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With the growth of a global market, new regulations aiming at preventing the fraud of counterfeiting drugs have been released all over the world. In the pharma industry, an innovative technology named serialization is becoming more and more popular as it allows to implement a packaging process based on a hierarchical aggregation. This guarantees th...
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Context 1
... shown in Fig. 2, the marking of each box with a unique identifier allows to date back from the outer to the inner packaging level and vice versa, assuming that the packaging hierarchy is known and tracked in a computerized database. In fact, unit loads are not assembled randomly but according to the information carried by a work order. In a pharma ...
Context 2
... owner is in charge to update the information concerning the status of the good as long it holds the ownership (for instance, the Pharma Industry is owner of a pallet as long it is not dispatched to the next actor of the distribution network). The good can be indifferently a pallet, a case box or a single unit box of product (see Figure 2) as it depends on the type of shipping and actor of the distribution network (e.g., a warehouse is likely to handle pallets, a wholesaler several case boxes and a pharmacy single unit boxes). In order to achieve such mechanism, the smart contract possesses, at least, the attributes and methods shown in Table 1 and 2. For what has been said, the smart contract can be developed such that only the owner can use the method of the smart contract for updating the status (updateStatus). ...
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Citations
... Inherent in this transparency is encouraging trust and collaboration among participants since every player can independently verify the correctness of any data. Improved data sharing means better decisionmaking due to access to fuller and more timely information about the supply chain [13]. Corporate and ethical blockchain technology helps to provide sustainability and ethical sourcing of supply chain management. ...
The innovation of blockchain technologies into supply chain management is incremental by nature, attending to waste aspects and issues that are very old within SCM. As such, this reflection seeks to highlight the multifaceted benefits of blockchain in enhancing simplicity, traceability, security, and efficiency within supply chains. Blockchain provides a decentralized, permanent system of record that allows trust and honesty between partners; all valuable information is recorded in an imperishable way. Moreover, intelligent contracts mechanize some forms involved in supply chains, such as the processing of payments and inventory management, which reduces to a large extent not only regulatory costs but also human error. The high level of security measures is ensured by blockchain’s ability to encrypt this data and thus ensure information availability in case of sophisticated cyber threats. Such improvement in security reduces extortion and tampering, providing a more secure supply chain. This innovation further simplifies the administrative compliance, providing an accessible, verifiable record of each exchange. Not only this, but it also offers a way to verify whether material sources and technical support standards meet prevailing standards, thereby promoting brand identity to customers for the brand marked on a product and enhancing customer trust in a brand.
... In the pharma supply chain, traceability is crucial to fostering stronger relationships based on trust between consumers, production companies, and all distribution network participants (Chiacchio et al. 2020). Drugs can be tracked from their point of origin through each phase of the distribution process using blockchain technology. ...
This research aims to educate policymakers, healthcare professionals, and industry stakeholders about the critical need for coordinated efforts and the right technologies to mitigate the pervasive threat of counterfeit drugs in the pharma supply chain, guaranteeing the availability of safe medications for everyone.
... Blockchain also enhances medicine traceability to prevent theft and quality control is achieved through digital signatures. This technology also enables pharmaceutical developers and manufacturers to run clinical trials and share medical samples in a secure environment (Chiacchio et al., 2020). In addition, it improves accountability and transparency in clinical trial reporting as each stage is time-stamped. ...
... The assessment of current and emerging technologies for combating counterfeit drugs identifies blockchain as a promising solution, offering the potential to track and trace pharmaceuticals and verify supply chain participants for effective counterfeit detection (Mackey and Nayyar, 2017;Sylim et al., 2018). In the pharmaceutical industry, it is believed that moving forward, this technology in conjunction with product serialization could provide a solution for a foolproof track-and-trace system throughout the entire supply chain of pharmaceutical products (Chiacchio et al., 2020). Many researchers have recently turned to blockchain technology as a means of transmitting data through drug supply chains because conventional systems can easily have their data deleted, altered, and tampered with (Zakari et al., 2022). ...
... Blockchain's core attributes, including privacy, decentralization, immutability, and the capacity for scrutiny, have showcased its potential to revolutionize traditional sectors (Zheng et al., 2017). Due to the inherent features of blockchain technology that guarantee decentralization, immutability, privacy, and data security (Mettler, 2016), the pharmaceutical industry seems possibly the most exciting and preferred beneficiary of the digital revolution (Chiacchio et al., 2020). In contrast to IoT devices which are vulnerable to hacking and manipulation, distributors, buyers, and other stakeholders can collaborate on the same platform thanks to the distributed ledger structure of the blockchain, which provides a secure, interoperable IT system (Jochumsen and Chaudhuri, 2018). ...
