Global supplier to the automotive sector Marelli on Tuesday, declared the production of a distributed peer-to-peer network with the aid of blockchain technology to improve the management of automotive supply chains. As per the company, the network will join suppliers and carmakers plants across the globe.

This vital supply chain process innovation has been achieved in a joint project between Marelli Automotive Lighting and the BMW Group, who collectively created and developed “PartChain,” an application based on blockchain technology, the company stated in a release.

The utility of this technology – which is based on the real-time exchange of “blocks” of verifiable and immutable data – increases traceability of automotive components and raw materials, providing for more efficient and secure transactions and operations, bringing benefits to all the players in the value chain, according to Marelli.

The “PartChain” application has been used, as a first step, for a pilot activity concentrated on the traceability of rear lamps, headlamps, and lighting modules provided by Marelli Automotive Lighting to several BMW Group vehicles, the company notified.

“Three Marelli Automotive Lighting plants – located in Jihlava (Czech Republic), Tolmezzo (Italy) and Juarez (Mexico) – and two BMW Group plants – in Spartanburg (US) and Dingolfing (Germany) – were connected through the application. Within this first project, the platform is managing more than 100,000 data directly referred to parts and vehicles,” Marelli stated in a statement.

Assuring authenticity, transparency, reliability, and efficiency in the administration of supply chains – stated Sylvain Dubois, CEO of Marelli Automotive Lighting are crucial objects for all the automotive players.

“The increasing complexity of products, in conjunction with globally diversified value chains, are presenting the automotive industry with growing challenges and technologies like blockchain, which represents the forefront of innovation in this field, bring a crucial contribution to improve the system,” he added.