Leveraging Blockchain for sustainability and supply chain resilience in e-commerce channels for additive manufacturing: A cognitive analytics management framework-based assessment

Abstract

E-commerce channels for additive manufacturing (ECAM) is an interface of democratizing manufacturing for large scale customized and flexible production. ECAM facilitates exchange of goods, services and information between key stakeholders viz. users, designers, additive manufacturer and customers. However, these systems are prone to threats viz. identity issues, currency exchange, innovation and ideation theft etc. Thus, a trusted technology is required to operationalize ECAM. Extant research suggests that Blockchain renders trust, sustainability and Supply Chain Resilience (SCRes) to host systems. However, leveraging Blockchain for a sustainable and SCRes ECAM has been negligible in the extant research. We use a Cognitive Analytics Management framework to assess the role of Blockchain in enhancing SCRes and Sustainability in ECAM. Value-Focussed Thinking is used in the Cognitive dimension to converge Blockchain Attributes with dimensions of SCRes and Sustainability. Fuzzy Cognitive Maps in Analytics dimension quantifies the impact of Blockchain adoption in ECAM. The practical contributions of this work are 1) encompassing stakeholder cognition for a sustainable and SCRes ECAM using blockchain 2) insights into design, coherence and integration aspects of blockchain for ECAM 3) a demonstration of a holistic and robust approach for optimal and shared value creation for stakeholders.