Logistics sector gets to grips with blockchain technology
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ABN AMRO, Delft University and 14 other partners are joining forces to launch the large-scale TKI Dinalog project. The plan to apply blockchain technology to the logistics sector is attracting global attention, as this is the first concrete blockchain project in which various parties in the logistics chain are working together.
Over the past few years, blockchain technology has been up and coming worldwide. The technology, which utilises an open network of databases, functions as a public, digital and distributed ledger. The practical applications are numerous. As part of the TKI Dinalog project, over the next two years the partners will be designing, developing, and implementing a new information infrastructure. An infrastructure rooted in blockchain technology that connects operational information, financial flows and contracts.
Three concrete user cases
The first objectives are to construct the infrastructure so blockchain technology can be applied for logistical purposes, and to perform tests featuring real transactions. Project leader and Associate Professor at Delft University Johan Pouwelse: “This project involves more than just talking about possibilities – we're really going to apply the technology.” The project deliverables are three concrete User Cases: supply chain finance, inventory finance and circular economy. Programme Manager Supply Chain Finance Martijn Siebrand elaborates on the many opportunities: “We are applying block chain technology to the financial routes in logistics. But that's just the start. I can see this development culminate in the logistics sector of the future, more coherent and smooth all across the chain.”
Partnership
The sixteen partners in this cooperative venture are a carefully blended mix of various parties in the chain. ABN AMRO, Delft University, Windesheim, the SCF Community, TNO, Centric, Exact, SmartPort, Royal FloraHolland, Port of Rotterdam, FB Basic and Cirmar, BeSCOPE Solutions, NBK, Innopay and Transfollow will be executing the project, which is an initiative of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs. The project is part of a broader effort to set up a national Blockchain Centre of Excellence.