Dr Chengbo Wang
PhD
Senior Lecturer in Operations Management
Oxford Brookes Business School
Teaching and supervision
Modules taught
- Managing Business Operations
- Strategic and sustainable logistics
- Operations Management
- Project management and change leadership
Supervision
Masters and PhD research projects' supervision
Research
- Identification and real world application of innovative strategic practices in business operations management, quality managment, supply chain management, retailing logistics and operations in SMEs and large-sized organizations.
- Educational and pedagogical issues in higher education.
Publications
Journal articles
-
Mao Z, Xu Y, Fang K, Wang C, Huang D, 'An adaptive large neighbourhood search algorithm for parallel assembly lines scheduling problem with complex fixture constraints'
Computers & Industrial Engineering 188 (2024)
ISSN: 0360-8352AbstractPublished here Open Access on RADARIn recent years, the value chain facilitates the transition of competition among enterprises from a single link to a comprehensive one, thereby driving intelligent upgrades within manufacturing enterprises. The intelligent upgrading also imposes new constraints on the traditional assembly line production mode. Inspired by the real production practices of company L, a global intelligent terminal manufacturing enterprise headquartered in China, this study addresses the parallel heterogeneous assembly line scheduling problem with fixture constraints (HALSFC). To tackle this challenging problem, we propose a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) model that aims to maximize the number of completed work orders within a specified time. To our best knowledge, this study is among the first attempts to address the HALSFC problem with setups and related work orders. Due to the NP-hardness of the problem, we propose an improved adaptive large neighborhood search algorithm (IALNS) for solving HALSFC. We evaluate both model functionalities and algorithm effectiveness using instances generated based on the real production data of company L. Extensive experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of IALNS compared to MILP, Tabu search algorithm (TS) and genetic algorithm (GA), especially for medium- and large-scale instances. Additionally, the sensitivity analysis of the quality inspection time, the related work orders proportion and the minimum cooling time of fixtures is also conducted.
-
Wang C, Li X, Su H, Tian Y, 'Knowledge Utilisation in Chinese Medium Sized Manufacturing Firms – An Exploration under the Backcloth of Quality Improvement'
Journal of Knowledge Management 25 (10) (2021) pp.2361-2384
ISSN: 1367-3270AbstractPublished here Open Access on RADARPurpose – This paper reports findings of up-to-date insights to fill the knowledge gap of lack of theoretical and practical understandings of how knowledge is utilized in medium-sized enterprises (MEs) for ensuring their performance excellence, healthy survival and growth, particularly using the contextual background of quality improvement as the standing point to concretize the research content and research participants’ mind-set for data collection.
Design/methodology/approach – The empirical data were attained by conducting firstly an multiple-case study and thereafter a structured interview. Insights were obtained through analysing the collected data as well as triangulating the findings with the contention from the extant literature where available.
Findings – A set of approaches for effective quality improvement knowledge (QIK) utilization in MEs have been identified and attested as well as prioritised for a clear guidance on their application by practical businesses.
Originality/value – As a pioneering study on the particularly focused issue, namely a current knowledge gap – QIK utilization in MEs, theoretically the research contributes to the enrichment of the current KM and QI literature with a primary focus on knowledge utilization in MEs. Practically its findings provide insightful guidance to practice on the approaches of QIK utilization.
