Abstract
Supply chain coordination needs resource and information sharing between business partners. Recent advances in information and communication technology (ICT) enables the evolution of the supply chain industry to meet the new requirements of information sharing architectures due to globalization of supply chain operations. The advent of the internet of things (IoT) technology has since seen a growing interest in architectural design and adaptive frameworks to promote the connection between heterogenous IoT devices and IoT-based information systems. The most widely preferred software architecture in IoT is the semantic web-based service-oriented architecture (SOA), which aims to provide a loosely coupled systems to leverage the use of IoT services at the middle-ware layer to minimise system integration problems. This chapter reviews existing architectural frameworks for integrating IoT devices and identifies the key areas that require further research for industrial information service improvements. Finally, several future research directions in microservice systems are discussed.
TopIntroduction
Internet of Things (IoT) based computing is one of the promising technologies for the automation of distributed complex information systems. Many researchers and practitioners expressed their views that IoT technology represents the most influential new paradigm for the fourth industrial revolution, which is commonly known as Industry 4.0 (Pal, 2020). It is ushering a new hope in global manufacturing industries by increasing production uptime and reducing operational risks. The IoT based technologies along with service-oriented computing (SOC), data analytics, and cyber-physical systems play an important role in a manufacturing industry supply chain operating environment. In this way, the manufacturing supply chain operation is heavily influenced by the Industry 4.0 information and communication technology (ICT) evolution since it faces the challenge of rapidly growing requirements for agile and efficient reactivity to the rapidly changing global customer demands. Customers are increasingly defining how retail manufacturing businesses design and deploy their supply chain operations. These demanding customers can now do their shopping anywhere and anytime and expect a more fulfilling experience from retailers. However, many retail businesses are dealing with how to find an innovative approach to sourcing, replenishment, and distribution strategies to address the changes. Retail businesses are starting to consider seriously how best to optimize their supply chain operations to face fast-changing customer demand while minimizing operational expenditure.
A retail manufacturing supply chain consists of interconnected activities, and their associated business processes together to provide value-added service to its customers. Customer-engaged retail companies, from automobile dealers to highly attractive summer dressmakers, always need different stakeholders' information for their supply chains. An entire network of manufacturers and distributors, transportation and logistics agencies, warehouses and freight-forwards work together to make sure that the right goods and services are available at the right price, where and when the customers want them. Having supplied value-added services (e.g., products and associated customer services), the supply chain does not terminate. The retail supply chain is comprised of several steps from the front end, through the customer request, supply chain order processing initiation, quality assurance for product and services, relevant training processes for staffs, customer support facilities, to maintenance and replacement facilities.
Figure 1. RFID tagging level at different stages in the apparel manufacturing network
In a typical manufacturing supply chain, raw materials are purchased from suppliers and products are manufactured at one or more manufacturing plants. Then they are transported to intermediated storage (e.g., warehouse, distribution centre) for packing and shipping to retailers or customers (Pal, 2017). The path from supplier to a customer can include several intermediaries such as wholesalers, warehouse, and retailers, depending on the product and markets. In this way, supply chain management relates to business activities such as inbound and outbound transportation, warehousing, and inventory management. Figure 1 presents a simple diagrammatic representation of an apparel manufacturing supply chain, which consists of textile fibre production, fibre dyeing, yarn spinning, knitting and fabrication business process, and finally transported to retail stores (Pal, 2018).
Increased internationalization of retail manufacturing industries is chaining the operational practices of the global retail supply chain, and many retailers have adopted new business models, either by outsourcing or by establishing business-alliances in other countries. Globalization has also led to changes in operational practices, where products are designed and manufactured in one part of the world and sold in another. The retail supply chain has become more global in its geographical scope; the international market is getting more competitive and customer demand oriented. Importantly, this globalized operation also embodies the information systems necessary to monitor these business activities.
Key Terms in this Chapter
RFID Reader: An RFID transceiver, providing real and possible access to RFID tags information.
Object Layer: A layer which consists of physical objects such as devices, machines, sensors, RFID tags, and readers.
Supply Chain Management: Supply chain management encompasses the planning and management of all activities involved in sourcing, procurement, manufacturing, and distribution. Importantly, it also includes coordination and collaboration with channel partners, which can be suppliers, intermediaries, third party service providers, and customers. In essence, supply chain management integrates supply and demand management within and across companies.
Microservice: The topic of microservices continues to get significant buzz as businesses build more and more complex solutions. There are many advantages to microservices, and this chapter aggregates them.
RFID Tag: An RFID tag (or transponder), typically consisting of an RF coupling element and a microchip that carries identifying data. Tag functionality may range from simple identification to being able to form ad hoc network.
Communication Layer: A layer which consists of a network of wired/wireless networks, the Internet, and protocols.
Data Service Layer: A layer which consists of private/public cloud and related data management systems.
Web Ontology Language (OWL): The Web Ontology Language (OWL) is a semantic mark-up language for publishing and sharing ontologies on the Web. OWL is developed as a vocabulary extension of RDF (the Resource Description Framework) and is derived from the DAML + OIL Web Ontology Language.
IoT: The expression “Internet of Things” (IoT), coined back in 1999 by Kevin Ashton, one of cofounder of the Auto-ID Centre at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is becoming more and more used in main-stream computing. IoT means “devices or sensors connected world” where things i.e., the smart objects can communicate, monitor surroundings, and take necessary steps to complete certain tasks managed by some external agency or by the connected devices depending on the application context. IoT envisions an eco-system where smart and interconnected objects can sense surrounding changes, communicate with each other, process information and take active roles in decision making.
Service-Oriented Architecture: Service-oriented architecture (SOA) is a style of software design where services are provided to the other components by application components, through a communication protocol over a network. A SOA service is a discrete unit of functionality that can be accessed remotely and acted upon and updated independently, such as retrieving a credit card statement online. SOA is also intended to be independent of vendors, products, and technologies.