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Port of Brisbane CEO Roy Cummins says blockchain could "shift the dial for Australia's international business."Ryan Stuart
by Tom McIlroy
An Australian-first supply system using blockchain technology will be unveiled at the Port of Brisbane on Tuesday, the culmination of years of work between the operators, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and PwC.
The project, dubbed a trade community system, will use emerging blockchain technology to link supply chain information and reduce complexity in international business processes, reducing duplication and the chance for human error.
Designed following recommendations from the national freight and supply chain priorities inquiry report released this month, the new bespoke system will work to link end-to-end data, improving productivity and reducing costs through digitised trading of information.
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Blockchain's decentralised digital ledger technology is being used to improve productivity in Australia's freight systems.
In the new trade community system, information previously held in silos by individual companies in the supply chain will be shared easily.
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What information is shared and in which ways can be changed and adapted over time, using applications designed for the trade.
About 9 million container movements take place at Australia's five major ports each year. The trade is projected to increase to 15 million movements by 2025.
Experts estimate about 15 per cent of all information in individual import transactions is duplicated 30 times over, reducing efficiency significantly.
'Look beyond our ports'
Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry director of trade and international affairs Bryan Clark said the estimated cost of inefficiency across Australia adds as much as $450 in excess costs for each container.
The new system, designed off the back of work with the CSIRO's information communications and technology research unit, is expected to be watched by industry around the world.
"What we've come up with is the potential for significant cost savings if we can deploy technology like blockchain into the trading environment," Mr Clark said.
"The government is very interested in their digital and their infrastructure strategies and investments that go with them. These things are all affected by that.
"We're wanting to make sure the government is aware of what we're doing in the private sector, trying to improve things on our side and where that interfaces with what the government is up to."
Port of Brisbane chief executive Roy Cummins said the project could be adapted for use across big businesses.
"To drive new efficiency gains, industry leaders need to develop mechanisms which facilitate the integration and interoperability of commercial operators across the supply chain and logistics sector," Mr Cummins said.
"It is the right time for industry to initiate a reform and modernisation agenda which will shift the dial for Australia's international business."
PwC partner Ben Lannan said the new system promised to help improve productivity for businesses in Australia and overseas.
"The port, whether sea or air, is the first and last point of domestic contact in the international supply chain, and is the primary point at which all significant supply chain participants converge.
"To grow Australia's trade competitiveness, we need to look beyond our ports," he said.
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