Smart contract(ing) in the execution phase

Construction supply chains (CSC) are characterized by converging supply chains and a chain payment system inherently related to CSC. Due to the pursuit of diverging goals and mutual interdependencies, risks, and trust issues between parties occur. To hedge risks and address trust issues, contracts are used to govern these collaborations. Individual compliance checking activities are conducted manually which increments in transparency and thus conflict escalation. To increase transparency and increase efficiency by means of automation, physical asset tracking (PAT), digital asset management (DAM), and distributed ledger technology (DLT) can be combined. Geospatial sensors, a jointly managed information system, a private permissioned Ethereum blockchain network, and several smart contracts can be combined to aid towards this purpose. A framework was developed and incremented into several interacting prototypes. These prototypes consist of: (1) a QR-code mobile application for asset tracking, (2) a Revit model for parameter centralization, (3) several smart contracts deployed on the Ethereum Goërli network, and (4) a dashboard WebApp. Four distinct test scenarios were developed to verify the functionalities of these applications. Test results indicated the achievement of desired post-conditions. Hence, partial (semi) automation of compliance checking activities and payments was realized. Therefore, increased transparency and trust as well as a decrease in risks and conflicts between parties are expected. Further automation of developed applications, development extensions as well as the collection of a case study and empirical data are interesting topics for further research.