The pharmaceutical industry's profitability has attracted attention, but it faces challenges from counterfeiters exploiting vulnerabilities worsened by globalization and complex supply chains. In 2019, European authorities introduced regulation EU 2016/161 to enhance drug supply chain security and traceability. By conducting a systematic literature review, this study assesses the effectiveness of the European Drug Serialization system, examining its implementation and the potential benefits of integrating digital technologies like RFID and Blockchain. The aim is to investigate and identify measures contributing to the strengthening of pharmaceutical supply chains against counterfeiting. The research suggests that while serialization is crucial, it may not provide foolproof security, emphasizing the need for additional digital technology integration.
... Tseng et al. [35] suggested a management model based on the Gcoin blockchain for drug supply chains to transform drug supply chains from inspection and testing to network-based regulation. Chiacchio et al. [36] demonstrated the role of blockchain technology in simplifying and enhancing traceability throughout the drug life cycle. Chiacchio et al. [37] then proposed a decentralized solution based on non-interchangeable tokens (NFTs) that builds on common serialization technology implemented by pharmaceutical manufacturers to improve standard serialization-process tracking capabilities, improve communication among supply chain stakeholders, and increase trust among end consumers. ...
Blockchain technology, as a revolutionary technology that has emerged in recent years, holds significant potential for application in supply chain operations. This paper provides a systematic review of blockchain-based supply chain case studies. The existing literature primarily focuses on the food, agriculture, and pharmaceutical sectors, highlighting the advantages of blockchain technology in terms of traceability and transparency. However, there is a limited number of studies addressing the improvement of collaboration efficiency in supply chains, particularly within the realm of information technology enterprises. By conducting semi-structured interviews, we present a case study of Lenovo, a leading enterprise utilizing blockchain technology, to elucidate the advantages of using blockchain technology. Subsequently, it proposes a conceptual model for a blockchain-based information collaboration system and discusses the potential applications of blockchain technology in supply chain collaboration. Our study contributes to the existing work on blockchain applications to enhance supply chain collaboration.
... Another implementation framework where this technology is used is the agri-food industry, as presented by [20], which exposes the use of blockchain to perform an exhaustive record of food traceability, thus reliably certifying its origin, from the farm to the arrival of the consumer. Finally, an example of an application in the pharmaceutical industry is [21], which implements this blockchain technology to perform a reliable and secure record of the traceability of the processes carried out in the distribution network of products in the industry. ...
In industrial environments there are critical devices, so their correct operation must be ensured. In particular, having a secure record of the different events related to these devices is essential. Thus, this record can be used in future forensic investigations in case of accidents or production failures. In this sense, blockchain technology can bring reliability to the event log. In this paper, ChronoEOS 2.0, an extension of ChronoEOS, is presented. This new version can record the events that occur in multiple industrial robotic arms by deploying a Smart Contract in the EOSIO blockchain so that all events are immutably recorded in the blockchain. Furthermore, the new version allows using a unique fingerprint of the robot before registering an event in the blockchain. This fingerprint depends only on the characteristics of the operation and configuration of the robot. For this reason, ChronoEOS 2.0 not only increase the ability of ChronoEOS in terms of handling multiple devices but also increases the security and reliability of the operations. Finally, in this study, we verify that the new improvements have little impact on the hosting resources (RAM and Network are not altered, while CPU consumption is slightly higher due to the device fingerprinting module).
... On the other hand, due to high standard deviation, it is also notable that there is a high range of variation among the ratings. Upon further discussion with experts, we found that these data elements are crucial for some supply chains-for instance, textile (Agrawal and Pal 2019), pharmaceutical (Chiacchio et al. 2020) and food (Doukidis, Pramatari and Kelepouris 2007)-where traceability and knowledge of product origins is a major concern; meanwhile, other products, such as, for example, automotive and steel products, have well-established supply chains with close buyer-supplier relationships, and traceability is crucial for product recall (Dai et al. 2021). ...
Visibility across supply chains has been a key concern for organisations for many years, but the tools and information systems to achieve real-time visibility have not been available until recently. In response to uncertainty and complexity, advanced information and communication technologies have been explored for supply chain visibility (SCV). However, managerial perspectives are largely absent from the current literature. In response, this paper systematically documents managerial factors influencing SCV and information that should be collected and shared among supply chain partners for better visibility. A multi-stage Delphi analysis was conducted with 26 supply chain experts from various globally recognised enterprises with manufacturing units located worldwide. The results provide details on prioritised managerial perspectives and experiences within (1) factors affecting SCV (drivers, enablers, challenges and contingencies), (2) SCV content (supplier, internal and customer information) and (3) implications of SCV (capabilities and performance effects). One observation was that forecasting is not deemed as important due to severe disruptions in supply chains. Real-time visibility for better predictability emerged as the top priority. This study is among the few that empirically explores factors influencing supply chain visibility and generates new insights into why barriers can be difficult to overcome in complex supply chain settings.
