What is Blockchain?
Blockchain is a system of recording information in a way that makes it difficult or impossible to change, hack, or cheat the system. A blockchain is essentially a digital ledger of transactions that is duplicated and distributed across the entire network of computer systems on the blockchain.
A blockchain is a decentralized, distributed, and oftentimes public, digital ledger consisting of records called blocks that is used to record transactions across many computers so that any involved block cannot be altered retroactively, without the alteration of all subsequent blocks.
Companies in the commercial transportation industry sink or swim based on their ability to adapt to consumer needs, and implement new technologies that help them increase efficiency and lower the costs of shipping.
In the past year, blockchain technology has emerged in the world of trucking and logistics as a solution to to some of the major inefficiencies that have plagued the industry for decades.
For most business owners, blockchain is no more than a buzzword, and its applications can be obscure and difficult to understand.
It’s all over the news and it seems to be taking over and revolutionizing every industry.
20 years ago, if you were to tell a trucking expert about the the amount of innovation that would hit the trucking, logistics and commercial transportation industry over the next two decades, they would be ecstatic.
If you were to tell that same expert the level of demand for same day shipping and the volume of online transactions leading to expedited delivery, they would be speechless.
The industry has come a long way.
Technological and procedural developments in logistics have bolstered the commercial transportation industry’s ability to efficiently service an all time high in demand—all while adjusting to an evolution in consumer preferences and expectations concerning delivery time and cost.
Even so, the trucking industry is far from perfect.
And that’s where blockchain technology comes in to save the day.
We continue to see companies pitching their blockchain solutions in the supply chain realm. Often these companies have disappeared within a year or so. Blockchain is said to be a strong solution for traceability or to provide payment to linked supply chain partners after their part of a chain of linked activities has been completed. We have continued to ask blockchain providers for the names of customers that are using their technology on a daily basis as part of their newly entrenched way of doing business. Blockchain providers cannot provide these references. That is a sure sign that the technology is still in the hype stage.
Aside from traceability for the food and beverage industries, blockchain could become a critical component of transporting goods throughout the supply chain. Most pharmaceutical companies have a small window to get products from point A to B without changes in temperature. Blockchain monitors who has access to the temperature data, and whether that changes between modes.
Blockchain technology is based on a complex branch of mathematics called cryptography. Needless to say, the inner workings of the math behind blockchain are beyond what you intend to learn about in this post.
Instead of getting in the weeds of all that, here’s a 30 thousand foot view:
Blockchain is a technology that originated out of a branch of mathematics called cryptography.
Modifying the data in one block is impossible without modifying the entire chain and receiving consensus of the entire peer network.
This makes it incredibly difficult to perform malicious activity or falsify data. Once it’s in the blockchain, it’s pretty much in there for good.
Source: winnesota.com, startus-insights.com, logisticsviewpoints.com
