Traceability through blockchain

Intro

As widely discussed in previous articles, the introduction of the blockchain and then the evolutions implemented, opened a new trend of evolutionary development in different ways and areas.

Indeed, several companies are experimenting with the internal implementation of such technology. Moreover, there are many firms that, starting from these disruptive technologies, are studying different applications, based on the use that businesses themselves want, their needs and the advantages that they are searching in this technology.

One of the most examined, discussed, experimented needs is the fight against counterfeiting, and that’s why many search tangible solutions in this field.

Co-Trust8

Counterfeiting is defined as the most pervasive phenomenon, impacting on companies, extending its effects in several areas of society.

An example is the damages and/or dangers for consumers in cases when counterfeiting is carried out on foods, medicines, toys and products for children. In other situations, there could be risks related to security with the manipulation of maintenance paperwork of an airplane or any other means of transport.

Co.trust8 has the task of combat counterfeiting, making shopping more secure.
Co.trust8 was indeed built to defend the consumer, sheltering him/her from counterfeiting thanks to traceability.

With Co.trust8, Affidaty spa has the objective of bringing real value in the world of dislocation, significantly contributing to making services, products and processes safer, cheaper and more profitable.
The tracing architecture of Co.trust8 allows monitoring and reporting of every phase of the process that will be documented by records inside the blockchain, allowing the certification of the route.

The next evolutive step is to put into production the first system that allows consumers to manage fidelity programs and possible prize contests of certain products. It enables the general direction to evaluate how clients perceive its products and services.

It will make consumer experience easier and more beneficial, transforming a single purchase in an interactive experience, where clients themselves will become part of the supply chain. Moreover, with their active participation, they will contribute to the quality improvement of processes or services provided.

The Blockchain

It is an indisputable fact that one of the highest cost to the company is the research and implementation of strategies aimed at supervising the management and production processes.

Co-Trust8 steps in this area of interest, offering an innovative, inviolable and certified solution.

Tracing events from the start a “Track Record History” is generated, allowing the certification of processes and developments that concern the life-cycle and/or the salient production moments. These are stored inside a decentralized and inviolable ledger, that guarantees the origin, production or execution date as the provenance of eventual material employed, modified or maintained.

The information regarding the sequence of measures, or the interventions made during the production phase, will be reported inside the ledger.

The Smart Contract

The Smart Contract of Co-trust8 operates on TRINCI Blockchain inside the distributed and decentralized ledger of IdependentChain where the routes are recorded as simple record name roots.

As a matter of principle, this is how Co-Trust8 works:

the client opens his/hers SynkronyID (as …);
the client registers every process or product (Track Record) through the Smart Contract of Co.Trust8, signing with his/her Private Key obtained while opening the SynkronyID;
the processes inside the supply chain are added as permanent records, certifying the authenticity of what declared by the executor. Co-Trust8 takes care of the operations needed to ensure the immutability of the inserted data while organizing them in a regular and coherent time flow as follows:
1) name of the product and/or process phase
2) type, size, quality, durability, etc.
The system will automatically insert the year, month, day, hour, second of production or execution, beside the geolocalization. It is possible thanks to satellite tracking and a Timestamp Server.

Strengths

Counterfeiting

Currently, there are no means of digital certification to defend industrial property and/or supply chain or production process.
There is the need for an instrument capable of supervising, garrisoning or verifying these properties and activities, and able to be controlled remotely at any given time.
The absence of digital control instruments that allow verification, real-time and remotely, of the chronicle of the origin of a product or a process, caused in 2016 63’000 seizures at the E.U. borders, involving 41,3 mln products, for a total of 670 mln €.
Final customer protection

The absence of means of process control can be fatal. It is enough to think of the coach that crashed near Avellino, that due to the lack of maintenance of the road by Autostrade per l’Italia, falling over the cliff and causing 38 deaths and 11 injuries. If an automatic traceability tool was put in place to guarantee the processes of regular road maintenance, maybe this event could have been prevented.
fidelity programs

Only 40% of prizes deriving from point accrual programs are collected: with the module of Co.Trust8 is possible to access to a universal asset exchange platform, on which fidelity programs operate as currency convertible circuit for different means.

customer satisfaction

Nowadays, customers always doubt the truthfulness of other customers’ feedback. Co-trust8 allows clients to give feedback about purchased products, helping retailers to increase the quality and prevent image damages deriving from fakes feedback left by unfair or malicious competitors.
security

A product which origin can’t be traced or a process that doesn’t have a clear history could be potentially hazardous for consumers’ health. It may be due to the lack of controls during production and on raw materials employed.
It could generate, for example, a potential danger to the health or security, especially in systems that involve children, who may risk different kinds of poisoning, by being in contact with oil derived products.
image damage

If no security controls are put in place, there is the risk of suspension of the service due to the malfunctioning or exposition to more significant dangers for the distributor. In a worst-case scenario, the retailer may see its image damaged and, depending on the seriousness of the event, may indelibly harm the reputation of a firm, as in the case of Boeing. It may lead to onerous, and frequently useless, fines. An automatic and certified control guarantees the distributor higher security standards without further use of human resources.
respect for the environment

Uncertified supply chains frequently do not respect the environment and are likely to cause the dispersion of dangerous chemicals, freely polluting the ecosystem around the world. It is possible because there aren’t any live control system and this calls into question even the most prominent producers, for example, the diesel-gate that involved Volkswagen.
certification of the distance traveled daily

The use of Co.Trust8 in a logistic context may open scenarios like the certification of the distance covered daily with the resulting benefits. Moreover, the use of blockchain would allow the cross-check of geolocalization data and the precise date and time. It provides all the key elements to put in place operative control protocols in the transport sector, protecting firms, customers and public order.

Advantages

The security is a right.

eases the terrestrial dislocation of control of processes, safeguarding the road safety.
enhances resilience to fraud through the strong deterrence deriving from the generation of data out of production processes.
facilitates the immutability of the information about the quality of services, organizing it in indelible logs.
defends the final customer, keeping it safe from reckless managing.
safeguards firms that operate in good faith, calling on unfair competitors that damage the market by taking advantage of system flaws.
helps confidence-building between producer and consumer through transparency and quality of services.
incites consumers to buy from producers that provide protection by publicly declaring the standards of the service.
diverts market shares from realities or organizations that do not meet high-quality standards.
fights labor exploitation, undermining the stability of suppliers that do not respect the rules to which virtuous firms are subjected.
lowers the use of financial resources, previously meant for cross-checks, cutting down the cost of manual verification.
valorize realities that operate with sustainable and/or low environmental impact production processes and that want to share high value-added production policies.
thanks to the authentic and certified proofs of all supply-chain, triggers scenarios in which the industrial world could compete on good conduct rather than on the irresponsible conquest of market shares.

Installing and using the module.

Affidaty spa aims at raising awareness on the potentialities deriving from the use of Be-live. That’s why, in this phase, the installation and use of this module are carried on following an agile operativity.

feasibility study to asses 5 out of all products or processes with easier tracking and best guarantee results.
evaluation of the analysis and decision on first products to be inserted inside the blockchain
preparation of the technical installation draft
installation inside the supply-chain of the hardware and software components
tests and inspections
production