Blockchain Technology and Its Application in 3D Parts Procurement: A Case Study

In this paper, we present a review of Blockchain based technologies and their application in supply chain procurement. The blockchain has two main characteristics that may be leveraged for adoption in supply chain networks and logistics. First, the exchange of information in blockchain is real time, secure, verifiable, trustable and these are accessible to all members of the network. 3D Printing is an excellent application for Blockchain based procurement. In Blockchain based 3D printing, the aim is to secure contracts from suppliers that may be used in assemblies or for spare parts. An OEM can issue a call for proposals in real time from 3D printing suppliers. The bids can be received securely using the blockchain with partial/complete order quantities. In this paper, we show how the blockchain can be used to integrate the four stages of 3D printing procurement: Scan and Design, Build and Monitor, Test and Validate, and Deliver and Manage. Finally, we present a case study for scheduling 3D printers in manufacturing network. We examine a 3D printer scheduling problem by considering multiple printing alternatives in which various types of products can be printed in different forms using Mixed-Integer linear programming (MILP) under scenario-based experiments.