-
WANG J, WANG C, WAN X, 'TRADE LIBERALIZATION, ENERGY-SAVING TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE AND ENERGY INTENSITY: SOME EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM CHINA'
Contemporary Economic Policy 39 (2) (2020) pp.376-
ISSN: 1074-3529 eISSN: 1465-7287AbstractPublished here Open Access on RADARThis paper discusses the transmission mechanism and effects that trade liberalization influences energy intensity through energy‐saving technological change (ESTC). We construct panel data from manufacturing industries in China over the period of 1994–2017, thereby conducting empirical tests through mediation models and discontinuity regression models. The results find that trade liberalization significantly promotes the lowering of energy intensity through ESTC. Heterogeneity test results show that the trade liberalization effect is higher in industries with low barriers to entry and industries with high pollution. Fuzzy regression discontinuity (FRD) results show that energy intensity decreasing as China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
-
Chengbo Wang, Zhaofang Mao, Hong Su and Ying Tian, 'Knowledge identification in medium sized enterprises under the context of quality improvement – an exploration in manufacturing companies in China'
Production Planning and Control 32 (5) (2020) pp.415-440
ISSN: 0953-7287 eISSN: 1366-5871AbstractPublished here Open Access on RADARAs a fundamental element of knowledge management (KM), knowledge identification is a crucial issue in contemporary business organisations. As evidenced by research, medium sized enterprises (MEs) contribute constructively and significantly to economic development, society stabilisation and employment increase. Their healthy survival and growth are of critical importance to a nation. Among the approaches ensuring the successful development of MEs, quality improvement (QI) is a crucial one. However, what is and how to identify the knowledge most relevant to the MEs’ QI, the drives and sources for identifying the QI knowledge (QIK) as well as the underpinning rationales, are currently lacking of sufficient exploration. A research focusing on these issues has been strongly emphasised by literature and attested by this research itself of its meaningfulness. Through analysing empirical data collected and attested by a combination of firstly semi-structured interview, focus group following a case study strategy and then a structured interview, this exploratory research has obtained and prioritised the up-to-date answers to these questions, leading to the enrichment of the theoretical understanding of KM approaches in operations with a consideration of
quality management. Real world MEs can rely on these findings as a guidance to obtain, select and apply appropriate QIK for their operations performance improvement. The findings can also be referential for knowledge identification and application in view of QI in other type business organisations. -
Mao Z, Huang D, Fang K, Wang C, Lu D, 'Milk-run routing problem with progress-lane in the collection of automobile parts'
Annals of Operations Research 291 (2020) pp.657-684
ISSN: 0254-5330 eISSN: 1572-9338AbstractPublished here Open Access on RADARIn recent years, the automotive industry has faced an unprecedented crisis. In particular, the zero-inventory approach, which has been widely pursued by many automobile companies, seems to be impractical in some real production contexts since it requires an inventory of all parts but in low amounts. In this paper, we investigate a new logistics method which collects automobile parts by integrating the progress-lane (P-LANE) into the corresponding vehicle routing problem. We propose a mixed integer programming formulation for this new model, which can simultaneously determines the trip routes to collect automobile parts, as well as the P-LANE that each collected part should be assigned to, so as to minimize the total costs of the production and inbound logistics. The comparison with the zero-inventory model shows that the use of the P-LANE within the milk-run system could significantly decrease the total costs and also improve the transportation efficiency. To be specific, for small and large size instances, the total costs of the zero-inventory model are about 10% and 30% higher than the ones with P-LANE, respectively, which suggests that the periodic part collection model with P-LANE could be more appropriate for automobile manufacturing.
-
Wang C, Mao Z, O’Kane J, Wang J, 'An exploration on e-retailers’ home delivery: strategic elements and their prioritisation'
Business Process Management Journal 22 (3) (2016) pp.614-633
ISSN: 1463-7154AbstractPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce a research exploring the important strategicPublished here
elements and their prioritisation for e-retailers’ home delivery logistics process efficacy mprovement.
Design/methodology/approach – The research was completed through focus group, survey and
importance-performance analysis.
Findings – The research identified, confirmed and prioritised a set of explicitly important strategic
elements currently deemed important by e-retailers for ensuring the efficacy of their home delivery
logistics process in Chinese marketplace, and also referential to the other similar emerging marketplaces.
Research limitations/implications – The research contributes positively to the enrichment of the
theoretical knowledge pool of e-retailers’ logistics performance improvement.
Practical implications – The research findings guide/inform the strategy development and
implementation for e-retailers entering and/or operating in Chinese marketplace. And the findings can also be referential to the e-retail strategy development for entering and operating in other emerging markets similar to China’s. This point is particularly meaningful for those e-retailers that want to expand the outreaching and increase the popularity of their businesses in the global marketplace.
