Taofeek Tunde Okanlawon, Luqman Oyekunle Oyewobi, Richard Ajayi Jimoh
Purpose Blockchain technology (BT) is a relatively new technological innovation in all industries, including the construction industry, that is used to improve supply chain management. Therefore, this study assesses the drivers for the implementation of BT in the construction supply chain management in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach This study used a quantitative research approach, with a questionnaire survey administered to professionals in the Nigerian construction industry using the snowball sampling method, yielding 155 respondents. The collected data were analysed using descriptive and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) while Cronbachâs alpha was used to evaluate the reliability. Findings The analysis revealed that all the identified drivers ranked higher than the average mean item score, with level of awareness of the new technology and data management ranking topmost. The identified drivers were clustered into five categories using EFA: technological driver, social-economic driver, management driver, transparency and security driver and information driver. Research limitations/implications This research was carried out in the Southwestern region which is one of the six geo-political zones in Nigeria using a cross-sectional survey method. Practical implications The findings will be extremely useful to both professionals and practitioners in the Nigerian construction industry in gaining knowledge about the potential drivers to the implementation of BT in construction supply chain management. Originality/value The research categorized the drivers into technological, social-economic, management, transparency and security and information driver. It also identified that level of awareness of BT as the major driver in the implementation of BT in construction supply chain management.
Achieving customer satisfaction requires seamless collaboration and coordination across the value chain of suppliers, manufacturers, regulators, logistics service providers, and retailers. At the same time, disruption in the supply chain causes increased costs, and, more importantly, lost revenue. Therefore, organizations are looking for transparency, flexibility, and agility in their supply chains. The internet of things and blockchain, as a part of efficient technologies in supply chains of organizations, build trust, transparency, and consensus among all stakeholders, creating benefits for every actor and ensuring flexible business outcomes .Due to the increasing importance of these technologies in today's world and the integration of these tools in all business processes, in this research, the dimensions, components, and vital indicators affecting the creation of a smart and efficient supply chain with high reliability and has been assessed as having strong resilience. Finally, the structure of a smart supply chain is shown by the interaction of these transformative technologies.
Purpose This research tries to find the blockchain-based resilience strategies that can help the supply chains of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to recover from the disruptions and work effectively in a resource-based view perspective. Design/methodology/approach Eight broad strategies and 32 sub-strategies are identified from the literature review. Delphi study was carried out, and detailed discussion with 16 experts helped in finalizing these strategies. Further, the best-worst method (BWM) prioritized these strategies. Findings The findings suggests that âbuilding social capital,â improving âcoordination capabilities,â âsensitivity towards market,â âflexibility in process and production,â âreduction in process and lead time,âand âhaving a resource efficiency and redundancyâ are the top strategies on which the top management should focus to overcome the situations of disruptions and enhance performance of MSMEs. Practical implications The blockchain-based strategies will enable the companies in tracing the products from the company to customers. Further, the customers will be able to identify their manufacturers, the raw materials used in manufacturing, and the life and quality of raw used materials. Altogether the textile industry will become more sensitive toward environmental practices. Originality/value The previous research has not identified and evaluated the blockchain-based resilience strategies, and therefore this study tries to fill this gap. This study used a smaller sample from the experts, so the results may vary if the larger data set is used and hypothesis testing can be done.
Globalization has posed many threats to managing supply chains and logistic networks. Blockchain technology and Internet of Things have outlined budding for answering global Supply Chain Management (SCM) issues. It is a distributed digital ledger platform that renders transparency, traceability, and security. This paper significantly analyzes 140 IT experts of BoT and IoT managers working in supply chain management. Smart PLS is employed, and the proposed model offers improved transparency, efficiency, security, and traceability, enabling faster decision-making, enhanced operational performance, and better collaboration among supply chain participants. As organizations increasingly recognize the benefits of BoT and IoT, we can expect to see widespread adoption and continued innovation in SCM. It is suggested that future study proposals and methods might suggest insights into overcoming supply chain obstacles.
