYS in 3 main streams.
Stream 1: Selection of the best third-party reverse logistics providers
(3PRLPs) or green suppliers. developed Interpretive Structural Modeling
(ISM) and fuzzy TOPSIS to guide the selection process, also used for cor-
rect evaluation and ranking of the decision criteria/priorities in selecting
the best 3PRLPs when a company decides to outsource reverse logistics ac-
tivities
Stream 2: Location decision problem to find the best place to locate a re-
manufacturing facility in a discrete space
Stream 3: Reverse logistics process through the sorting process of reverse
logistics in the downstream photovoltaic industry
Han and
Trimi,
2018
Han and
Trimi,
2018
Spain
Spain
The triple bottom line
(TBL) approach
Products are collected from the central point of the city. Inner city routing
is out of the scope of this study.
Cost of recycling does not change with years.
The numbers of collection sites are known and locations of the recycling
facilities are predetermined.
The specific facility that can recover a product type is predetermined.
Cost parameters are foreknown as material, operation, recycling, transpor-
tation, hiring, laying off and fixed cost.
The holding cost, stockout cost, and storage cost are disregarded
Bal and
Satoglu,
2018
Turkey
Performance measure-
ment (PM) system
The PM is useful in benchmarking or setting standards for comparison with
best practices in other enterprises. The PM system model of RL developed
here is applied in the following steps: (1) presentation of the areas of suc-
cess; i.e., performance attributes, their criteria and performance measures,
which are used to measure the performance level as described by Shaik and
Abdul-Kader (2014); (2) calculation of the relative weights of the inner de-
pendent and interdependent relationships of criteria and attributes of suc-
cess by using the hybrid model (DEMATEL and fuzzy ANP and AHP
methods); and (3) rating the RL performance in each performance measure
and computing the overall performance score of the enterprise.
Shaik and
Abdul-
Kader,
2018
Switzer-
land
It is worth mentioning that in spite of the scarcity in the number of studies done in the reverse logistics’ field in
Asia, those studies mentioned above were able to change the concept of increasing efficiency of reverse logistic’s
performance in that region. Moreover, they have built the basis of the main starting points to explore more and more
to increase RL performance.
4. Overview of differences in reverse logistics in Europe and Asia
The head-to-head comparison for increasing efficiency of reverse logistics’ solutions implemented in Asia and Europe
meet at a similarity of one important point, which is the inclusion of the multi-criteria decision-making model in every
single final solution implemented. However, what differs is the type, objective, way, and utilization of resources to
reach and apply such decisions. For instance, in Europe, the preservation of resources proved to be very important and
is always considered manifested in the conservation of both energy and time. Moreover, environmental concerns such
as eco-green strategies and decreasing pollution is an essential part, especially in reverse transportations and deliveries.
Whereas, the Asian way of thinking didn’t take these factors into consideration a lot replacing it by the speed and ease
of the process of reverse logistics to maintain customer satisfaction and thus loyalty in order not to cause the loss of
these customers. This doesn’t mean that in Asia reducing waste of resources is not important, yet knowledge awareness
and ways in which reverse logistics implemented could be enhanced more to preserve such resources.

Al Majzoub, M.; Davidavičienė, V. 2019. Comparative analysis of reverse e-logistics’ solution in Asia and Europe
898
Conclusions
Almost every firm nowadays is implementing e-logistics in its daily operation. However, reverse e-logistics, a very
crucial aspect, is often overlooked. Firms that neglected it, suffered a lot of costs and eventually had to terminate their
operations. Fortunately, the solutions discussed in this research can increase the efficiency of reverse logistics when
implemented effectively, yet developing countries in the middle east still didn’t have such opportunities to conduct
and test these researches. However, the reverse logistics system presents some limitations and need to be more devel-
oped. Firstly, a more comparative study is required in order to find new solutions techniques that can improve this
system and find optimal solutions to increase its efficiency. Secondly, the interaction between experts was not ad-
dressed in this study and it would be important to tackle this point in further studies to evaluate reverse logistics per-
formance according to other assessment’s technical criteria. Additionally, some issues that extend beyond the core of
supply chain management must be integrated by sustainability. These issues concern product design, manufacturing
by items, the use of products manufactured during the manufacturing process, the extension of product life, the end of
product's cycles and the recovery processes at the end of the stage. The future recommendation would be conducting
more studies concerning reverse logistics in the Middle East region since there exists a great opportunity to seize there.
The combination of the suggested recommendations with sustainability can help the firms to establish procedures in
order to develop opportunities that can be seized in this area.
Disclosure statement
We declare that we do not have any competing financial, professional, or personal interests from other parties.
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