CollMi - i4Trust Project

This project aims to develop a practical solution that addresses this problem through the application of blockchain technology (distributed ledger technologies) for the implementation of a robust digital solution that solves the collaboration and trust issues that are at the base of the implementation limitation of collaborative micro-hubs, as they have the potential to record all transactions of the micro-hub, last mile carriers, freight forwarders and sellers, in a verifiable, permanent and transparent way for all interested agents.

The part of the i4Trust initiative in this project is to provide a reliable data-sharing framework with trustworthy access control to that data, respecting its sovereignty by making sure that: each retailer only has access to the package information of their orders (or their client's orders), and each logistics operator to package information relevant to their operation - be it their orders or those they were subcontracted to deliver or to do part of such delivery.

The retail industry is long waiting for a reliable source of information where they can check the whereabouts of both incoming and outcoming goods, independently of which specific freight forwarders, last mile carriers, subcontracted companies and governmental agencies (e.g. customs) are involved in the process. Such a solution would entail important efficiency gains, such as eliminating the hours spent calling and manually accessing digital platforms of the several entities involved in the supply chain to check the status of parcels, provide more reliable information to customers about their purchases as well as future availability of goods not in stock, and compare logistics operators performance to support strategic business decision making.

The proposed CMH concept will be achieved through the use of Fiware Context Brokers by the express shipping carriers and then the sharing of relevant data entities in the i4trust marketplace to their specific customers. Moreover, a third-party agent will be responsible for overseeing the micro-hub and updating its logistic information, taking full advantage of iSHARE and Fiware identity management, authorization, access and usage control and policies.

This project is aligned with the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDG):