Open Access Articles

Blockchain holds high potential for various applications. In the business context, one of its key features - the availability of data to various parties - is a liability as business secrets shouldn’t be exposed and GDPR compliance has to be ensured. In this paper, we discuss solutions for these privacy problems. Also, we present the HANSEBLOC project, a blockchain-powered platform for data exchange in logistics, and the chosen privacy solutions.

Alongside to the enormous rise in Bitcoin value in 2017/2018, there was also a tremendous rise in required Hashpower and electricity to verify blocks of the Bitcoin-Chain. Deriving from this problem, this article investigates different consensus algorithms and their impact on sustainability. Furthermore this article proposes an extensive comparison of the most used Blockchain algorithms with a focus on their contribution to sustainability.

Blockchain technology is expected to have great potential for success, especially in logistics and supply chain management. In the following, the Blockchain project “Release Order based on Blockchain (ROboB)” in the Port of Hamburg will be discussed in particular. The analysis showed that in addition to positive aspects, the core characteristics of the Blockchain could also represent obstacles for logistics business. Therefore, this paper examines whether transparency is an important design consideration when using blockchain in logistics and the supply chain.

As a result of the progressively climate change, the environmental impact of corporate activities is becoming the focus of internal and external shareholders. At the same time more complex supply chain networks are being developed in the industry. The majority of the processes involved in a supply chain network are executed by globally spread partners. This trend makes it difficult to quantify the impact of individual corporate-level activities on the overall ecological performance of the supply chain. The following document evaluates the scope of application on the SCOR model for a structured range of data emissions from global supply chains, based on a detailed literature research.

Public discussions on the future of labour in the era of digitalization are dominated by notions of self-driving cars, factories without workers or fully automatic logistics. This creates fears of mass destruction of jobs and shrinking employment rates in the future. At the same time, it has led to intense debates on an unconditional basic income: While productivity would rise, a substantial drop in the number of jobs would question the income distribution mechanism our working societies are currently built on. This article argues that while replacement of existing jobs - or at least tasks - by technology will happen and has always happened, this is only one side of the coin. The future of labour markets will be more complex. This is discussed in a macroeconomic, firm and international dimension.

Current State of Disturbance Management Disturbances in production systems can lead to massive costs for enterprises. It is a highly relevant ability for manufacturing companies to cope with the effects of occurring disturbances and their prevention. A survey on manufacturing companies draws a current picture of disturbance management and identifies challenges for coping with disturbances.

The aim of circular economy is to return a used product to the product and production life cycle several times in a value-adding way. This article presents the current industrial practice for a successful circular economy and the associated potentials, based on a definition of circular economy and its principles. Afterwards, existing challenges of the circular economy are analyzed. The article intends to support decision-makers in recognizing the advantages of circular economy and to tackle challenges for a successful introduction at an early stage.

As transportation is accountable for around 87 % of total logistics emissions globally, scientific focus in the past laid on the moving elements of the supply chain and not the stop points in between, namely the warehouses. However, responsible for 13 % of emissions, logistics real estate should not be neglected. Thus, based on an extensive literature research, the article summarizes the current state of science in green logistics buildings. By discussing certain aspects of supply chain strategy development, location planning and warehouse construction, possibilities aiming to minimize the ecological lifecycle footprint are elaborated.

Media disruption interferes with consistent and universal digitalization. Data is easily lost, time and resources wasted. Heterogeneous and isolated applications produce partial relief; however they fail to integrate redundant information from separately operated systems into a homogeneously processible data mass. The employment of a centralized data hub proposes a strategy to effectively advance digitalization in process management, connecting scheduling of involved parties, defect tracking and progress processes. It also automatizes reportings on project progress.

Using industry 4.0 maturity models, companies can systematically record their performance in the context of industry 4.0. When the status quo is determined, the question “Where do we want to be in future?” is usually associated at the same time. However, companies are not always in a position to introduce what is fundamentally possible. Therefore, this question is not trivial. If a company is supposedly aware of its I4.0 target position, external influences often lead to the fact that the achievement of the target is made more difficult or hindered. It is therefore important to take these circumstances into account. This paper shows how environmental developments can be taken into account when determining a promising I4.0 target position. The target position forms the starting point for the implementation of industry 4.0 in the company.