Applying blockchain to improve supply chain transparency, visibility and traceability in South African manufacturing sector

Abstract

Orientation: Manufacturing supply chains in South Africa face various challenges, including the lack of traceability, transparency and interoperability between supplier platforms. The use of innovations such as blockchain technology (BT) can help address these challenges due to its features, including decentralisation, transparency and immutability.
Research purpose: The study proposes a framework for manufacturing based on BT, which could offer an information platform for all stakeholders with transparency and information sharing.
Motivation for the study: Poor traceability, opaque supply chains, and counterfeiting continue to plague South Africa’s manufacturing sector, undermining productivity and competitiveness in the global market. By increasing transparency and visibility throughout supply networks, blockchain’s decentralised, tamper-resistant architecture presents a potential remedy. Therefore, the need to investigate how blockchain can help with these issues and promote more dependable and effective supply chain procedures is what spurred this study.
Research design, approach and method: The study employed a quantitative approach, distributing questionnaires to 287 purposively sampled respondents drawn from manufacturing firms in selected provinces of South Africa. Structural equation modelling, based on the smart partial least squares technique, was employed to test the hypotheses.
Main findings: The results reveal that BT practices (immutability and provenance) have a significant influence on supply chain transparency (SCT). However, security as a BT practice has an insignificant influence on SCT. Furthermore, SCT has a significant impact on both SC traceability and visibility. The study suggests that the implementation of BT practices is vital in influencing SCT.
Practical/managerial implications: Managers must dynamically foster cross-functional and cross-organisational collaboration. Because BT operates most effectively in a consortium-based environment, leadership should engage suppliers, customers, regulators and technology providers early in the implementation process to create a shared governance framework.
Contribution/value add: This study contributes to the digital transformation and supply chain management literature, as it is one of the groundbreaking studies focusing on BT practices, SCT, traceability, and visibility in South African manufacturing firms.