Impact of Wireless Sensor Network Technology on Service Innovation in Supply Chain Management

Abstract

Driven by the rapid development of information and communication technologies (ICT) as well as today’s globally competitive environment for enterprises, service innovation has drawn considerable attention in such fields as supply chain management (SCM). Wireless sensor network (WSN) technology, which can provide a mobile, scalable, and reliable monitoring solution, has gone through rapid development in recent years. The objective of this chapter is to provide an overview about wireless sensor network technology and a discussion on how this technology can be applied to modern industries and especially bring service innovation to supply chain management. An overview of the history and potential applications of WSN is provided for the necessary background. The architecture, topology, standards, and protocols of WSN are fundamentally important and thus introduced in details. In a general sense, the impact of information technologies on supply chain management and service innovation is then briefly discussed. After that, much emphasis is placed on the possibility, procedures, and critical challenges of implementing WSN in supply chain management. In the end, two case studies are provided to illustrate the application of WSN for service innovation in both cold chain management and healthcare settings.