786

TERM REPORT

SPRING 2022

COURSE: SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

A STUDY ABOUT IMPORTANCE OF IoT (INTERNET OF

THINGS) AND BLOCK CHAIN IN SUPPLY CHAIN
MANAGEMENT.

SUBMITTED TO: DR. ZEESHAN ASIM

SUBMITTED BY:

IBRAHIM SAIFUDDIN (20191-26053)

SYED ALI NAQVEE (20191-25781)

SAAD KHALID (20181-24526)

Muhammad YAZIR (20191-25966)

 INTRODUCTION

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT)

In the current era of modern business individual business has no value or cannot increase
value for its customers individually rather it is a part of a big supply chain, the supply chain
involves a network of different business connections and relationships, supply chain today
operates under constant changing environment, just as the sudden change in economy due to
COVID 19 lockdown the supply chains all over the world faced drastic changes, supply chain
entities today needs to have the capability to change under different circumstances, each
business entity under the supply chain network has different levels of risk, there are many
different factors for these risks such as Many supply chains extend over wide geographical
areas and are vulnerable to many global risks (Butner 2010). Customers are more and more
demanding in terms of product customisation, price and level of service (Christopher 2016).
Products complexity is also increasing due to the high clock speed in many industries
following the rapid changes in technology and the continuous introduction of new products to
the market (Simchi-Levi, Kaminsky, and Levi 2003). There are many other reasons and
factors which can cause changes in the supply chain such as availability of raw materials,
currency exchange rates, energy prices and natural disasters. In order to face these challenges
and reduce these risks organizations should be incredibly agile and assemble an elevated
degree of strength and hazard alleviation abilities and underlying adaptability that permit
quick reaction to these difficulties. Consequently, if firms want to achieve a desired level of
resilience and flexibility which comes at an additional cost and this is the cost of higher
coordination between the supply chain entities, businesses need to have high visibility of the
whole supply chain network which will eventually let them respond quickly to changes with
the help of effective collaboration. Christopher and Holweg (2011) define structural
flexibility as the ability of the supply chain to adapt to fundamental changes in the business
environment.

Now let’s talk about the technology through which supply chains can adapt higher level of
coordination, resilience and flexibility. Internet of things (IoT) is one of the latest
developments in the IT sector which has brought a great revolution in how supply chains
operate. IoT has taken the communication among the supply chain entities to the next level
and that is because IoT is a technology which brings autonomous coordination among things
while being stored in a facility or being transported between different supply chain entities.
IoT provides new levels of supply chain visibility, agility and adaptability to cope with
various SCM challenges (Ellis, Morris, and Santagate 2015). Internet of things (IoT) is
basically a connection of different smart objects, these different objects have sensors,
software and other processing ability through which data can be exchanged with different
devices over the internet and other communication networks. The concept of smart home is a
basic example of IoT where the light system, home security system, home appliances,
cameras and thermostats all are connected with each other. The information radiated from
these smart objects, when actually gathered, dissected and transformed into valuable data, can
offer remarkable perceivability into all parts of the supply chain, giving early alerts of inward
and outside circumstances that require remediation. The topic of this report is also to deeply
understand this particular technology and how it has affected the supply chains and what gaps
exist in this technology.

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY:

Several studies have emphasised the potential benefits of distributed ledger technologies,
such as blockchains, since they can improve security, traceability, and transparency, and
hence build confidence among supply chain stakeholders, for example. (Karakas, Acar, and
Kucukaltan 2021).Transparency also aids in the reduction of expenses and time delays.
(Pournader et al. 2020; Gaur and Gaiha 2020).There are also supply networks and
ecosystems, which have more fluid networks of partners linked by data, service, and money
movements. Relationships incorporate features of rivalry and collaboration, frequently
featuring complementarities between products and capabilities that grow through time, as
highlighted by Fuller, Jacobides, and Reeves (2019) and Graça and Camarinha-Matos (2017),
and aided by the rise of digital platforms (M. Li et al. 2021).Sharing information among
parties outside of the established supply chain, such as third-tier suppliers, is still necessary,
but the information flow cannot follow the same rigid and hierarchical structure as
established supply chains. Blockchain technology can enhance value propositions by
providing offers based on smart contracts, which allow for transparent and autonomous
activities between network participants (Dolgui et al. 2020). This reduces the danger of
manipulation and error while maintaining exclusivity and provides an incentive mechanism.
However, how such methods for collaborative networks function within the context of a pre-
existing supply chain is unknown (Ribeiro da Silva, Angelis, and de Lima 2019).
The rapid increase in globalisation and e-commerce is leading to increased consumer demand
for ethical materials sourcing and manufacturing. Traditional information systems based on
Supply Chain Management (SCM) suffer from issues such as lack of transparency,
sustainability and unreliability. The adoption of blockchain in supply chain management will
allow building sustainable and traceable supply chain systems while ensuring all the data
stored in the ledger is immutable(Scully Höbig, 2019; Lisa Laforet & Gisèle Bilek, 2021).The
study proved that the deployment of BCT improved decentralised operational capabilities,
sustainability and data integrity. Wang, Hugh Han, and Beynon-Davies (2019) argue that
there is a need to develop decision-making framework to scale the cost and benefits
associated with implementing this technology.

Bai and Sarkis (2020) indicate that the important step after. Blockchain pilot trials is to lead
the industries towards evaluating the suitability of. using this technology considering
performance, technical characteristics and deployment cost. We support the recommendation
given by Balandine et al (2020) and Saberi et al. (2018) that future research directions should
provide insight into how overcome the barriers of adopting Blockchain technology. We also
support the argument and the conclusion that there is a need to focus on building conceptual
models for technology evaluation. This research proposes a framework to provide an
evaluation approach that can be used to assess the implementation of Blockchain.

Companies are realizing that offering SCT to various stakeholders is easier said than done.
Before SCT is possible, companies first must have visibility, which requires access to
upstream and downstream operations of members of their supply chains. This makes SCT
especially costly and time-consuming\r for these companies. The difficulty of providing
Supply Chain Transparency (SCT) requires food producers and retailers to develop or acquire
new capabilities and solutions that provide the necessary supply chain visibility for SCT. One
potential solution involves the implementation of blockchain technology (BCT), which is a
decentralized and distributed ledger that logs transactions in order to create permanent and
tamperproof records. There have been few documented use cases that demonstrate its
effectiveness in food supply chains. The study was designed around a BCT implementation
project by an Italian coffee company globally known for its exclusive and expensive coffee
blends. Using the BCT as the unit of analysis gave us a sequential and temporal perspective,
and our findings contribute to the SCT literature by offering a deeper understanding of the
resource orchestration process. The study will help managers gain understanding about the
value associated with SCT, as well as the challenges and resource requirements in utilizing
BCT.

The four major departments of the manufacturing industry are engineering (research, design,
and development), operations (production planning and control, manufacturing, quality
control, maintenance, supply chain, logistics, packaging, and dispatch), information
technology and finance (information technology, financial control, human relations, and
administration), and sales and marketing. However, The supply chain is considered the heart
of businesses, as a seamless flow of commodities across various manufacturing functions
until it reaches the customer. Many large-scale organizations have long ago moved from the
conventional methods of tracking their products using physical ledgers, emails, and excel
sheets to an IT-based technology infrastructure such as EDI and SAP. The problem with
these technologies also lies in the lack of interconnection and visibility of information across
the entire supply chain participants. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on
the supply chain is a wellknown issue that exposed the vulnerability of the current practices.
Originally thought of as a minor disruption, the semiconductor shortage has become a global
crisis impacting consumer electronics, automotive, medical equipment, power, and almost all
the sectors.

The real problem lies in the lack of trustworthy supply chain-related data that even reputed
firms have visibility to. The arrival of "Industry 4.0" technologies have revolutionized how
different functions of an enterprise communicate and collaborate to operate efficiently. The
technologies such as automation, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, Internet
of Things (IoT), and big data analytics have the potential to modernize traditional supply
chain practices. In particular, blockchain with its unique characteristics such as reliable real-
time sharing of information, security, traceability, and immutability would make it a strong
tool in the integration of the entire supply chain infrastructure.

BACKGROUND

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT)

The name “Internet of things” was first introduced by the members of Massachusetts Institute
of technology’s (MIT) Auto-ID Centre for SCM for a process to track items via the Internet
with the use of radio-frequency identification (RFID) linking to an Electronic Product Code
(EPC) serving as a universal identifier for each specific item (Birkel & Hartmann 2019; Tu
2018). after the technology of RFID, a new concept of sensors and actuators were introduced
which were known as WSN (wireless sensor network) which was used to sense, track and
monitor objects with applications in healthcare and traffic management. Internet of things
(IoT) was one of the founding technologies of Industry 4.0 in the manufacturing sector which
is the 4th industrial revolution wave in which the integration of data and communication
technology are at peak.

