How Blockchain Can Bring Construction Supply Chains Together

Ever tried to follow where your lunch came from? From farm to your table, it's a maze of suppliers, each with their own way of doing things. The construction industry faces a similar problem. They rely on so many different companies and financial institutions, it's like herding cats to keep track of everything. But here's where blockchain comes in, like a superhero in a cape. Think of blockchain as a big, secure book where everyone can see the same information. This book can help bring together the messy links between who's making what and who's paying for it.

Imagine using digital money, called crypto assets, to pay people only when they've finished their part of the job. Sounds neat, right? This is what 'atomicity' and 'granularity' are all about - making sure payments and products move together in tiny, precise steps. In one experiment, drones and self-driving cars checked construction progress. This data was sent to a smart contract, which decided when payments should be made using crypto. The results were written on a blockchain called Ethereum, showing how well products and cash flows were linked. The big question is, can this really work? Will it help the construction industry get its act together? That's what we're left to think about.

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