Originality/value – Corresponding to the much needed further research on e-retailing home delivery performance improvement, the research provides findings that add substantial new insights into the field, with a particular focus on China, as one of the emerging developing marketplaces. -
Wang C, Li X, Ou X, O’Kane J, Mao Z, Zhang W, 'An exploration on the readiness, challenges and expected support of Chinese business and management programme students for their overseas study'
Higher Education Quarterly 69 (4) (2015) pp.314-341
ISSN: 0951-5224 eISSN: 1468-2273AbstractChinese students are the largest international student cohort in the higher education institutions of English-speaking developed countries. The paper explores strategies to enhance the Chinese students' learning efficacy in overseas institutions. This research differs from other research focusing on international students already in English-speaking institutions; it explores the readiness of potential Chinese international students before departure from China, their anticipated challenges for study abroad and expected support from host institutions and staff. Besides the insights of anticipated challenges and expected support, the key findings include: the majority of the sample students are financially ready for overseas study, however they are not fully ready on English language; students from the public institute in the study have a higher level of readiness for subject knowledge than their private institute's peers. The findings offer a guide, to both the English-speaking institutions and their Chinese partners, on facilitating, teaching and preparing the Chinese students for a fruitful learning experience abroad and enhanced academic performance.Published here -
Wang C, Mao Z, Johansen J, Luxhøj JT, O'Kane J, Wang J, Wang L, Chen X, 'Critical success criteria for B2B E-commerce systems in Chinese medical supply chain'
International Journal of Logistics Research and Applications 19 (2) (2015) pp.105-124
ISSN: 1367-5567 eISSN: 1469-848XAbstractThe paper presents an exploratory investigation to determine and prioritise the critical success criteria, which can measure and guide the successful application and performance improvement of business to business e-commerce system (BBECS) in a medical supply chain's selling and buying functions, in the context of global business expansion. The research reveals that the buying and the selling functions have different prioritisations on the majority of the determined critical success measuring criteria. These criteria are categorised into three Critical Success Measuring Criteria Groups, for the selling and the buying functions, respectively, guiding medical supply chain members in harnessing the full advantage of a BBECS. For the selling function, the top critical success measuring criteria are as follows: integrating information searching/transmission and application processes, ensuring the reliability and timeliness of technical support, ensuring recognition and acceptance of e-commerce processes, displaying the organisation's business focus and product/service provisions online, securing a large scale/amount of business transactions, adjusting production outputs and inventory levels and having more registered users than competitors do. The top critical success measuring criteria for the buying function are as follows: securing the establishment of business relationships between businesses, displaying the measures ensuring mutual trust and cooperation online, ensuring employees' recognition of the benefit of e-commerce in increasing revenue, ensuring the contribution to the development and realisation of corporate strategy, achieving cost reduction for the organisation, making the purchase of famous brand products available/doable, securing a large scale/amount of business transactions, and ensuring the attainability of products/services at a lower price.Published here -
Wang C, Li X, Mao Z, 'Green retailing practices: An exploratory comparison between Chinese and British retailers'
Journal of General Management 39 (2) (2013) pp.35-60
ISSN: 0306-3070 eISSN: 1759-6106AbstractConstituting the link between supply and demand, retailers can play an important role in a supply chain's green operations and logistics activities, which are one of the key contemporary concerns of governments and the general public. China, as a huge, fast-developing and opening marketplace has been attractive to British and other international retailers. However, the competition facing these retailers in the Chinese marketplace is intensifying. Research shows that British retailers began greening their business operations earlier than Chinese businesses that are still at an early stage. British retailers thus have an early-mover advantage with green operations as a characteristic competitive strength. The comparative study presented in this paper on the current green status/approaches of both Chinese and British retailers will be valuable to managers who are developing green strategies to enhance their competitiveness in the Chinese retail sector; the paper also enriches green theories in relation to this particular marketplace.Published here
Professional information
Memberships of professional bodies
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
- Member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport.