BMW Will Introduce Blockchain Solution for Supply Chains in 2020

In 2020, the BMW Group plans to deploy a blockchain solution for supply chains.

The PartChain platform has already been successfully tested by the company in 2019. It was designed to track auto parts and ensure data transparency in multilateral supply chains.

The 2019 pilot program allowed the implementation of a solution to track the supply of front headlights of manufactured cars.

The member of the board of directors of BMW AG Andreas Wendt, responsible for the supply, said that in 2020 BMW wants to expand the blockchain project and select 10 suppliers to participate in it.

Wendt explained that BMW’s long-term vision for the blockchain is to use the technology to create an “open platform that allows secure data exchange within the supply chain.”

The 2019 pilot program was limited only to component tracking. However, in the future, BMW intends to include critical raw materials for the production of automobiles, “from mining to smelting,” into tracked chains.

Along with the blockchain that protects data from unauthorized access, PartChain uses cloud technologies from Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure.

Wendt also said BMW is ready to share the PartChain blockchain solution with other participants in the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative (MOBI), which the company co-founded in 2018. Companies such as GM, Ford, Renault, Bosch, Hyperledger, IBM and IOTA also participate in this alliance.

The MOBI project led to the creation of the eponymous vehicle identification standard, the purpose of which is to create a blockchain database of cars.

Recently, we talked about the fact that the Japanese automaker Toyota announced the launch of its own blockchain laboratory, which will introduce technology to work with customers and track cars.

Author: Marko Vidrih

Featured image credit: Pixabay