... Track and trace of pharmaceutical products is very important: it has been estimated that counterfeit drugs cause over 100,000 deaths annually and over $200 billion of loss in the pharmaceutical industry [9]. To fight this phenomenon and prevent falsified medicinal products from entering the legal distribution chain, the 2011/62/EU Directive [10] introduces new regulations for pharmaceutical industries and distributors to enable a process of serialization that involves all the actors of the supply chain in the operations of production, packaging, tracing, and distribution. ...
... The smart traceability process based on the proposed blockchain solution is shown in Figure 8. As it can be seen, it is similar to the one shown in [9] and the main change that has been made in this part of the process arises from the use of a publicly permissioned blockchain, as it will be seen in the next subsection. Any time a package transits into a new phase, the operations of (1) tracing info, (2) updating status, and (3) enabling the next actor of the distribution network must be undertaken. ...
Industry 4.0 is leading society into a new era characterized by smart communications between consumers and enterprises. While entertainment and fashion brands aim to consolidate their identities, increasing consumers’ participation in new, engaging, and immersive experiences, other industry sectors such as food and drugs are called to adhere to stricter regulations to increase the quality assurance of their processes. The pharmaceutical industry is inherently one of the most regulated sectors because the safety, integrity, and conservation along the distribution network are the main pillars for guaranteeing the efficacy of drugs for the general public. Favoured by Industry 4.0 incentives, pharmaceutical serialization has become a must in the last few years and is now in place worldwide. In this paper, a decentralized solution based on non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which can improve the track and trace capability of the standard serialization process, is presented. Non-fungible tokens are minted in the blockchain and inherit all the advantages provided by this technology. As blockchain technology is becoming more and more popular, adoption of track and trace will increase tremendously. Focusing on the pharmaceutical industry’s use of track and trace, this paper presents the concepts and architectural elements necessary to support the non-fungible token solution, culminating in the presentation of a use case with a prototypical application.
... A sub-case from the previous use case in logistics, the authors have demonstrated a decentralized application for the traceability process of a pharmaceutical industry [3]. Still, the authors did not investigate other blockchains which allow for higher transaction throughput and lower latency than Ethereum. ...
In today's time, ad-listing websites work as the main leads generator for businesses. Such websites are managed by a central authority called website admins. Because of the centralization, admins can change and remove some business information and manipulate the reviews and ratings to increase the benefits for other businesses. So, in this paper, we have developed a smart contract for an ad-listing website using Solidity on the Ethereum blockchain. Thus, Implementing a decentralized app architecture that uses Blockchain Technology. We have developed a decentralized web application that works on the Ethereum Ropsten test network and uses Infura platform as a virtual node. Virtual nodes provide the connection between our NodeJS app and the Blockchain, eliminating the need for running an Ethereum full node. By using such architecture, users don't need to sign in with a wallet extension or any Web3 component. From a user's perspective, the website is like any web app using a database. But, we had the advantage of utilizing the Blockchain test network for free as a data warehouse. Also, we calim that this app guarantees a more honest user experience because of the transparent nature of Blockchains.
... It is typically connected with sensors at each workstation, tracking and recording material flow, production time and process quality data during all production stages. This enhances visibility within the manufacturing unit by identifying bottlenecks and quality issues, as also advocated by Chiacchio et al. (2020). It provides otherwise inaccessible data to the blockchain network. ...
Blockchain technologies can support traceability, transparency and trust among participants. This has primarily been explored in established supply chains and not in the growing use of business networks or ecosystems, which is a notable limitation since supply chains typically are organised with a dominant actor that ensures common information systems and standards that negate blockchain benefits. Hence, this study explores the design of a blockchain-based collaborative framework for resource sharing using smart contracts. These are particularly well-suited for supporting operations in broader networks or ecosystems beyond supply chains with established collaborations and hierarchies. Based on a systematic literature review, a demonstrator framework was developed for stakeholder interactions through a procurement and distribution unit backed with blockchain technology. The framework consists of (a) network architecture to demonstrate partner interactions; (b) rules for network working principles based on supply collaboration requirements; (c) UML diagram to define smart contract interaction sequence; and (d) algorithm for smart contract network verification and validation. Applicability of these smart contracts was verified by deployment on an Ethereum blockchain. The demonstrator framework ensures quality and data authenticity in supply networks, so it is useful for effective resource utilisation in networks where outsourcing and production surpluses are major issues.
