The Internet of Things

IoT tries to simplify real world processes in business and information systems. The goods in the supply chain can be tracked easily from the place of manufacture to the final places of distribution using sensor technologies such as RFID and NFC. Real time information is recorded and analyzed for tracking. Information about the quality and usability of the product can also be saved in RFID tags attached with the shipments.

Bo and Guangwen explain an information transmission system for supply chain management, which is based on the Internet of Things. RFID tags uniquely identify a product automatically and a product information network is created to transmit this information in real time along with location information. This system helps in automatic collection and analysis of all the information related to supply chain management, which may help examine past demand and come up with a forecast of future demand. Supply chain components can get access to real time data and all of this information can be analyzed to get useful insights. This will in the long run improve the performance of supply chain systems.