Abstract
This thesis summarises and reviews a body of work undertaken over a period of 3 years that addressed the design and application of blockchain-based solutions in supply chain contexts. The work was anchored by a multiyear case study of the design, development and implementation of a blockchain-based App in the beef cattle and red meat supply chain. The field work, including empirical data collection, was framed and at the same time complemented by engagement with a growing body of literature concerning blockchains and supply chains, through an iterative research through design method. The results of this field and theoretical activity is a body of work spanning a book and some 20 peer reviewed journal articles, from which a selection of ten is addressed in this thesis. This thesis discusses the contribution of this body of work through four interrelated themes: (1) blockchain as a social technology; (2) the relevance and limitations of truth and trust claims in relation to the utility of blockchains in supply chains; and (3) the interaction between the material flows in supply chains and the counterflows of finance (payments), and how these can be mediated by blockchain-enabled data. The contributions to knowledge emerges from the synthesis of disparate conceptual or theoretical frames, which enables: (1) thereconceptualisation of blockchains as social technologies, embedded in networks of supply chain actors and institutions (standards, protocols etc.); (2) a focus on the centrality of data validity and dependability enabled by blockchains to support supply chain function, rather than be distracted by questionable claims about truth and trust; (3) an integration of product provenance data with payments processes, enabling streamlined payments and accelerated supply chain circulation.
| Date of Award | 1 Sept 2025 |
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| Original language | English |
| Supervisor | Mark Xu (Supervisor) |