New possibilities of using monitoring technology to improve supply chain security

Modern supply chains are complex, which makes them vulnerable to security incidents. The objective of this paper is to evaluate supply chain tracking and monitoring concepts and to identify new ideas and business opportunities for security services in logistic multi-stakeholder networks. By adding tracking equipment, the security of supply chains can be improved through real time monitoring. Security benefits include the collection of concrete knowledge of security incidents, possibilities to react in real time and to minimise consequences. Developments in sensor and communication technologies allow new supply chain monitoring concepts, and hence new business opportunities. The paper describes the experiences gained in several European and Finnish national projects regarding monitoring technology and the improvement of supply chain security. A critical analysis of the benefits and limitations of implementation of tracking technology is also been described