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY:

The first direct application of blockchain technology was Bitcoin. Satoshi Nakamoto [10]
presented a blueprint of blockchain technology in 2008 to circumvent the double-spending
problem, which led to the development of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.
However, the concept's origins may be traced back to 1991, when the idea of employing a
signed chain of information as a tamper-proof electronic ledger and a consensus approach to
achieve an agreement were proposed.It is regarded as the spark that organically ignited
Blockchain and enabled transactions to take place without the involvement of a third party
(Casino, 2019; Awad, Al-Jerashi, and Alabaddi 2021; Cagliano, Mangano, and Rafele
2021).It is a decentralised ledger of all digital events that have been executed and distributed
among members. The system is made up of a sequence of time-stamped records of blocks
that are synchronised and sequentially interlinked. The time-stamp record contains
information on digital events such as transactions. The transaction has been immutably
recorded, and any additional digital data will be distributed to all users in the form of an
infinite chain of equal blocks (Casino, Dasaklis and Patsakis, 2019; Ageron, Bentahar, and
Gunasekaran 2020). The network's participants can be organisations or individuals who share
a copy of the distributed ledger. This copy includes all of the transactions in chronological
sequence. Transactions are carried out using Peer-to-Peer network nodes (P2P).Each block in
the ledger comprises a collection of digital data or transactions identified by a 'hash'
identifier. The genesis block is the initial block in the chain. Miners are users who create and
validate blocks. When miners validate a digital transaction, it is added to the distributed
ledger. The digital ledger is constantly growing as new blocks are added to the chain's end
(Feng et al. 2020).
TYPES;

As more organisations seek to get benefit from Blockchain, it is critical to address the many
types of Blockchain in order to account for the distinctions between each form (Lai and Lee,
2018).

• Public Blockchain (No Permissions): In a public Blockchain, data access is open, and
anybody can participate and become a network node. Cryptocurrencies, like as Bitcoin, are
examples of public Blockchain.

• Private Blockchain (Permissioned): Data access in a private Blockchain is restricted to

specific users via a permissions-based network. Anyone who is not a member of this network
will be unable to engage in the transactions.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT):

Taking into account the improvement of IoT empowering innovations during the previous ten
years, obviously the most particular patterns are connected with effectiveness, which requires
the ideal utilization of assets (e.g., battery and memory). Low-power utilization is a
significant component for planning new IoT applications. Gadgets save energy while they are
in "rest" mode and consume energy when they are dynamic (or conscious). Gadgets are
intended to awaken in light of an ideal timetable to play out certain tasks (i.e., gathering and
sending information). The intricacy of these tasks should be advanced to build the life
expectancy of gadgets.

Organizations can receive noteworthy rewards from the Internet of Things (IoT).But more
IoT gadgets and a more complicated IoT biological system likewise mean expanded security
weaknesses from edge to cloud. Unfortunately, many organizations actually put off
embracing an IoT online protection system and don't understand IoT security takes a chance
until it's past the point of no return. Also, COVID-19 has just conveyed the intimidations
more unmistakable. Fostering an intensive comprehension of IoT network safety issues and
executing a methodology to moderate the connected dangers will assist with safeguarding
your business and fabricate trust in advanced change processes.
As the IoT is developing, frameworks are merging, arrangements are developing, and IoT
innovation is utilized with an ever increasing number of requesting applications, for example,
modern, car, or medical services. This prompts new difficulties for the IoT. Specifically, how
much information made at the edge is supposed to be huge. Modern machines, for example,
laser cutters as of now produce more than 1 terabyte each hour, similar applies for
independent vehicles [NVIDIA]. 90% of IoT information is supposed to be put away,
handled, investigated, and followed up on near the source [Kelly], as Cloud Computing
models alone can't address the new difficulties [Chiang].

