It is essential to increase production and supply chain management systems that help organizations lead in their respective industries.
Supply chain management is the process of handling the entire production flow of goods or services to maximize quality, delivery, customer experience, and profitability. Supply chain management ensures integrated planning and performs proper execution of different processes within the system.
Technology has reduced operational costs by enhancing better supply chain management systems, which also help in better management of the inventory by businesses. A proper and efficient supply chain also ensures a more significant rise in companies and production due to customer satisfaction.
With the additional help of software-based businesses, companies can enjoy the benefits of computerized shipment and tracking. Thus, with the invention of supply chain management systems, technology plays a vital role in thriving a corporation to be eco-friendly.
Problems faced by present supply chain management systems:
People used to bear huge losses because of a lack of transparency.
For example, on October 6, 2006, multiple states in the US suffered a major outbreak due to spinach contamination. The outbreak infected a vast number of people, including children and adults. Many people developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic-uremic syndrome, and three people died. As a result of this, the entire food industry suffered. The whole country went into complete isolation to find out the infected spinach source, and people in the US stopped selling spinach altogether. The food and drug administration took two weeks to find out the source of contaminated spinach, a single farm, but because of improper chain management, the entire chain had to suffer.
This brought massive loss in the farm industry, which could have been avoided if they had efficient blockchain management with a supply chain that would at once find out the culprit.
How Blockchain Technology helps solve the problem:
Here is a great quote from Tom Katsioulas (head of trust-chain business at Mentor, a Siemens business.) that summarizes the importance of this technology: "With blockchain, trustees can look at who did what in the supply chain and how those things came into the value chain".
When talking about blockchain technology, we don't mean Cryptocurrency, but storing and structuring information in blocks for easy search and filtering. Blockchain's advantage is that it makes an irreversible timeline of the data, bringing transparency to the processes.
Security
In blockchain technology, every user's identity is encrypted with robust cryptography, meaning public access to individual users is difficult to achieve.
Blockchain achieves transparency from the concept that every transaction and holdings to public access are open to viewing.
Trust
With blockchain, it is now possible to keep track of every transaction carried out by an individual. This gives a quality of trust among each member in supply chain management, ensuring that none of the components are corrupted.
Transparency
Transparency has tremendously helped the healthcare industry, wherein consumers can now track their medications and ensure that they receive proper medication from creditable sources.
Decentralization:
Blockchain also has the power to improve data security by providing a robust database in which people can get access to their records when required. This used to be a problem for people living abroad, trying to access other countries' databases. Still, blockchain has removed this obstacle by introducing a more decentralized database, ensuring security and better data distribution. For example, an individual can now easily interact with its blockchain platform to receive all its claims, dues, and payments made.
Such a robust database has never existed before and can revolutionize everything from the food industry to governments. Blockchain could ensure an era free from corruption, illegal frauds, and unnecessary moves made by the finance industry as everything will now become transparent. The application of building such a decentralized system is tremendous, and blockchain is helping to create a world of trust, taking control off from people of trustless paradigm.
References:
Blockchain Technology and Supply Chain Management. BBVA Open Mind. Link: https://www.bbvaopenmind.com/en/technology/digital-world/blockchain-technology-and-supply-chain-management/
Blockchain And Supply Chain: A Dynamic Duo Author. Block Geeks. Link: https://blockgeeks.com/guides/Blockchain-and-supply-chain/