Summer K. Mohamed, Sandra S. G. Haddad, Mahmoud Barakat, Bojan Rosi
Due to the complexity of building supply chain resilience (SCR) towards long-term environmental sustainability amendments, the use of emerging technologies such as Blockchain Technology (BCT) can be adopted as an innovative tool to enhance the sustainability and resilience of supply chains, especially in uncertain environments. Drawing on the Knowledge-Based View (KBV) and Dynamic Capability View (DCV), this research aims to demonstrate how the adoption of BCT can enhance the environmental supply chain performance (SCP). A total of 603 valid surveys were collected from respondents from manufacturing and service organizations in Egypt. The collected data were analyzed using structural equation modelling, and results revealed that BCT adoption alone had a negative direct impact on environmental SCP. However, when this relationship was mediated by SCR and sequentially mediated by customer integration and green customer information sharing, the results were positive. This research presents insights on how organizations can adapt to dynamic business environments, and, in addition, it extends the theories of KBV and DCV in an empirical contribution by filling the gap in understanding regarding how environmental SCP can be enhanced through the adoption of BCT.
We propose a novel framework, Vacledger, for supply chain traceability and counterfeit detection of COVID-19 vaccines using a blockchain network. It includes four smart contracts on a private-permissioned blockchain network for supply chain traceability and counterfeit detection of COVID-19 vaccine, more specifically to (i) handle the rules and regulations of vaccine importing countries and provide authorization for cross the borders (regulatory compliance and border authorization smart contract), (ii) register new and imported vaccines in the Vacledger system (vaccine registration smart contract), (iii) find the number of stocks that have arrived in the Vacledger system (stock accumulation smart contract), and (iv) identify the exact location of the stock (location tracing update smart contract). Our results show that the proposed system keeps track of all activities, events, transactions, and all other past transactions, permanently stored in an immutable Vacledger connected to decentralized peer-to-peer file systems. We observe no algorithm complexity differences between the proposed Vacledger system and existing supply chain frameworks based on different blockchain types. In addition, based on four use cases, we estimate our modelâs overall gasoline cost (transaction or gas price). The Vacledger system empowers distribution companies to manage their supply chain operations effectively and securely using an in-network, permissioned distributed network. This study employs the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain (the healthcare industry) to demonstrate how the proposed Vacledger system operates. Despite this, our proposed approach might be implemented in other supply chain industries, such as the food industry, energy trading, and commodity transactions.
Samar Raza Talpur, Alhamzah F. Abbas, Nohman Khan, Sobia Irum ¡ 5 authors
The present study looks at how the internet of things and blockchain technology might be used to improve prospects in supply chain procedures. The current pandemic has highlighted the significance of resilient and dependable supply chain systems that are less dependent on humans and more efficient in cycling goods supply chains. The present study included and excluded records from two recognised databases, Scopus and Web of Science, using the PRISMA declaration 2020. After following the inclusion and exclusion criteria details, investigated the forty-seven articles with two significant data streams (traceability of supply chain management, resin and sustainability). Results illustrated that in today's environment, the rivalry has shifted from "firm vs firm" to "supply chain vs supply chain." As a result, the ability to optimise the supply chain has arisen as a significant issue for organisations seeking a competitive advantage. However, it has become increasingly challenging to traceability of products and merchandise while they are moving through the value chain network. The Internet of Things (IoT) applications and blockchain technologies can help companies observe, track, and monitor products, activities, privacy, security and processes within their respective value chain networks. Other applications of IoT include product monitoring to optimise operations in warehousing, manufacturing, food supply chain and transportation. Combined with IoT, Blockchain technology can enable various application scenarios to enhance supply-chain transparency and trust. When combined, IoT and Blockchain technology can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of modern supply chains. First, we illustrate how deploying Blockchain technology in combination with IoT infrastructure can streamline and benefit modern supply chains and enhance value chain networks. Second, we also identified that the resilience of big data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence is helpful for the sustainable development of social, economic and environmental contexts.
Blockchain technology offers several beneficial features that make it well-suited for supply chain management (SCM). Particularly, it can improve transparency, traceability, security, efficiency, and accountability in supply chains (SC). This chapter focuses on how blockchain technology can completely transform SC processes due to its inherent features. By implementing blockchain, businesses can cut costs, improve efficiency, and ensure accountability. The chapter explains the basics of blockchain technology and its potential benefits for SCM. The various beneficial features of blockchain technology such as trust, immutability, reliability, and security are discussed and highlighted in the chapter. The chapter showcases real-world uses of blockchain technology in SCM to depict the possible benefits. Benefits and challenges of incorporating blockchain into SC processes are also discussed in the chapter. Finally, this chapter emphasizes how crucial it is for companies to identify the factors that weaken their SC and to ensure that blockchain is applied to address such issues.
