company networks

New legal regulations require subsequent organisational and structural changes within the field of recycling complex discarded products (electronic scrap, end-of-life vehicles). Horizontal networks of small and medium sized companies are regarded to be especially suited for the resulting tasks. However, analyses of existing networks show a high diversity of company and network types. Therefore, empirical studies were carried out with the goal of determining characteristics, targets, and measures of existing recycling networks.

With the expansion of the classical considerations regarding supply chain management it is possible to derive new functions, namely financial supply chain management and supply chain relationship management. Based on network theory the task is to develop performance measures concerning the value proposition of logistics in general and for activities on the social and institutional layer in particular. Apart from the introduction of the layers of supply chains an example for the illustration of their interrelations is given with an exemplary supply chain cycle.