BNSF Joins Blockchain Alliance, looks to set technology standards of future

Blockchain graphic

Fort Worth-based BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) has become the first Class I railroad to join the Blockchain in Transport Alliance (BiTA), according to a news release.

The release stated that BiTA is made up of more than 200 freight transportation companies that aim to develop blockchain standards for the logistics industry and the supply chain as a whole.

“Blockchain technology has the potential to change several aspects of the transportation industry and it is important that the industry comes together to align around a set of standards,” Muru Murugappan, BNSF VP of technology services and CIO said in the release. “We are excited to help drive those standards forward as a member of BiTA.”

Blockchain functions as a distributed ledger of data that all members of the blockchain have access to. By housing information with each member, altering the information within a blockchain is difficult – requiring 51 percent of the blockchain’s participants to approve the change, the release said.

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BNSF, along with the other members of BiTA, aim to:

— Define what data goes into the freight transportation blockchain

— Decide how that data is formatted

— Decide how the data is structured

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— Decide in what cases blockchain would be used

“BNSF is one of the most important members of the North American transportation network, providing the backbone of American commerce,” Craig Fuller, BiTA CEO, said in the release, noting the company’s push for  technology standards for the future of the industry will have a profound impact on customer supply chains.