Blockchain a game changer in supply chain management.

• Author: Nisar, Ahsan

Byline: Ahsan Nisar

Supply chains have grown incredibly complex over the years. Any supply chain progresses by initially delivering the raw materials from a supplier to a manufacturer and eventually ends by delivering the final product to the consumer. Proper implementation of supply chain management can result in benefits like increased sales and revenues, decreased frauds and overhead costs, quality improvisation. Moreover, this will also lead to accelerating production and distribution. Maintaining a supply chain is a tedious task even for small businesses. The interconnectivity of different elements in the supply chain gradually becomes more inefficient when a business grows. In order to resolve these inefficiencies and save a company's money, different technologies like blockchain are being applied to supply chain management (SCM).

Blockchain is a distributed, digital ledger that has many applications and can be used for any exchange, agreements/contracts, tracking and, of course, payment. Since every transaction is recorded on a block and across multiple copies of the ledger that are distributed over many computers, it is highly transparent. It's also highly secure since every block links to the one before it and after it. There is not one central authority over the blockchain, and it's extremely efficient and scalable. Ultimately, blockchain can increase the efficiency and transparency of supply chains and positively impact everything from warehousing to delivery to payment. Chain of command is essential for many things, and blockchain has the chain of command built in.

The very things that are necessary for reliability and integrity in a supply chain are provided by blockchain. Blockchain provides consensus-there is no dispute in the chain regarding transactions because all entities on the chain have the same version of the ledger. Everyone on the blockchain can see the chain of ownership for an asset on the blockchain. Records on the blockchain cannot be erased which is important for a transparent supply chain. Blockchain can be applied to many challenges of the supply chain industry such as complicated record keeping and tracking of products. Tracking through RFID, cost reduction and establishing trust are some of the ways in which blockchain can be useful in the supply chain industry.

Benefits

One of the most appealing benefits of using blockchain for data is that it allows the data to be more interoperable. Due to this, it...