Blockchain is expected to have a transformational effect on supply chain and logistics due to its promise to improve the information flow between the supply chain partners. However, despite their high hopes, incumbent companies from supply chain and logistics are still struggling to deliver on this promise. In this explorative, qualitative interview study, we identify how incumbent companies try to make use of Blockchain in supply chain and logistics and we also analyze the barriers hampering them. The analysis of twenty-four semi-structured expert interviews and extensive secondary data collates a comprehensive picture of incumbent companies' activities around Blockchain adoption. We find that companies use Blockchain to drive digital transformation, constitute new business models and unify the industry through consortia. The main barriers to such solutions are a lack of technological usability and long-term uncertainties. The results of our study provide evidence for theoretical constructs and guide managerial practice.
Adnan Iftekhar, Xiaohui Cui, Mir Hassan, Wasif Afzal
Food supply chain plays a vital role in human health and food prices. Food supply chain inefficiencies in terms of unfair competition and lack of regulations directly affect the quality of human life and increase food safety risks. This work merges Hyperledger Fabric, an enterprise-ready blockchain platform with existing conventional infrastructure, to trace a food package from farm to fork using an identity unique for each food package while keeping it uncomplicated. It keeps the records of business transactions that are secured and accessible to stakeholders according to the agreed set of policies and rules without involving any centralized authority. This paper focuses on exploring and building an uncomplicated, low-cost solution to quickly link the existing food industry at different geographical locations in a chain to track and trace the food in the market.
Abstract Currently we are saying that we are at the dawn of the fourth revolution, which is marked by using cyberphysical systems and the Internet of Things. This is marked as Industry 4.0 (I4.0). With Industry 4.0 is also closely linked concept Logistics 4.0. The highly dynamic and uncertain logistic markets and huge logistic networks require new methods, products and services. The concept of the Internet of Things and Services (IoT&S), Big Data/ Data Mining (DM), cloud computing, 3D printing, Blockchain and cyber physical system (CPS) etc. seem to be the probable technical solution for that. However, associated risks hamper its implementation and lack a comprehensive overview. In response, the paper proposes a framework of risks in the context of Logistics 4.0. They are here economic risks, that are associated e.g . with high or false investments. From a social perspective, risks the job losses, are considered too. Additionally, risks can be associated with technical risks, e.g . technical integration, information technology (IT)-related risks such as data security, and legal and political risks, such as for instance unsolved legal clarity in terms of data possession. It is therefore necessary to know the potential risks in the implementation process.
Globalisation, shorter product life cycles, and increasing product varieties have led to complex supply chains. At the same time, there is a growing interest of customers and governments in having a greater transparency of brands, manufacturers, and producers throughout the supply chain. Due to the complex structure of collaborative manufacturing networks, the increase of supply chain transparency is a challenge for manufacturing companies. The blockchain technology offers an innovative solution to increase the transparency, security, authenticity, and auditability of products. However, there are still uncertainties when applying the blockchain technology to manufacturing scenarios and thus enable all stakeholders to trace back each component of an assembled product. This paper proposes a framework design to increase the transparency and auditability of products in collaborative manufacturing networks by adopting the blockchain technology. In this context, each component of a product is marked with a unique identification number generated by blockchain-based smart contracts. In this way, a transparent auditability of assembled products and their components can be achieved for all stakeholders, including the customer.
Blockchain technology is now considered a next generation information technology tool for sustainable growth in supply chain (SC) management. However, its study is relatively rare in the literature on SC collaboration and sustainability management research, despite its advantages in sustaining connectivity and reliability among SC partners. This study investigates how the use of blockchain in SC activities can influence (increase or decrease) SC partnership efficiency and growth, thereby affecting SC performance outcomes. Specifically, this study empirically validates a measurement and structural equation model with 306 SC experts from various industries. The findings show that the blockchain technology characteristics (information transparency, information immutability, and smart contracts) have significant positive effects on partnership growth and marginal effects on partnership efficiency. Though partnership growth has a positive effect on firm performance, partnership efficiency shows a negative effect.
The construction industry will continue to be a key driver of economic growth for any country. It is one of the biggest industries in the world which contributes heavily to the economic development of a country. However, the productivity and the effectiveness of the industry have often been called into a question. Therefore, a number of different modelling tools and software have introduced to upgrade the standards of the construction industry. This review seeks to identify how blockchain can address the project management perspectives of the construction industry with respect to the guidelines mentioned in the Project Management Body of Knowledge. Five major criterions namely purchase management, contract management, asset and inventory management, finance management and subcontractor management were selected for the analysis using the PMBOK guidelines. For that, literature review using articles in ScienceDirect which appeared the context "blockchain in construction", "blockchain and project management", "application of blockchain" were referred. It is identified that the blockchain technology can assist financial management without involving third parties, subcontractor management by linking derivable and payment schemes, contract administration by using smart contracts, inventory and asset management by tracking and tracing material movements and purchase management by linking key stakeholders in supply chains.
The purpose of this article is to identify blockchain's role in achieving logistic objectives, with the aim of pointing out the significance of blockchain technology in the digital transformation of logistics and transportation. Implementation of the blockchain technology in combination with IoT elements in logistics and transportation contributes to business process optimization, supply chain traceability and transparency, and significant financial savings. There are limitations as blockchain is at a relatively early stage of development with most projects. Therefore, the approach of theory building from multiple case studies was used. The article provides a comprehensive overview of current blockchain initiatives and use-cases. This article is believed to be the first to address the role of blockchain technology in achieving logistics objectives. Results from this research indicate that blockchain technology contributes to the achievement of logistics objectives.
