By now, the world is quite acquainted with the blockchain technology’s ability to help a myriad of sectors and industries achieve process efficiency and transparency by storing transactions in a way that they cannot be modified. The public ledger is known for helping all kinds of fields, from tax agencies to shipping companies to financial institutions.

The latest application of the blockchain technology may be the automotive industry, but maybe not the most obvious part of it. Ford, one of the largest and most prominent vehicle manufacturers in the planet, is looking to build a blockchain platform that ensures that children are not part of the supply chain and construction process.

To achieve its objective, the American automotive powerhouse will join forces with tech giant IBM, Huayou Cobalt, and LG Chem in order to develop a blockchain-based system that can monitor cobalt’s supply from its origin, the Democratic Republic of Congo, to make sure that child labor is not a part of the process.

Child labor is one of society’s most sensitive problems, and a very hard thing to combat. People from all locations, but most notably Africa, Asia, and Latin America, endure arduous working days that can often extend to 16 hours only to be paid cents of the dollar. In a perfect world, these children would be studying at school, doing homework, and enjoying their childhood in a healthy environment.

Monitoring Cobalt Mines

Ford and IBM’s project was announced on Wednesday. The RCS Group, a global responsible-sourcing consultant firm, will be in charge of it and will implement IBM’s proprietary blockchain platform to keep an eye on the cobalt supplies being used to manufacture lithium-ion batteries.

Primary production industries and enterprises are currently looking for ways to monitor and control the origin of their supplies, and avoid having children working and being exploited with minimal wages in the process. To achieve that, blockchain technology is serving as a more than useful tool to bring transparency and trust to supply chain tracking. One of these firms is Alrosa, which is currently the planet’s second biggest diamond mining business: it partnered with Tracr, a widely known supply chain monitoring system, with a similar goal in mind.

Tracr uses blockchain technology to track the origin of its product and make sure that diamonds that enter the international market do not come from impoverished African nations that are known as “conflict zones” because the situation can, indirectly, fund armed groups. With blockchain and IoT tracking, such systems can ensure that child labor is not used at any point of the supply chain.

Tracking Metals: a Real Challenge

In a world in which the public opinion can have a sizable impact on sales and the success or failure of a specific brand, Ford wants to guarantee that its cars and other vehicles are manufactured with materials and supplies mined or found ethically.

Whilst diamonds are transported to the market place as individual pieces, metals are a different story: they can be difficult to monitor because they can be smelted together, making it extremely hard to determine the origin of each material.

To combat this, IBM is toying with the idea of adding AI-aided chemical analysis to spot the geographical origin of cobalt and make sure it is not smelted with “dirty,” thus “sanitizing” the process. Through blockchain, miners will register in a platform to “validate” them as participants and to build a register of who is mining and where are the cobalt supplies coming from.

By Andres Chavez

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