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY:

There have been several problems and challenges regarding the Blockchain applications in
supply chain management but the major problems are that the lack of interconnection and
visibility of information across the entire supply chain participants. For instance, the higher
number of intermediaries between the manufacturer and consumer, and globalization have
increased the length of the supply chain network which resulted in lack of visibility to
product origins and shipment details.[ Jiménez, L.; Muñoz, R., 2006]

The collective collapse of their supply chain network harmed organisations of all sizes,
sectors, and geographical diversity, clearly demonstrating the inefficient practises that they
currently employ. The fundamental issue is a lack of reliable supply chain data, which even
well-known companies have access to [ Emerge Stronger at a Time of Uncertainty: Blockchain for
Supply Chain, Forrester Opportunity Snapshot: A Custom Study Commissioned by IBM. 2020 ].

Lack of information linkage and visibility across all supply chain players.For example, the
growing number of middlemen between the manufacturer and the consumer, as well as
globalisation, have lengthened the supply chain network, resulting in a loss of insight into
product origins and shipment data [Azzi, R.; Chamoun, R.K.; Sokhn, M., 2019].

lack of trustworthy data and data visibility, which is primarily due to the participation of
many intermediaries. As multiple individual collaborators such as suppliers, manufacturers,
dealers, and resellers are an integral part of a supply chain, effective management of
information flow between the parties with the required transparency and trustworthiness is
critical. In addition, the data are crucial for accurate forecasting of demand and inventory
records, schedule material and production planning, and better inventory management.
 GAP ANALYSIS

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT):

DATE TITLE GAP SOLUTION

March-April 2018 Using IoT in Supply IoT may have a wide To aid supply chains
Chain Management range of supply chain in their adoption of
advantages. While the Internet of Things
the Internet of Things (IoT), a framework
(IoT) has been that can advise each
advertised as having member of the
several benefits for supply chain at a
the supply chain, different level of IoT
there is little data to adoption is required
support these claims
March 3, 2018 An Overview of Gap analysis in this In this research the
Enabling research of IoT Internet of Things
Technologies for the systems are the four (IoT) bridges the
Internet of Things factors of information gap in
interoperability today's supply chains
which are by collecting fine-
considered. As grained data in real
possible divisions of time across
the IoT connection organisational units,
gap, "ecosystem processes, and
development" and people. It may boost
"creation of IoT the efficiency and
markets" were effectiveness of a
mentioned. wide variety of SCM
According to the and logistics jobs,
phrase "ecosystem from inbound
creation," IoT logistics through
ecosystems must be outbound operations
 considered as a
cohesive ecosystem
in order to develop
new and innovative
services
November 16, 2017 Internet of things and The current RFID product
Supply chain technology and identification tells the
management; A applications of IoT system of the correct
literature review are not able to fully commodities.
unlock this potential Tracing enables for
of responding the detection of lost
quickly to sudden items and ensures
changes. that the correct
There is a lack of quantities are
framework about delivered. The right
how to adapt IoT in place aspect is
an established ensured via location
supply. tracking. The correct
An absence of model quality is ensured by
which addresses the monitoring the
problems within a product's state. This
supply chain because data gives the
as a traditional visibility required to
supply chain has respond to
problems and issues unforeseen situations,
similarly supply take appropriate
chains within IoT action at the
environment also has appropriate moment,
issues and problems and optimise the
which is why there is entire process.
a need of model
which addresses the
issues which a
business might face
 after implementing
and adapting IoT
Vol. 14, No. 2, 2021, IoT in Supply Chain There may be ample Retailers must
pp. 148 – 161 Management; of benefits which can consider employee
ISSN 1979-3561 | Opportunities and be stated which IoT professional
EISSN 2759-9363 challenges for can bring to a supply development through
business in new chain but there is a training programmes
industries lack of the proves of and provide time for
these benefits. them to self-learn
Although the these technologies.
literature This will aid
conceptualizes ample merchants in their
of benefits that IoT transition to the
can bring into the Industry 4.0 era,
supply chain, it does which places the
not provide empirical Internet of Things at
proof-of-concept the heart of cyber-
(Mishra et al. 2016; physical systems in
Sharma & Khanna the supply chain.
2020). Moreover, in Technology
this section the advancements and
article says that there reliable Internet
has been study on the access (e.g., the
capabilities of IoT future 5G network)
about strengthening (Taboada and Shee
internal and external 2020) will lead top
integration and management to adopt
connection supply the IoT platform as
chain partners but the period develops,
there is a gap of despite the foregoing
study about the hurdles as well as
visibility, data auto- security and privacy
capture, business concerns.
intelligence and
 improved
communication that
IoT can offer.

