Supply change is a very complex discipline to handle. The vastness of this stream can be estimated from the fact that it is concerned with the sourcing of raw material to the delivery of end-products to consumers. With so many stakeholders involved in the process, it really becomes difficult to manage and organize the supply-chain efficiently.
Very few companies have been able to run their supply-chain profitably as most of the organizations struggle to find a way to handle distribution operations. However, with the advent of blockchain technology, the global scenario related to supply chain efficiency has drastically changed and altered. According to the Chairman and co-founder of blockchain consulting company BlockchainArmy, Erol User, blockchain can aid the efficiency and effectiveness of the supply chain disciplined dramatically. Following are characteristics of Blockchain that are very helpful in gaining an advantage while making the supply chain more effective and efficient:
- High Transparency: As blockchain works on the principle of the open ledger, it ensures that all parties involved in a specific blockchain know the details of each and every transaction. This highest level of transparency is a boon for the supply chain as all stakeholders will be in the known and have accurate information about the transactions, processes, payments, and other crucial processes involved in the process of the supply chain all the time.
- Rock-solid Security: Another important benefit of integrating blockchain on the supply chain discipline is the high level of security offered by the distributed ledger. The information in the blockchain is stored in blocks that are attached to one another in an immutable manner. It is impossible to change blocks or, in other words, change the information, which clearly means that there is no risk of tampering with the processes. As there is no involvement of third parties like banks, financial institutions, or any other regulatory agency, you remain assured about the safety credential of the blockchain.
- Higher Efficiency: Compared to conventional systems, the efficiency of the blockchain-powered system is many times higher. It can provide significantly better results and add to the benefit is the fact that blockchain technology is highly scalable. No matter what is the size of your organization, blockchain technology can be utilized to help make your supply chain more effective and efficient. Once you achieve high efficiency in the supply chain, it is going to rub off on other related aspects such as distribution, warehouse, capacity building, and inventory management to further multiply the gains.
Real-world applications
With so many benefits to realize, many organizations have already started using blockchain to accomplish a range of functions. One of the most known applications of blockchain is the payment through cryptocurrency, as Bitcoin has emerged as a buzzword in a couple of last years. If you decide to pay with Bitcoin or, for that matter any other cryptocurrency, you will be able to realize the payment faster and at lower costs. This is because, unlike the fiat currency, there is no intermediary involved in the process of cryptocurrency transactions. This essentially means payment will be completed within a matter of seconds or minutes rather than hours or days in the case of conventional money. Also, given the fact that there is no third party involved, you are going to save a lot on the processing charges.
We can take the example of an Australian manufacturing company, Tomcar, which produces vehicles and does all its payment using Bitcoin. Not only it saves a lot of time, but it also helps the organization to retain extra money that would have otherwise gone into the account of intermediaries. Now we shift focus to mainstream companies that everyone is aware of. Walmart, one of the largest organizations in the world, uses blockchain technology in order to keep track of the pork that it sources from China and deliver worldwide. The company uses blockchain in order to organize and verify the records – know the source of the meat, and other important parameters such as processing date, delivery date, and use by date, etc.
We can go on endlessly as a number of other big companies such as Nestle, Dole, and Unilever use blockchain in order to enhance their supply chain efficiency while delivering profitable results. One of the best-known solitaires making company, De Beers, also uses blockchain technology to keep track of its supply chain and distribution operations. Even in the Mining Industry, we have recently witnessed an announcement from the BHP Billiton (the largest player in the segment) that it is going to use blockchain for making its mining operation more efficient and profitable.
Emergence of Blockchain Ecosystem
In the given scenario where we are witnessing more interest in the supply chain powered by blockchain technology, an ecosystem has started to emerge in this regard. Many new startups and companies are venturing into the field and in order to reduce the cost for providing the services, the concept of the cloud-based blockchain supply chain solution is gaining prominence among the industry players. Just like the concept of cloud computing, you can utilize the services of blockchain for improving your supply chain efficiencies at a reasonable cost. This is just a beginning in the segment, which is sure to catch more demand as business potential seems to be enormous.
BlockchainArmy and its Services
If you are looking for a reliable name in the blockchain-service providers, then BlockchainArmy is the one you should realize without any hesitancy. The company is a leading name in the service provider list of blockchain solutions and has been serving a range of different segments of the industry for years now.
The founder of the company, Erol User, is known for his visionary outlook towards blockchain and its applications. User has delivered a number of keynote addresses on various technological and industry platforms where he has stressed upon novel uses of blockchain for improving overall effectiveness and efficiency of businesses. Even on the front of clearing the space debris, we have got an amazing perspective from the User and the viewpoint has been widely appreciated by industry leaders and experts from all walks of life. In sum, like other streams, blockchain technology can deliver tremendous efficiency gains for supply chain discipline and choosing the right service provider such as BlockchainArmy can help to realize these benefits fully and squarely.
