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World's largest blockchain-based supply management

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World's largest blockchain-based supply management

Walmart, the world's largest company by revenue launched blockchain-based supply management. According to the Blockchain Training Institute, the Canadian unit of Walmart implemented blockchain in its freight tracking and supply management. As of now, 80 trucking companies used this technology to transport their goods.
As this is been used only by a few carriers of Walmart Canada, it is expected to cover all the carriers by the first quarter of 2020. The blockchain ensures accuracy because transport time input by freight truckers and the arrival time can be easily tracked.
Unlike a public blockchain-based network such as Bitcoin or Ethereum, Walmart's blockchain only contains dozens of nodes. Walmart's new private blockchain has 27 distributed nodes, some of them on-site and others in the cloud. This is provided by a blockchain vendor.
IoT sensors and GPS tracking are used in semi-trailer trucks as well as a web portal and a mobile app. Here, the information can be input manually by operators and suppliers.
Conversely, Walmart's blockchain is prone to vulnerabilities. This is because it has lesser distributed nodes. For any blockchain to be secure, it should have multiple nodes so that it is very difficult for any intruder to hack.
The new freight management has an advantage over the traditional business databases. It is a shared, immutable audit trail and will eliminate the need for third-party invoice creation. Traditionally, supply chain invoices have been generated primarily through third-party EDI (electronic data interchange) systems. They often depend on manual data input. This reduces processing time as well as disputes among the vendors and suppliers.
"And, we're talking proper technical integration, not just electronic message passing," Martha Bennett, a vice president of research for Forrester quoted. "This project also takes an innovative approach to invoice generation and payment. Walmart's payments are triggered and executed automatically as part of the smart contract process. I've not seen that elsewhere yet in a production system."

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