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY:

DATE TITLE GAP SOLUTION

Marisa Brown, 5 challenges Lack of adoption; Organizations are increasingly
2021 with Blockchains are ecosystems banding together and forming
blockchain that require widespread collaborative blockchain
adoption and adoption to function well. working groups to address
how to avoid Track-and-trace capabilities shared pain points and build
them in supply chains, for solutions that benefit everyone
example, would necessitate while keeping proprietary
not only an organization's information private.
adoption of a blockchain
network, but also those of its
suppliers.
Marisa Brown, 5 challenges Skills disparity; To address the skills gap,
2021 with Blockchain is still a young enterprises can adopt blockchain
blockchain technology, and the skills as a service (BaaS), which
adoption and required to develop and allows them to reap the benefits
how to avoid apply it are few. of blockchain without having to
them spend heavily in the technical
talent required.
Gwyneth Top 10 Excessive energy To validate the transitions,
Iredale, 2021 Blockchain consumption; blockchain can use alternative
Adoption Another barrier to consensus methods. Consensus
Challenges blockchain adoption is algorithms that consume very
energy usage. The majority little energy.
of blockchain technology is This is the only way to truly
based on bitcoin's make blockchain technology a
infrastructure and employs blessing once more.
Proof of Work as a
 consensus process.
However, Proof of Work is
not as impressive as it
appears. It will require
processing power to keep the
system running. You've
probably heard of mining.
Mining will require you to
use your computer to solve
complex equations. When
you start mining, your PC
will use more and more
electricity to overcome this
condition.
Marisa Brown, 5 challenges User confidence; Platforms like TradeLens (a
2021 with The third main barrier to global logistics network built by
blockchain widespread implementation Maersk and IBM utilising the
adoption and is a lack of trust among IBM Blockchain Platform)
how to avoid blockchain users. This demonstrate what may happen
them challenge is divided into two when peers and competitors
parts: Organizations may not collaborate to explore answers
trust the technology's to common concerns. Members
security, as well as other on the TradeLens private
parties on a blockchain blockchain are known to the
network. network based on cryptographic
identities, as opposed to
anonymous public blockchains.
TradeLens employs a
permissioned blockchain to
provide shipping documentation
with immutability, privacy, and
traceability.
Gwyneth Top 10 The Criminal Association; The only way to deal with this is
Blockchain The blockchain technology's to end the criminal connection
Iredale, 2021 Adoption anonymous characteristic once and for all and to improve
Challenges drew not only professionals blockchain deployment.
but also criminals. Why?
Because the network is
decentralised, no one can
learn your genuine identify.
As a result, bitcoin is the
dominant currency utilised in
the illicit market and on the
dark web.
Gwyneth Top 10 There is no regulation. To overcome these obstacles,
Iredale, 2021 Blockchain This is one of the most governments and highly
Adoption difficult aspects of using regulated industries may need to
Challenges blockchain in a business. develop blockchain legislation.
Many businesses are
adopting blockchain
technology as a way of
transaction. Many products
will be dependent on this.
However, there are currently
no clear regulations in place.
So, when it comes to
blockchain, no one follows
any set guidelines.

Scope of the Study

IoT
New paradigms, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), have considerably changed the way we
live technologically. The smart city, the smart home, and pollution control are just a few
examples of IoT advances. IoT has given rise to a lot of necessary research and exploration.
However, to realize the full potential of the IoT, many obstacles and challenges need to be
overcome. It is important to consider these challenges and difficulties from different
perspectives when studying IoT. The main purpose of this review article is to present a
comprehensive explanation from both technical and societal perspectives. Several topics
related to IoT are discussed, such as architecture and underlying applications. The article also
highlights unpublished literature and shows how it contributes to many aspects of IoT. It also
discusses big data and its analysis in the context of IoT. The article will be useful to both
readers and researchers to better understand IoT and its real-world applications.

