What is the hottest thing in the opening year of 20 18? Blockchain is undoubtedly one of them. What innovations will this technology bring to the logistics industry? What explorations have foreign counterparts made? Ceng Laoshi's article has made a comprehensive summary, which I believe will bring some inspiration to domestic colleagues.
20 17.2.2 1: IBM officially released the logistics and transportation solution.
2065438+On June 2, 20071day, IBM and AOS, a Colombian company specializing in providing logistics solutions, announced that they were jointly developing a solution based on IBM Cloud-blockchain and Watson IoT to improve the efficiency of logistics and transportation industries all over the country.
As an immutable account book, blockchain records transactions between members of the trading network. In the supply chain, this provides visibility for all licensed members to exchange information throughout the transportation cycle, thus improving the transparency of data and transactions.
Traditionally, supply chain transactions are done manually, and the risk probability of recording errors and delays is high, which may lead to the difference between the recorded content and the actually loaded content. By using the blockchain and the Internet of Things to digitize this process, the relevant information can be directly obtained from the sensors placed on the truck, and then enter the blockchain, thus creating a single shared repository for all authorized participants to access, and the participants can only reach a consensus.
Through this solution, once the truck leaves the distribution point, it will automatically send a message to customers informing them of the load, weight and estimated arrival time. If part of the delivery is returned, the invoice can be automatically issued according to the actual delivery. In addition, through the sensor located on the truck, an information base is generated by using the Internet of Things and blockchain. The regional chain tracks all interactions, parking and transactions between each truck and its respective load from the distribution point to the end customer. The improvement of transparency helps to distinguish the responsibilities and obligations between shippers and their customers, and promotes business flow.
For AOS, this project is very important to the logistics industry of the whole country. "Correctly handling and using commodity-related transactions and exchanging information is the key to the logistics and transportation industries, so the main goal of adopting this solution is to provide transparency and security throughout the transportation cycle," said Ricardo Buitrago, head of the innovation department of AOS. "Now, this solution can be used as a functional prototype on IBM Cloud, which is suitable for companies in the logistics, supply chain and transportation industries in Colombia", Buitrago.
The solution also integrates the Watson Internet of Things to monitor what happens to trucks. For example, the solution captures loading and unloading conditions to define the available capacity of trucks and which bucket and driver can load goods; And these data are also related to external information (such as weather, humidity, temperature and driver data) to estimate the delivery time to customers.
Jorge Vergara, chief technology officer of IBM Colombia, said: "One of the biggest challenges facing the logistics and transportation industries is to protect their assets and goods, which is why implementing such blockchain and Internet of Things solutions in the cloud is an opportunity for all parties to access key data on demand and make more informed decisions for the benefit of enterprises." .
In the future, the solution is expected to include new functions, such as electronic sealing mechanism for land cargo control and monitoring.
2017.11.7: UPS joins the blockchain freight alliance.
In addition to IBM, some logistics giants are also exploring in this field. Relevant persons said that the blockchain should improve the transaction efficiency of the logistics industry and reduce payment disputes. Driverless cars and Amazon are still hot words in today's shipping industry, but they will soon give way to blockchain.
At the end of 20 17, United Parcel Service Company (UPS) announced to join the Blockchain Freight Alliance (BiTA) and is studying the products of this platform carefully.
"This technology has the potential to improve the transparency and efficiency of shippers, operators, brokers, consumers, suppliers and other supply chain stakeholders," Linda Weakland, director of enterprise architecture and innovation at UPS, said in a statement.
However, for investment group Stifel, UPS's move is not unexpected. John Larkin, an analyst at Stifel, wrote in a report on 10129 October: "We believe that the blockchain will be integrated with the vehicle pricing futures market, with data analysis as the auxiliary and artificial intelligence as the auxiliary to carry out real-time matching of loading and unloading.
