GHCl Digest - JANUARY 2018

Issue 93, February edition
10
Blockchain Technology: Expert View
-By Dr. Venugopal J, General Manager-MRG
The idea of decentraliza$on
By design, the blockchain is a decentralized technology. Anything that happens on it is a funcon of the
network as a whole. Some important implicaons stem from this. By creang a new way to verify transacons
aspects of tradional commerce could become unnecessary.
BLOCKCHAIN IN A MANUFACTURING SYSTEM?
Within manufacturing it might sll be hard to see where blockchain technology might create the most
value. In the short term we might see cryptocurrencies, crowdfunding and simple trading applicaons
emerging that have limited impact. None of these are likely to be immediately transformave to manufacturing,
but they might start to impact the macro and regulatory environment. Over me we can expect
to see blockchain used in manufacturing for process transformaon, supply chain tracking, asset
sharing, track and trace, warranty management and more.
Ulmately the end game will be when the technology itself recedes into the fabric of the overall manufacturing
operaon and we could move into a situaon where “supply chains” become “demand
chains” and the manufacturing process itself becomes distributed in line with the Industrie 4.0 vision.
While no one would recommend moving to block chain overnight, it’s essenal to begin experimenng
now by funding targeted proofs of concept to explore where and how block chain thinking and technology
could deliver transformave benefits. Key quesons to help focus preliminary efforts include:
• Where in the value chain – both internally and externally – is my organizaon paying the highest
“trust tax” in terms of excess cost, effort or lack of agility?
• Which types of partners, in what geographies and experse areas, could my company benefit from
working with, if only the transaconal costs and efforts were lower?
• Which informaon assets (such as manufacturing, maintenance, usage informaon, warranty, etc.)
about my organizaon’s products could we moneze if there were a secure way to do so?
Block chains are a “wisdom of the crowd” technology that will no doubt find other applicaons in the
years to come.