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY

This research looks towards the creation of a smart contract-based blockchain-

based collaborative framework for resource sharing. These are especially well-
suited to enabling operations in larger networks or ecosystems outside of supply
chains with well-established alliances and hierarchies. A demonstrator
framework for stakeholder interactions through a procurement and distribution
unit enabled by blockchain technology was designed based on a rigorous
literature review.( demonstration of blockchain based framework)

The goal of this study is to assess how Blockchain technology can be used in
supply chain management.(blockchain evaluation framework)

The research reveals that blockchain technology can transform supply chains
and logistics into functions that are secure, agile, trustworthy, and transparent.
(influence of block chain technology)

Theoretical Implications

Role of IoT in Supply Chain

Managing the flow of goods and services (SCM) is called supply chain management.
Supply chain management involves the movement of raw materials, inventory, supplies, and
finished goods from one location. Supply chain management includes all the steps mentioned
above. Creating a competitive infrastructure using global logistics to synchronize supply and
demand and evaluate overall performance falls within this general term. While it is
theoretically possible to claim the benefits of IoT for supply chain management, there is no
empirical evidence to support these claims, which is a weakness of this paper. Despite the
many benefits that IoT can offer to the supply chain, there is no real evidence for the concept
in the literature. According to this part of the paper, there is a research gap in visibility, data
collection, business intelligence, and improving communication capabilities in the Internet of
Things. However, the form states that there has been research on the potential of the Internet
of Things to enhance internal and external integration and communication with supply chain
partners.
Supply chain management has changed dramatically from manual, labour-intensive and risky
operations to automated, large-scale, real-time operations. The development of the Internet of
Things and its application to supply chain management has led to reduced inventory and loss
management in the supply chain, and tracking of products en route. This has led to significant
economic benefits and increased supply chain activity in large geographic areas. The Internet
of Things (IoT) has enabled greater transparency in the creation of goods and delivery of
finished products to the end customer.
In today’s highly competitive market place, management of supply chain is not just
important, it requires serious development through research and innovate to meet the
dynamic and ever rising expectations of customers at manageable cost.
Supply Chain Management (SCM) is an integrated network that works together from
the procurement of raw materials to the delivery of finished products to the consumer.
Researchers have proposed a definition of SCM that is comparable to this definition.
According to this definition of supply chain management, raw materials are transformed into
intermediate and final products that are distributed through the supply chain to the final
consumer. SCM is defined as a system that creates value for both the supply chain and the
final consumer by providing goods and services to both parties in the chain. This review has
shown that this topic is under discussion and will be further explored. In addition to
partnership, Richard Lumming describes Lean supply chains in his analysis of the topic.
Balakrishnan and Cheng used spreadsheets to show how to manage a multi-product process
that often has many bottlenecks. Many definitions of IoT can be found in the literature.

Role of BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY in Supply Chain

More study may be done to identify crucial elements that influence collaborative models,
such as social and environmental sustainability, as well as to give input for complete smart
contracts with multi-criteria decision-making for better order allocation. Analysis of
transaction and maintenance cost-sharing on the block chain network is another interesting
subject for future research. Price sharing is influenced by power dynamics among supply
chain partners and fluctuates for each transaction depending on the trading parties, therefore a
more detailed information and cost-sharing system can be investigated in the future.
Furthermore, because data sharing among partners is a major source of worry due to privacy
concerns, data components, as well as their accessibility and visibility to certain actors,
should be recognized and separated.
As a result, the one-of-a-kind problem of putting the entire supply chain under one roof
necessitates a one-of-a-kind technology like blockchain, which may give extremely high
levels of data traceability, transparency, immutability, and security. When it comes to
organisations embracing new technology, however, the first and most important question is:
"Can the technology add value to their supply chain and enhance profitability?" Yes, and the
three possible places where it can offer value are outlined below:
 Improve the pace of current operations and eliminate manual processes, particularly
among suppliers and vendors at the bottom of the supply chain, who sometimes go
unreported or are difficult to trace.

 To reduce costs, improve the traceability and provenance of the entire supply chain.
Allow for easy reversal instead of employing low-quality, counterfeit, or grey-market
parts. Maintaining logistics, supporting the circular economy, and adhering to
reputation, compliance, and ethics are all important.

