Physical Internet deployment in industry: literature review and research opportunities
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-07-2021-0416 |
| Published date | 04 November 2021 |
| Date | 04 November 2021 |
| Pages | 1522-1540 |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Information systems,Data management systems,Knowledge management,Knowledge sharing,Management science & operations,Supply chain management,Supply chain information systems,Logistics,Quality management/systems |
| Author | Sihua Chen,Linlin Su,Xusen Cheng |
Physical Internet deployment in
industry: literature review and
research opportunities
Sihua Chen
School of Information Management, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics,
Nanchang, China
Linlin Su
School of Information Technology and Management,
University of International Business and Economics, Beijing, China, and
Xusen Cheng
School of Information, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China
Abstract
Purpose –The Physical Internet (PI) provides solutions to improve the current unsustainable economically
logistics systems. This paper aims to identifythe key themes and point out the gaps to demonstrate the current
state of the PI deployment in the industry. Furthermore, this paper attempts to provide possible opportunities
for future research to lead research directions of PI deployment in the industry.
Design/methodology/approach–This paper follows the methodology of systematicliterature review (SLR)
including five processes of (1) identifying the search process; (2) selecting publications following the criteria
that include and/or exclude a publication; (3) evaluating and analyzing the chosen literature; (4) reporting
findingsand (5) synthesizingfuture researchopportunities. A totalof 88 papersranging from2011 to 2021were
selected and coded for analysis.
Findings –This paper has identified 7 themes, including the PI concepts, assessments of the PI, components of
the PI, innovative facilities appliedin the PI, collaborationin the PI, the PI implementationand literature review.
Meanwhile, five key methodologies including experimental, exploratory, review, design science research as
well as mixed-methods have been classified. A framework has been proposed to summarize the results
incorporating the real-life industries involved in the existing research. The authors also present the research
gaps and future research opportunities for the PI deployment in industries.
Originality/value–This study is one of the first research focusing on the PI real-life implementation and thus
contributes to the PI literature differing from other literature review papers. The proposed framework is useful
to learn about the current core research themes in the PI. The discussion of future research opportunities may
inspire interesting research delving into the field.
Keywords Physical Internet, Systematic literature review, Implementation, Real-life industry
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Given the growth of e-commerce in the past decades, the logistics industry is facing
unprecedented opportunities and challenges (Lee and Shen, 2020). The increasingly
pervasive use of online shopping platforms has been shifting customers’shopping habits
from offline to online (Chen et al., 2017), sharply increasing their demands of logistics service,
contributing to economic benefits in the field of logistics. However, the challenges faced by
the logistics industry are obvious. On one hand, customers need quality logistics service and
on the other hand, the current state of logistics is unsustainable economically,
environmentally and socially (Mervis, 2014). For instance, environmental concerns caused
IMDS
122,6
1522
The authors would like to thank National Demonstration Center for Experimental Education of
Information Technology and Management (Renmin University of China) for partially support of this
research.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/0263-5577.htm
Received 6 July 2021
Revised 8 September 2021
12 October 2021
Accepted 22 October 2021
Industrial Management & Data
Systems
Vol. 122 No. 6, 2022
pp. 1522-1540
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0263-5577
DOI 10.1108/IMDS-07-2021-0416
by the supply chain, such as greenhouse gas emission, have been a typical issue (Sarraj et al.,
2014a). Montreuil (2011) provided 13 key unsustainability symptoms by summarizing the
current practice in the logistics industry. How to make global logistics more effective and
efficient is a crucial issue in the field of logistics.
The evolution of novel information technologies, such as cloud computing and cloud
storage, provides possible solutions to address these challenges (He et al., 2020). The Physical
Internet (PI) is one of the most innovative solutions. Inspired by the front-page article of The
Economist (Markillie, 2006) and the purpose of improving the current global logistics
systems, the concept of the PI has been proposed as the Digital Internet (DI) metaphor with 13
key characteristics, such as encapsulation, openness and universal interconnectivity
(Montreuil, 2011). The widely accepted definition of the PI is “A global logistics system
based on the interconnection of logistics networks by a standardized set of collaboration
protocols, modular containers and smart interfaces for increased efficiency and sustainability
(Ballot et al., 2014)”.The PI is a kind of open interconnected logistics needing collaboration
and the Internet (Maslari
cet al., 2016). To reduce overall cost, optimize effectiveness and
efficiency, ultimately achieve sustainable goals, the PI learns the idea from the DI and aims to
transport physical goods stored in standardized PI-containers by open and interconnected
networks, which is similar to the data transferred by packages in the digital world (Sarraj
et al., 2014a). PI container is a kind of standardized, sustainable and modular container,
playing as the least transport unit in the PI-enabled supply chain (Qiu et al., 2015). Since the PI
was present and elaborated as a new logistics system, it has been seen as disruptive
innovation and has garnered both academic and industrial attention (Treiblmaier et al., 2020).
From the academic point of view, an extensive body of studies concerning various themes
of the PI, such as the physical infrastructure required by the PI-enabled supply chain systems
(Onal et al., 2018), innovative technology application in the PI (Treiblmaier, 2019), and
business models (Montreuil et al., 2012a), have been published, building the foundation of
practical implementation. From the perspective of industrial, the growth of the PI is
prosperous in Europe in which projects and roadmaps towards its industrial implementation
have been proposed. The project called modular logistics unit in shared co-modal networks
(Modulusha) has been successfully implemented (Pan et al., 2017). The Alliance for Logistics
Innovation through Collaboration in Europe (ALICE) has created roadmaps that elaborate
the vision of the PI global implementation from 2020 to 2050 (ALICE, 2017).
Considering the foundation built by existing academic research and industrial vision of
implementation, the PI is possible deployed in large-scale real-life industrial frontiers.
However, how to transform the innovative vision of logistics into real-life implementation is
still a challenge (Matusiewicz, 2020). Few systematic attempts have been made to summarize
the current knowledge about the practical implementation of the PI. This paper aims to
address the gap and focuses on existing research related to the PI real-life implementation,
providing a comprehensive literature review. The following research questions motivate this
research:
RQ1. What are the key themes concerning the research of the PI?
RQ2. How do these themes be related to the PI deployment in the industry?
RQ3. What are the gaps and future research opportunities in the field of the PI
deployment in the industry?
We answer the above research questions by conducting a comprehensive literature review of
research on the PI following the methodology of SLR. This research has described the current
situation of the PI real-life implementation by providing a comprehensive framework
summarizing 7 key themes as well as 5 main methodologies. Meanwhile, this study has
revealed future research opportunities in the field of the PI deployment in the industry.
Literature
review of PI
deployment
1523
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