Md. Ratul Amin, Megat F. Zuhairi, Md. Nazmus Saadat
Distributed ledger technology is an immutable data storage and transparent system, which is a constituent component that empowers the Food supply Chain Management (FSCM). Due to the immutable data feature, the scalability of blockchain technology is quite a challenge. In essence, blockchain data may grow rapidly as compared to the existing approach, and such circumstances is an issue that need to be addressed. Also, high volumes of data process for each transaction verification couple with long period of time for computation, lead to high overhead and resource consumption. This study discusses improved methods to reduce the amount of data generated by system. The proposed method employs the header verification system for transaction to reduce data growth and data processing time. During transaction, this method will verify only the header file information with using Merkle tree. This system is able to store each transaction of a node and form blockchain. Subsequently, each node is capable to verify valid transactions only by use of header data without maintaining full data of blockchain. The expected outcome of the scheme is the significant decrease of data growth in blockchain.
Blockchain technology is an emergent technology that has been implemented in different areas: finance, maritime industry, trade, education, land registration and supply chain management.
Pamela J. Zelbst, Kenneth W. Green, Victor E. Sower, Philip L. Bond
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the combined impact of radio frequency identification (RFID), Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and Blockchain technologies on supply chain transparency (SCT). Design/methodology/approach Data from 211 US manufacturing managers is analyzed using a covariance-based structural equation modeling methodology. Findings The structural model fits the data relatively well. RFID technology directly and positively impact both IIoT and Blockchain technologies which, in turn, directly and positively impact SCT. RFID technology indirectly affects SCT through both IIoT technology and Blockchain technology. Research limitations/implications This study is the first to empirically assess the impact of RFID, IIoT and Blockchain technologies on SCT. First-wave empirical studies must be replicated to support generalization of the findings. Practical implications This study provides empirical evidence to support the implementation of a combination of RFID, IIoT and Blockchain technologies as infrastructure necessary to achieve end-to-end SCT. Originality/value New measurement scales for IIoT technology utilization and Blockchain technology utilization are developed and assessed for validity and reliability. This is the first study to assess the combined impact of RFID, IIoT and Blockchain technologies on SCT.
Currently, the large volume of imports, the lack of interest of young people to work in the agroindustry, the lack of implementation of new technologies and the excessive participation of intermediaries in the supply chain are some of the main challenges the producers of the agricultural sector in Panama face. All this has repercussions on the absence of a traceability system that guarantees and certifies the origin of the products originating in this sector. This paper presents a design model that adapts new technologies such as blockchain in the agribusinesses in order to optimize the processes in the supply chain, and specifically improve the traceability of the product. First, the current state of the agricultural supply chain in Panama and the state of the art of blockchain technology are analyzed. Consecutively, the variables that influence the competitiveness of the agricultural sector as well as the basic principles of the blockchain technology are defined and an evaluation about which principles could optimize the competitiveness variables of the agricultural supply chain is made. Finally, a conceptual design model is presented that shows how the blockchain technology could improve processes in the Panamanian agricultural supply chain.
Despite significant research, the supply chain management challenges still have a long way to go with respect to solving the issues such as management of product supply information, product lifecycle, transport history, etc. Given the recent rise of blockchain technology in various industrial sectors, our work explores the issues prevalent in each stage of the supply chain and checks their candidacy for the implementation using blockchain technology. The analysis is performed in terms of the characteristics of trust and decentralization with respect to forming a generalized framework. The main contribution of this work is to create a conceptual overview of the areas where blockchain integrates with supply chain management in order to benefit further research and development.
Research on blockchain technology implementation within civil engineering is quickly emerging. The use of blockchain for the integration of the material and economic flows within construction supply chain – thus creating a new digital business model for the related actors – to enhance a construction project’s production, logistics management, and constructability, has been only scarcely investigated. In this paper, this shortage is documented through a comprehensive literature review. Then, the potential of Swedish independent third-party logistics consultants as a fertile ground for such a digital business model, is examined. Finally, conclusions about the pursuance of this potential paradigm shift are drawn.
Daniel Arias Aranda, Luis Miguel Molina Fernández, Vladimir Stantchev
Global humanitarianism is largely based on the correct management of the humanitarian aid chain. Agility is a concept taken from supply chain management in manufacturing that has been recently applied to humanitarian aid supply chains (HASC) in order to deliver emergency disaster relief. Different actors participate in the HASC (International and local NGOs, governmental institutions and services, army or individual initiatives, among others) whose configurations, processes or goals directly influence the levels of responsiveness, flexibility or agility. In addition, fast changing environments and conditions require different agencies to work with effectiveness even reconfiguring to deliver relief in extreme emergency circumstances. There are plenty of catastrophic disasters sorts which differ in their impact according to multiple variables such as the level of country development, geographical distance to basic resources, political circumstances such as wars or embargos, inclusionary community participation, existence of potential or real epidemics, etc. This complexity involves plenty of difficulties for operational effectiveness as well as for the definition of an aid supply chain strategy. This paper provides an overview of the benefits that the integration of IoT and Blockchain can produce on HASC performance conditions involving resources, processes, outputs, outcomes and impacts.