The global manufacturing industry is currently undergoing a revolutionary phase. Decade ago, product development used to be a process that required painstaking hours of manual blueprinting, designing and working collaboratively with a substantial amount of man power. But today, disruptive technologies are facilitating faster TAT (turn-around time) and fostering a culture of modernization and innovation. Major industrial sectors have outright become more involved with how technology could impact the overall performance and workflow. Unlike other industries, manufacturing has seemingly struggled to try and keep up with the quick pace of the changing technology. Considering the backdrop of transition, It is estimated that automation of work through robotics would feature almost 1.3 million new industrial robots which would be working in factories globally. Key industrial hubs like China are already making massive investments in advanced technology such as Blockchain to promote enhanced automation. Moving forward from ‘limited intelligence’, Blockchain for manufacturing are increasingly becoming more perceptive and versatile.
Blockchain in manufacturing- What’s new?
Realizing the modernization of the manufacturing industry’s holistic sustainability depends heavily on mastering technology that should be very secure, control and co-ordinate with machine language algorithms; global manufacturing processes are gradually imbibing blockchain as a best technology solution. From preventive maintenance, that can predict equipment malfunction to the proper process control, quality assurance and inventory management, blockchain is set to revolutionize the face of manufacturing in the foreseeable future
Built in system that assures cost effectiveness
Blockchain is not only used for transactions but, it can also be used as a registry or a ledger and inventory management system for tracking, recording and monitoring all assets across multiple value chain partners in the industry. The highly secure and important information can range from raw material inventory, product specifications such as prototypes, designs, to purchase history, orders and receipts.
Automation enabled by blockchain concept
Blockchain enables creation of trusted and intelligent program code that allow manufacturers in building guidelines, terms, conditions, and other logic into contracts and other transactions. Facilitates business partners in automatically monitored prices, delivery time, and other conditions; Manufacturing companies can automatically negotiate and complete transactions in real-time. This would greatly contribute in maximizing efficiency, minimizing transaction costs and hence allowing manufacturers to use the obtained data in different ways.
Using smart contracts in manufacturing
Blockchain also facilitates the creation of smart contracts between suppliers and buyers. These smart contracts would consist of computer programs that run on the blockchain technology. This smart contract is fully executed by the entire blockchain network. Terms and conditions of these smart contracts cannot be changed, hence providing the trust over elaborate control and audit processes.