Larkin said that the three companies will "invest enough money in technology to promote industry integration around these core transformation technologies-"UPS, C.H. Robinson Worldwide and XPO Logistics ".
Larkin said: "In theory, supply chain participants supported by blockchain will be able to handle transactions faster and safer, reduce errors and reduce labor costs involved in the whole process."
Stifel said that consumers can benefit from the wide adoption of blockchain technology throughout the logistics industry. Larkin wrote that due to the blockchain, products will arrive cheaper, faster and more accurately. If the technology is realized according to the theory, even software providers, data providers and trailer rental companies can see greater value from their daily operations.
However, "some organizations or departments may be completely or partially changed by the introduction of blockchain into truck business," Larkin said.
"The potential losers are those who choose not to comply with BiTA industry standard agreements or choose opaque business," Larkin said.
In general, Stifel said, "Blockchain should be able to improve transaction efficiency and reduce payment disputes, but it will take several years."
IBM and Maersk plan to create a new blockchain company.
IBM and Danish shipping giant Maersk are joining hands to form a new company, with the goal of commercializing blockchain technology, a fashionable shared ledger derived from the cryptocurrency Bitcoin.
An anonymous venture capitalist in new york claimed that Maersk owns 565,438+0% of the equity of the new joint venture company and IBM owns 49%. The company aims to help shippers, ports, customs, banks and other stakeholders in the global supply chain track shipments and replace relevant documents with tamper-proof digital records.
IBM and Maersk conducted the blockchain test for the first time in the summer of 20 16. Michael J. White, CEO of the new company, said that the pilot tracked a batch of flowers from Mombasa, Kenya to Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and other tracking also proved the potential of Maersk system.
Since then, the two companies have cooperated with DuPont, Dow Chemical, Tetra Pak (a Swiss food processor) and various ports and customs. Other companies, such as General Motors and P&G, are exploring how to use this technology to simplify the recording of their supply chains.
"We see opportunities to improve the efficiency and timeliness of cargo transportation," White told Fortune. Previously, White was the North American President of Maersk Shipping Company, the container shipping division of Maersk.
Marie Wieck, general manager of the IBM blockchain team, said: "Even small-scale improvements will have a major impact on global trade.
Wieck said that at present, many shipping supply chains are caught in the dilemma of numerous documents and administrative communication between middlemen. If documents are lost or delayed and perishable goods are damaged, the final loss may be as high as one-fifth of the total transportation cost.
According to a study by the World Economic Forum 20 13, reducing the friction in information sharing and border management in international trade "may increase the gross domestic product by nearly 5% and the transaction volume by15%"-this figure may reach trillions of dollars.
IBM and Maersk believe that adopting blockchain is a way to achieve this improvement. They believe that by providing a single view of all transactions in a complex network, blockchain can help eliminate considerable waste of resources.
The chairman of the new joint venture company said in a statement, "The potential of providing a neutral and open digital platform to exchange information in a safe and convenient way is enormous, and all participants in the whole supply chain will benefit from it.
Bill Fearnley Jr, head of blockchain strategy research at IDC, a market research company, said: "Supply chain is a very hot topic now, and only from here will development accelerate." He pointed out that the new companies of IBM and Maersk will have a more competitive advantage than the small blockchain startups competing in the same market, because the companies behind them have established business relationships.
The technologies of IBM and Maersk are based on Hyperledger, which is the earliest blockchain developed by IBM and now maintained by the Hyperledger team of Linux F.
IBM cooperates with Wal-Mart, Nestle and Unilever to use blockchain technology in food safety and supply chain respectively. The company is also engaged in pilot projects in finance, health care and other industries.
Like Microsoft and EY, Maersk also conducted separate blockchain experiments with marine insurance companies.
White said that he expects the Maersk -IBM joint venture company to get the approval from the regulatory authorities this spring and start selling software in the third quarter of this year. At the same time, the new company is organizing an advisory committee composed of industry and government officials to help guide its development.