Blockchain has many applications in industries. Its security makes it a stepping stone for digital transformation.
People may be familiar with this technology, but it has generally been associated only with cryptocurrencies. However, Blockchain technology has a wide range of practical applications in various industries.
In fact, its level of security and reliability is so high that it could be the key element to drive the digital transformation of companies on their path to Industry 4.0.
Blockchain can be defined as a mathematical structure for storing data in a way that is almost impossible to fake. It is a public e-book that can be openly shared between disparate users and creates an immutable record of your transactions.
Blockchain and Its Applications in Industry
Blockchain technology, known for its use in financial transactions with cryptocurrencies, can also be applied in industrial environments that require security and reliability.
In the era of Industry 4.0, machines are equipped with sensors and communicate via 5G networks. In addition, data is stored and processed in the cloud, and Artificial Intelligence and machine learning improve decision making. Robotics, for its part, automates dangerous or repetitive tasks. In fact, Blockchain is transversally integrated into all these aspects, with applications such as:
Traceability and excellence. Blockchain is used to achieve a more secure supply chain, something of special application in the food industry, pharmaceutical products or exports. For example, if we talk about luxury products, it is verified whether the purchase is an original or a copy.
Payment management. Companies that already use Blockchain do so mostly in the automation of invoices and in payments for supplies.
Industrial IoT. A company’s machines and transports generate data in real time that Blockchain stores and distributes securely.
Improvement in international contracts and transactions. Transactions are carried out at high speed, usually on the same day or the next day from their setup.
Innovative Applications
Below are some practical applications of Blockchain that many are probably not aware of.
Energy sector. Blockchain technology has great potential in the energy sector. One revolutionary application is the creation of a decentralized renewable energy market. This innovation would allow renewable energy producers to sell their energy directly to consumers, without the need for financial intermediaries.
Food industry. One of the, perhaps most curious, uses of Blockchain is in the food industry, with the monitoring of consumer products from their birth until they are taken to their final distribution destination.
Agriculture and wines. Within agriculture, Blockchain focuses on improving food quality. For example, a Startup emerged that monitors the status of vegetables in real time. It also allows consumers to know the exact origin of said foods.
In the wine market, Blockchain advances allow greater transparency, traceability, and also advances in determining the price of wine on the market.
Real estate. Smart Contracts can be very useful in the real estate sector. Being a new way to formalize an agreement, which includes only two steps: registering the conditions of the contract in this Smart Contract and then storing it in the Blockchain. Thus, the contract will be executed automatically when the specific conditions, which have previously been established by both parties, are met.
Music. Blockchain technology provides authors with proper ownership rights of their themes so that they can earn their due profit while protecting them from piracy to some extent.
With Blockchain technology there is more security, faster and more flexibility, and its future success depends on companies trusting and incorporating this technology.
By Audy Castaneda
