Futuristic data network
Blockchain technology adoption is spreading around the world like a virus. Next one in line of infected companies is Samsungs, world’s largest manufacturer of smartphones and semiconductors.
It is reported today, that Samsung is considering blockchain for their supply management. Samsung has a worldwide network of storages and daughter companies and ships huge sums of products and equipment on daily basis. Company expects to handle 488,000 tons of air cargo and 1 million 20-foot-equivalent (TEU) shipping units this year.
The rumour is based on statements made by Song Kwang Woo, the blockchain chief at Samsung SDS, the group’s logistical and information and technology arm.
As with any new technology a company is considering adopting, Samsung is primarily looking at efficiency and cost reduction, which is projected to be around 20%, SDS said. Shipping industry experts say the technology reduces the time needed to send paperwork back and forth and to coordinate with port authorities. As one would expect, the administration and bureaucracy part of the business costs companies twice as much as the transportation itself.
SDS is working on the system for Samsung Electronics, the conglomerate’s most important sector.
“It will have an enormous impact on the supply chains of manufacturing industries,” said Mr Song, who’s also a vice-president at SDS. “Blockchain is a core platform to fuel our digital transformation.”
Blockchain has been in the spotlight since last year, mostly due to the huge buzz created around bitcoin, one of the major showcases of this technology. Many tech experts look at blockchain as the greatest innovation since Internet. Some of them argue it is even bigger than internet.
Blockchain is in its infancy and has yet to find a significant adoption in any industry, but Gartner Inc. predicts blockchain-related businesses will create US$176 billion of value by 2025.