Chuangneng Cai, Xiancheng Hao, Kui Wang, Xuebing Dong
Globalization has prompted enterprises worldwide to increasingly seek the optimal supply chain configuration. However, outsourcing, shortened product life cycles, and a reduced supply base severely weaken supply chain risk tolerance. With the emergence of blockchain, enterprises see an opportunity to mitigate supply chain risks. The purpose of our research is to explore supply chain managersâ intention to adopt blockchain technology from the perspective of supply chain risk management. Using a survey sample of 203 managers in China and the USA, we explored the impact of four perceived benefits of blockchain technology on supply chain risk resistance by extending the technology acceptance model. The results show that the traceability, transparency, information sharing, and decentralization of blockchain can enhance the perceived usefulness of blockchain in supply chain resilience and responsiveness, and the ability to withstand disruption risks and supply and demand coordination risks encountered in the supply chain, thus promoting the adoption of the technology. In addition, the relationships between supply chain resilience and blockchain technology adoption and between supply chain responsiveness and blockchain technology adoption are more salient for managers with high levels of uncertainty avoidance.
In the food supply chain, which starts with the seed that the producer sows in the field, what stages the consumer goes through until it comes to his table, which activities and safety framework are affected by the product/food safety at these stages, and because the said effects are not transparent and knowable, technology is used especially by producers/farmers and consumers. It is planned to build a bridge between /customer with blockchain technology. Literature information about blockchain technology and the sectors where it provides more benefits is given. As a result of the research on supply chain and blockchain technology maturity level in agriculture, it has been determined that the theory part of the technology is developing and there are still problems in practice. Agricultural practices and results on smart agriculture and the adaptation of the agricultural sector to technology in Turkey are emphasized. IBM Food Trust blockchain application was preferred for agricultural/food product application with blockchain technology in supply chain management. A project was proposed for the application of blockchain technology in the agricultural supply chain in Turkey and it was emphasized that it would take time for the producer and private sector to transition to this application without the contribution of public institutions and organizations in the project.
Hang Thanh Bui, Omar Khadeer Hussain, Daniel D. Prior, Farookh Hussain ¡ 5 authors
Blockchain technology has the potential to be applied widely in supply chain operations. One such area is proactive supply chain risk management (SCRM). In this area, existing researchers have highlighted the fraudulent behaviour of supply chain partners who do not disclose information on the risks that impact their operations. Blockchain can address this problem by encoding each partnerâs commitment to SCRM and achieve consensus. However, before this can be achieved, a key challenge to address is the inability of existing consensus mechanisms such as Proof of Work (PoW), Proof of Authority (PoA) and Proof of Stake (PoS) to deal with information that does not have a digital footprint. In this paper, we address this gap by proposing the Proof by Earnestness (PoE) consensus mechanism which accounts for the authenticity, legitimacy and trustworthiness of information that does not have a digital footprint. We also propose the Subjective Information Authenticity Earnestness Framework (SIAEF) as the overarching framework that assists PoE in achieving its aim. We test the applicability of SIAEF and PoE in a real-world blockchain environment by deploying it as a decentralized application (Dapp) and applying it in BscScan Testnet which is an official test blockchain network.
Pratyushaw Prata, N. A. Natraj, Giri Hallur, Avinash Aslekar
At the outset, supply chain technology is evolving rapidly with new technologies and provide promising opportunities. Implementation of blockchain technology in the supply chain has the capacity to increase efficiency and transparency of the supply chain while decreasing administrative costs. By using blockchain technology for supply chain, vendors can track various details of orders like location, date, price, quality, certification and some other inventory details like quantity of stock further needed etc. more effectively. This data through blockchain will improve visibility and compliance over any contract that is outsourced for manufacturing because now every vendor involved will have access to the block, it improves traceability during acquiring raw material for supply chain, which will lead to reduction in losses from the gray market by reducing the selling of counterfeit products, and will strengthen an organizationâs position as a pioneer to manufacture ethically.
