Search results

Block chain technology (BCT) has apparent capability of handling information in digital format, which has dragged attention of the practitioners for its utility in industrial and manufacturing practices. Conversely, the managerial adoption of BCT is relatively limited, which motivated the authors to identify crucial dimensions that can persuade the acceptance of BCT from an executive perspective. Thus, the present study is aimed to conduct to understand crucial barriers under BCT for managerial implementation in supply chain management (SCM) of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

The present study investigated evident barriers to understand implementation of BCT. A questionnaire based survey is performed to collect primary data from service and manufacturing based companies in India. Survey responses are received online and the data is analyzed in a scorecard. The scorecard embedded the scribed entries of Likert scale to determine the relative score.

In present study, sixteen barriers from three categories named as technological, organizational and environmental are evaluated, where, five sub-barriers from technological domain, seven sub-barriers from organizational domain and four sub-barriers from environmental domain are evaluated. The findings of the study determined that the three factors, i.e. “complexity in setup/use”, “Security and privacy concern” and “Technological awareness” mostly affect the adaptation of BCT in SCM. Conversely, “Market dynamics”, “Scalability” and “Cost” do not influence the intention to adopt the technology.

Only few studies have endeavored to ascertain the BCT adoption in SCM of SMEs in developing country like India. Thus, the study is filling a momentous gap of mapping BCT dimensions in the scholastic literature. The findings are expected to enable SMEs to understand important factors to be considered for adopting BCT in their curriculum. Furthermore, the study may benefit the BCT developers and suppliers to endure customized solutions based on the findings.

Smart cities provide fully integrated and networked connectivity between virtual/digital assets and physical building/infrastructure assets to form digital economies. However, industrial espionage, cyber-crime and deplorable politically driven cyber-interventions threaten to disrupt and/or physically damage the critical infrastructure that supports national wealth generation and preserves the health, safety and welfare of the populous. The purpose of this paper is to present a comprehensive review of cyber-threats confronting critical infrastructure asset management reliant upon a common data environment to augment building information modelling (BIM) implementation.

An interpretivist, methodological approach to reviewing pertinent literature (that contained elements of positivism) was adopted. The ensuing mixed methods analysis: reports upon case studies of cyber-physical attacks; reveals distinct categories of hackers; identifies and reports upon the various motivations for the perpetrators/actors; and explains the varied reconnaissance techniques adopted.

The paper concludes with direction for future research work and a recommendation to utilize innovative block chain technology as a potential risk mitigation measure for digital built environment vulnerabilities.

While cyber security and digitization of the built environment have been widely covered within the extant literature in isolation, scant research has hitherto conducted an holistic review of the perceived threats, deterrence applications and future developments in a digitized Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operations (AECO) sector. This review presents concise and lucid reference guidance that will intellectually challenge, and better inform, both practitioners and researchers in the AECO field of enquiry.

Given the speed at which technologies are reshaping economies and societies, libraries are called to embrace these changes while maintaining their role in the achievement sustainable development goals. This chapter aims to highlight how libraries can embrace the sustaining and disruptive technologies brought by the fourth industrial revolution on the library role in advancing sustainable development. The chapter highlights the role of libraries in sustainable development, and the unveils how the fourth industrial revolution technologies, that is, maker spaces, block chain technology, augmented reality, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence are used to enhance the library role in advancing sustainable development. Major challenges affecting libraries in embracing Library 4.0, that is, chronic financial constraints, inadequate infrastructure, resistance to change, and technical skills deficiency and possible recommendations to overcome these challenges are highlighted. This chapter is based on desktop review of relevant literature and the authors' views.

Through the case analysis of China’s digital library, the purpose of this paper is to make readers understand the development status, achievements and problems of China’s digital library. At the same time, it also enables readers to understand the common application forms of these modern information technologies in digital libraries, so as to provide a reference basis for the application of new technologies in other countries’ digital libraries.

On the basis of literature review, the authors have analyzed a conspicuous collection of related papers in order to make a comprehensive summary and elaboration on the present situation of modern information technology application in Chinese digital libraries.

This paper defines and analyses the concepts, contents and relationships of the three most important modern Big Data information technologies, and then completes the analysis of the current situation of the application of information technology in Chinese digital libraries. The block chain can achieve more accurate information collection, more secure information storage and more effective information dissemination. Artificial intelligence can improve the existing digital library service level in three aspects: resource construction, information organization and information service. Internet plus will help transform the traditional digital library business mode in order to adapt to the change of user-centered service.

