Green Supplier Selection Based on the Combination of Fuzzy SWARA (SWARA-F) and Fuzzy MARCOS (MARCOS-F) Methods

Abstract

The green supply chain operations try to minimize environmental impact over the product's lifetime including product recycling or use, reduction of harmful substances, resource saving, green design, etc. Supplier selection is the vital issue in green purchasing. This paper aims to develop applicable and efficient methodology for green supplier selection. The proposed methodology includes the combination of Fuzzy Stepwise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (SWARA-F) and Fuzzy Measurement Alternatives and Ranking according to the COmpromise Solution (MARCOS-F) methods. Fuzzy extensions of these methods are preferred because of the complexity of the green supplier selection problem and inclusion of both quantitative and qualitative criteria. Also, these criteria may be uncertain and conflict with each other. It is the first time that SWARA-F is combined with MARCOS-F for the green supplier assessment and selection of the best one among them. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology is demonstrated by solving the real selection problem of a company from textile industry. In the problem both classic and green criteria including main and sub-criteria are considered. SWARA-F is used for weighting the evaluation criteria and the rank of each green supplier alternatives is obtained from incomplete information by assessment score calculated from MARCOS-F. The effectiveness of the combination of two methods is verified by sensitivity and comparative analyses. The proposed methodology provides acceptable and satisfactory results in determining the best green supplier namely improving the environmental and cost efficiency evaluation process. © 2022, Gazi Universitesi. All rights reserved.