Atul Kumar Singh, V. R. Prasath Kumar, Gholamreza Dehdasht, Saeed Reza Mohandes ¡ 6 authors
Blockchain technology (BT) can execute transactions verifiable and permanently, which can help foster the idea of embracing sustainability pillars within industries. Therefore, BT holds considerable promise for the industrial and service sectors; however, its implementation during the procurement stage in a sustainable construction project (SCP) is a bottleneck because of inherent and unknown barriers. Though some attempts on the identification of these barriers have been carried out, the literature lacks a thorough investigation into the relationships and inner dependencies among the related barriers within the realm of SCP. Thus, a novel combination of fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (fuzzy DEMATEL) and social network analysis (FDSNA) is proposed in this paper to fill this gap; FDSNA uncovers causal relationships among leading barriers that impede the adoption of BT within an SCP, and it determines the most critical barriers by modeling their complex interrelationships in related intricate environments. The obtained results suggest âinadequacies in implementing block chain-based policiesâ and âunawareness and resistance to BT among customersâ as the most significant barriers, and âtechnology immaturity,â âmarket uncertainty and competition,â and âtechnology accessibilityâ are identified as the most critical. These results present managers and governmental bodies with an inclusive picture regarding the major obstructions to the successful implementation of BT, and it is expected to open avenues to accrue benefits from such leading-edge technologies at a greater pace.
Jay Munjapara, Harsh Sawant, Nimish Patil, Shreya Patankar
Blockchain has offered solutions to many problems through its core principle of decentralization and distributed nature. Some of the fields in which these can be seen are Finance, Supply Chain, Healthcare, Real Estate etc. Among these, blockchain has transformed the functioning of the supply chain, increasing efficiency, transparency and security. Blockchain has allowed creation of an immutable track and trace system from sourcing of raw materials to the delivery of finished products. It has streamlined the administrative process leading to cost saving and faster processing time. Various solutions have been developed to tackle the problems faced in the supply chain industry solving one or multiple problems. This paper aims to assess the main solutions proposed and evaluate their advantages and disadvantages.
Audits are an essential component of every organization, particularly those involving software development. In addition to several testing cycles, software auditing has become an essential software development milestone. Software auditing is a continual activity that enables a business to remain ahead of the curve and predict potential software problems. Audits, whether undertaken in-house or by external auditors, entail a significant amount of time and work. Consistent audits provide financial and economic benefits, as well as legal benefits. The most essential advantage of audits is safeguarding your system from internal and external assaults. Audit logs serve a crucial role in the auditing process; they typically capture all system operations and occurrences. They are used as evidence providers during an inquiry and by auditors to monitor the privacy and security of information and systems. Auditors confirm the accuracy of data pertaining to businesses and their activities. To determine if these acts exceed the limitations established by organizations, governments, and other parties, dependable information is essential. Infractions of such rules or corporate standards may be indicative of fraud, malpractice, risk, or inefficiency. Despite the existence of automated audit tools, audit policy, and audit logs, many audit frauds are reported on a daily basis. To make the audit process transparent and secure, this research proposes a blockchain-enabled framework SSFTA to aid software auditors in conducting a transparent and effective audit process. The proposed framework is evaluated using a case study. The findings demonstrated that the suggested framework makes the auditing process simple and transparent.
Fake news, misinformation and disinformation have significantly increased over the past years, and they have a profound effect on societies and supply chains. This paper examines the relationship of information risks with supply chain disruptions and proposes blockchain applications and strategies to mitigate and manage them. We critically review the literature of SCRM and SCRES and find that information flows and risks are relatively attracting less attention. We contribute by suggesting that information integrates other flows, processes and operations, and it is an overarching theme that is essential in every part of the supply chain. Based on related studies we create a theoretical framework that incorporates fake news, misinformation and disinformation. To our knowledge, this is a first attempt to combine types of misleading information and SCRM/SCRES. We find that fake news, misinformation and disinformation can be amplified and cause larger supply chain disruptions, especially when they are exogenous and intentional. Finally, we present both theoretical and practical applications of blockchain technology to supply chain and find support that blockchain can actually advance risk management and resilience of supply chains. Cooperation and information sharing are effective strategies.