This is among the first structured attempts of comprehensively and generally summarizing the application of modern information technology in Chinese digital libraries. It also contains an original exploration of the relationship between the main kinds of modern information technology. Based on this, a relatively complete application scenario and possible vision of modern information technology in digital library can be built.

While the studies on the use of smart robots in the production, which is known as the Industry 4.0 revolution, continue rapidly, the competition race is in the right proportion with this and businesses that do not want to fall behind the age have to follow the developments in Industry 4.0 and adapt. This chapter examines the Industry 4.0 revolution and its effect on accounting. Incorrect information from one of the business departments affects the entire system. Especially in the accounting department, which records the financial movements of the business and reports the results of them, and which is effective in making decisions that affect the whole business based on these results, the use of smart systems helps to reduce human-made mistakes and the system to act faster while also the systems used in traditional accounting are abandoned. However, brain power is still required, which must analyze the results. While the revolution is still developing, there are a lot of theories about the future. The expected outcome of these is that with the revolution, the need for brain power to analyze system outputs will increase, even if the need for human labour in the industry decreases. In this context, especially those who perform the accounting profession must constantly renew themselves.

Material conscious and information network (MCIN) is a kind of cyber physics social system. This paper aims to study the MCIN modeling method and design the MCIN-based architecture of smart agriculture (MCIN-ASA) which is different from current vertical architecture and involves production, management and commerce. Architecture is composed of three MCIN-ASA participants which are MCIN-ASA enterprises, individuals and commodity.

Architecture uses enterprises and individuals personalized portals as the carriers which are linked precisely with each other through a peer-to-peer network called six-degrees-of-separation block-chain. The authors want to establish a self-organization, open and ecological operational system which includes active, personalized consumption, direct, centralized distribution, distributed and smart production.

The paper models three main MCIN-ASA participants, namely, design the smart supply, demand and management functions, which show the feasibility innovation and high efficiency of implementing MCIN on agriculture. At the same time, the paper presents a prototype system based on the architecture.

The authors think that MCIN-ASA improves current agriculture greatly and inspires a lot in production-marketing-combined electronic commerce.

This paper aims to demonstrate the importance of a cash flow generating standard for individual financial contract level data and the ability to create such a standard.

The authors analyze the importance for such a standard of software that turns natural language contracts into cash flow generating algorithms; a data dictionary that standardizes contract terms; and access to variables that represent the state of the world (e.g. market risk, counterparty risk, etc.) that affect contractual obligations.

The ability to realize benefits from the use of such a contract level algorithmic standard depends on the following: making the standard’s software open source; fully testing the software to have complete confidence in its accuracy; and enabling the software to use of a wide range of models of various sources of risk (market, credit and behavior risk) to support forward-looking analysis. Such a standard would solve the disconnect that exists in financial firms between the representation of financial contracts for transaction processing and analysis. The ACTUS Financial Research Foundation is building, testing and making available such a standard that represents almost all financial contracts extant in markets.

The adoption of such a standard would reduce the costs of operations of financial firms, provide the computational infrastructure for more effective regulatory oversight, reduce regulatory reporting costs and improve financial market transparency. It would also enable the assessment of systemic risk by directly quantifying the interconnectedness of firms.

This is a new approach to financial analytics that clearly separates the deterministic components of finance, which can be standardized from the stochastic elements that cannot be standardized.

Technological development has been a cornerstone of any emerging economy in the past few years. Blockchain has emerged as a promising technology in the past few years, revolutionizing business dynamics. There is always a concern or hesitation during such novel technological innovation. This paper aims to investigate the blockchain technology (BCT) implementation and acceptance in the supply chain function domain.

The proposed model is based on the Technology Readiness Index (TRI) and extended theory of planned behavior (TPB). The responses were collected from information technology (IT) professionals working at management positions in various manufacturing industries. A total of 147 usable responses were collected for analyzing hypotheses using structural equation modeling.

As per the findings, perceived ease of use significantly impacts perceived usefulness and attitude toward technology acceptability. Perceived usefulness is significant to attitude toward use. Trust in technology has a significant impact on building up the attitude to use the technology.

The novelty of this work lies in gauging the acceptability of new ways and means of transacting among supply chain professionals and decision-makers. This study provides a broader perspective regarding reluctance and acceptance of the BCT in the developing country that may help the technologist to elucidate better for smooth adoption.