Supply Chain Innovation

My two decades of research extend to the amalgamation of Industry 4.0 technologies in global supply chains that include the use of RFID, the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, machine learning, additive manufacturing and Blockchain in designing global supply chain operations planning and control systems. As such, I have been recognized among the top 15 worldwide productive scholars in IoT and supply chain management research. In a recent research paper, I discussed the managerial implications for managing the dynamics of new technologies in the global supply chain, and the impact specific to the Industry 4.0 frontier technologies. From a managerial perspective, we are victims or beneficiaries of these converging technologies. 

I joined the Point-of-Need Innovations (PONI) Center as an affiliated faculty in 2022 as part of the multidisciplinary team conducting research and development for additive manufacturing technology. My role is to support the United States Department of Defense grants from the supply chain and logistics lens for additive manufacturing in the global supply chain and the building blocks for achieving an additive manufacturing sustainability ecosystem. The primary goal of the PONI Center is to transform traditional supply chains by developing on-demand material and manufacturing solutions at the location (point-of-need demand) through a circular economic approach.

I am researching the impact of additive manufacturing and sustainability in the defense industry supply chain ecosystem. This includes developing a lifecycle sustainability assessment model based on the integration of the three pillars of economics, environmental and social impacts. This model provides a toolbox and offers managerial implications by identifying the implementation challenges and expected benefits of additive manufacturing that could drastically reduce the time and the logistical footprints needed for the sustainable development and repair of products for the U.S. military.