For a serial delivery system, the latter 3PL needs to be prepared at the transshipment node in advance to reduce the total delivery time. In this paper, we propose the concept of Connecting Time Spot (CTS) to help 4PL schedule the latter 3PL when to wait at the transshipment node. We study a serial delivery system with a 4PL and two 3PLs, where 4PL designs optimal contracts with two types of CTS (GCTS is derived by system parameter and DCTS is determined by 4PL’s optimization) to induce 3PLs to exert the optimal effort levels. We analyze the effects of CTS on the system profit in the centralized system. For the decentralized system, we particularly investigate the optimal contracts in three penalty modes which are according to the occupancy of the warehouses. The results show that CTS can avoid 3PLs’ idle resources and enhance the system profit for serial delivery both in the centralized system and the decentralized system. Compared with GCTS, DCTS has a better performance in enhancing the system profits. Also, the optimal incentive contracts achieve Pareto improvement for system profits. Interestingly, one 3PL’s delivery penalty mode will not affect the other 3PL’s optimal contracts.

Although prior studies draw upon natural resource-based views, environmental strategy permits competitive advantages, and as such, gains financial performance. However, empirical results are mixed. To shed light on this issue, this study proposes that environmental performance mediates the link between environmental strategy and financial performance. Data were collected from 175 third-party logistic providers currently operating in Vietnam to test the hypotheses. Partial least square structural equation modeling was borrowed to test the data. The results reveal environmental performance partially mediates the link between environmental strategy and financial performance. By considering the mediating effect, this study contributes to the literature by addressing the intervening mechanism of environmental performance on the inconclusive relationship between environmental strategy and financial performance. Besides, this study also extends prior studies by borrowing a concept of environmental strategy, which captures the extent of organizations pursuing this strategy, to explain how and why pursuing this strategy permits environmental and financial performance.

The literature addresses the link between command and control environmental regulation and environmental performance. However, there is a lack of attention paid to how environmental strategy plays a mediating role in this relationship. In addition, the environmental research in the context of third-party logistics service providers seems to be underexplored. Thus, through the theoretical lens of institutional theory and contingency theory, this study examines the mediating role of environmental strategy on the relationship command and control environmental regulation and environmental performance. Data were collected from small and medium enterprises operating in the logistics industry of Vietnam and partial least square structural equation modeling was employed to examine the proposed hypotheses. The result indicates the full mediating effects of environmental strategy on the link between command and control environmental regulation and environmental performance. In this regard, this study contributes to growing empirical evidence showing that the link between environmental regulation and environmental performance is indirect through mediators. Besides, this study also extends the current knowledge of environmental strategy pursued by third-party logistics providers.

Inspired by the industries such as food and beverage, metal and steel, as well as petroleum and petrochemical ones, the current study addresses a joint order acceptance and scheduling, lot streaming in a flexible flow shop and batch delivery problem. For maximizing a profit objective function with trading off between the revenue of the accepted orders and the costs incurred, a novel mixed integer linear programming is proposed. This paper develops a hybrid metaheuristic algorithm based on the Genetic Algorithm. In the developed algorithm, (1) a heuristic, (2) a local search, and (3) a restart phase is proposed. To set the appropriate parameters of the algorithms, Taguchi experimental design was applied. The obtained results reveal the appropriate performance of the hybrid genetic algorithm.