For a recent study Nike, along with others, has allied for accumulating their supply chain data on a blockchain network. 

From the shipping giant Maersk to the technology company, IBM- are utilizing blockchain to innovate and make its supply chain network more strong and flexible. Now another giant, Nike, enters this club to leverage the abilities of blockchain onto their supply chain network

Details of the CHIP (Chain Integration Project), issued in a white paper by RFID Lab of Auburn University, recommends a new technique of managing supply chains. The university located in Alabama has associated with brands like Nike, PVH, Herman Kay, Macy’s, and Kohl to operate a test with this project.

CHIP, a project started in 2018, found a potential saving of $1.8 billion by using blockchain to assemble supply chain data. The supply chain project assimilates the data drawn from RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags onto a blockchain network.

The Project Utilizes Hyperledger Fabric

The project leverages Hyperledger Fabric as the open-source blockchain to record projects and items over the network. The data that uploads to this blockchain network consists of approximately 222,974 products from 12 different supply chain nodes. Out of 222,974, Nike shared data of 72,575 items while Macy’s shared data of 62 products. 

The new practice includes various retail supply chains to keep internal labels on the movement of their products through RFID tags, which is fixed in every unit. For example, Nike’s show tags promote the company to track the progress of its products. Nevertheless, the variation in the digital language of product data over companies appears in an inefficient and complicated system of processes. 

This study aims to create a digital platform utilizing the distributed ledger technology. In turn, it would constitute a common language amongst retailers to distribute data across the supply chain network. 

Leveraging Blockchain

This is not the first time that this shoe retailer has engaged with blockchain technology. Last year, the sportswear brand got patented its blockchain-compatible sneakers ‘CrpytoKicks’ from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). 

The patent allows leveraging blockchain for confirmation and authenticity of the sneakers. Moreover, it also aids in tracking the ownership of its physical product on a blockchain-enabled network. 

Furthermore, several other sportswear brands have commenced accessing blockchain for several different purposes. In 2018, Vechain, a blockchain platform based in Singapore, collaborated with the significant shoemaker SBTG. The goal was to build shoes with embedded chips. These chips leverage blockchain to track its proof of origin. They also check their authenticity by tracking the product on a supply chain network. 

In 2019, Footwear manufacturer, New Balance Athletics Inc., started a pilot program that utilizes blockchain in its supply chain network. It allows tracking the genuineness of its latest basketball shoe employing a distributed ledger blockchain to create trust amongst the consumers.