ABN AMRO, the Port of Rotterdam and Samsung SDS are launching a pilot based on blockchain technology. The goal is a complete, paperless integration of physical, administrative and financial streams within international distribution chains.
The pilot involves the transport of a container from a factory in Asia to Netherlands. At first, the pilot will be implemented by the three parties, but the cooperative network will then become open for other parties to join. The pilot will start in January 2019, and the results will be announced in February 2019.
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Today, payments, administration and the physical transportation of containers still occur via separate circuits, noted Paul Smits, the Port of Rotterdam Authority’s Chief Financial Officer.
This results in inefficiency as many parties are involved and everything is organised via paper documentation.
The pilot will be including a number of flows, such as workflow management combined with track & trace to the digitisation of paper documentation. The aim is to achieve an open, independent and global platform that operates from the perspective of shippers.
Commenting on the occasion, Sanghun Lee, President of Samsung SDS EU/CIS, said that blockchain offers all parties in the logistics chain the opportunity to coordinate activities using validated data and without central management.
Regarding the project, for the first time different blockchains will be operating together. This will happen via an overarching ‘notary’ that connects entirely separate blockchains in Korea and the Netherlands, Mr. Lee concluded.
