Viable Supply Chain Network Design by considering Blockchain Technology and Cryptocurrency

Abstract

Nowadays, using Blockchain Technology (BCT) is growing faster in each country. It is essential to apply BCT in Supply Chain Network Design (SCND) and is considered by the designer and manager of SC. This research indicates Viable Supply Chain Network Design (VSCND) by applying BCT. A new form of two-stage robust optimization is suggested. Facility locations and activation BCT for VSCND is the first stage of decisions; finally, we determine flow transshipment between components in the next stage. The GAMS-CPLEX is used for solving the model. The results show that running BCT will decrease 0.99% in costs. There is an economic justification for using BCT when demand is high. A fix-and-optimize and Lagrange relaxation (LR) generate lower and upper bound to estimate large scale in minimum time. The gap between the main model and fix-and-optimize is better than the LR algorithm. Finally, this research suggests equipping VSCND by BCT that becomes more resilient against demand fluctuation, sustainable, and agile.