 Provide real-time, transparent, trustworthy, and secure information to all supply chain
participants by eliminating inventory record mistakes, missing shipments, and other
issues as well as duplicate payments

Block chain isn't just another fad that will pass away once the hype surrounding digital
technology dies down; its numerous advantages demonstrate that it is a technology that is
here to stay. At the Infinity Forum 2021, which is being hosted by Mukesh Ambani, one of
the founders of the International Financial Services Centers Authority (IFSCA), Chairman of
Reliance Industries Ltd and one of the world's wealthiest men, has declared his dominance
faith in block chain technology and emphasized the platform's unique qualities, such as well
security, trust, automation, and efficiency, all of which can help modernize the supply chain
is a country's economic lifeblood.
 Literature Review

Internet of Things and Supply Chain Management

The introduction states that IoT allows businesses to adapt quickly to change. Still,
the article argues that existing IoT technologies do not allow this potential to respond quickly
to sudden changes. Another issue is the lack of a system for adapting to IoT in an established
supply chain. Different supply chain participants need to be at different stages of
implementation, and a system is needed to help supply chains incorporate IoT into their
supply chain. Like traditional supply chains, IoT supply chains have their challenges and
difficulties. Implementing and adapting to IoT can be a challenge for organizations, so there
is a need for a decision-making model for the IoT environment. Ultimately, there is a gap
caused by the lack of a model to address supply chain challenges. There are a number of
organizational and technical barriers to implementing IoT in the supply chain, one of which is
privacy and security issues.
In recent decades, many sectors of the economy have seen a dramatic shift from
manual, labour-intensive and risky activities to automated and risk-free ones. IoT and supply
chain management applications have evolved to the point where they can not only track the
goods being transported, but also effectively manage inventory and reduce supply chain
losses. These economic benefits have led to the expansion of supply chain operations over a
wide geographical area. The Internet of Things in all its forms, from simple devices that
detect goods to complex networks of physical devices that work together, has increased the
visibility of the production of goods and the supply chains that move finished goods from the
point of production to the point of consumption.

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY & Supply Chain Management :

Supply chain transparency is becoming increasingly critical for companies with worldwide
supply chains, particularly when raw resources are sourced from nations with poor or
unsustainable standards. The immutability of the blockchain ledger provides numerous
advantages, including lowering the danger of supply chain partners engaging in illegal acts
(Khetri, 2018). Companies that use BCT to enable SCT can reveal supply chain data to their
stakeholders regarding the origin, quality, location, and other pertinent information. Because
these are new issues in the literature, there are some gaps that must be filled.In their research,
Fu and Zhu (2019) have con structed a system structure mechanism based on a consensus
authentication of Blockchain and scaled for big production enterprises' supply chain. The
mechanism proposed that each entity will provide real information and supervise SC
operations to main tain overall efficiency. One of the major themes that was explored was
improving sustainability performance with Blockchain adoption. Organisations require trace
able supply chain systems to adopt sustainable pro cesses such as auditable carbon footprint,
certified sup ply chain and agriculture sustainability. Hastign and Sodhi (2020) have
contributed to the theoretical based researches by identifying the business requirements and
the critical success factors for using the technology.

Collaboration and information exchange in the supply chain are critical, especially given the
requirement for sustainability and a circular economy, which necessitates a holistic approach
to supply chains and networks (Chen et al. 2017). Distributed ledger technologies are
advantageous in transitioning from supply chains dominated by a single entity to dynamic
supplier networks and business ecosystems (Angelis and Ribeiro da Silva 2019). In this
study, we looked at how blockchain-based networks and smart contracts work in supply
chains to secure partner participation. A study of the literature presented existing studies and
their contributions to the usage of blockchain for supplier information.A framework was
created that included a network diagram for information flow between actors in a blockchain-
based collaborative network, a sequence diagram to show partner and smart contract
interactions, the actual smart contract algorithm to define rules for order distribution and
resource sharing, and finally, the deployment and verification of a smart contract on an
Ethereum blockchain network. According to the findings of the study, smart contracts have
the capability of including customised rules that promote collaboration among selected
entities in the supply network and permit resource sharing among them. The generated
sequence, using a case example, depicts the message transfer and interaction sequence among
the partners utilising smart contracts. It also demonstrates how contracts may be used to
properly distribute demand orders from buyers to suppliers.and a finished product order in
reverse, based on pre-set priority lists.

THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK :
 structuring
search for more in-depth
assess industry future
knowledge

bundling: development of BTC-enabled treceability and capability

combine supply chain
engage in exploratory learning
information with technology

Utilization of BTC traceability for SCT

Align SC information to develop resource advantage

distinctive competence strategy