Yangtze Auto Chain: Automotive Supply Chain Integration Platform

Ciwei Dong, Hubert Pun, Fangwei Zhu

Product #:W51619

Supplier:Ivey

Discipline:Management Science, Operations Management

Setting:China, 2024

Details:Case (PDF) • 9 pages • 2026-08-12

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In June 2024, in Wuhan, in China’s Hubei Province, the management team of the Yangtze Automotive Supply Chain Platform (Yangtze Auto Chain), operated by Hubei Yangtze Auto Chain Technology Co. Ltd., faced a critical decision about whether to introduce blockchain technology to support supply chain data recording and to provide better transaction coordination. Since its launch in May 2024, Yangtze Auto Chain had attracted numerous registered auto supply firms, but actual business activity remained below expectations with many using it as an information display tool rather than for actual transactions and collaboration. It was now at a strategic crossroads, and the management team faced a choice that went beyond technological architecture, which would determine the platform’s role within the broader automotive supply chain ecosystem. Should the platform adopt blockchain technology? Should it rely on low-cost, familiar, paper-based process optimizations? Or should it invest in the more demanding IoT-enabled solution that maximizes data authenticity?

Learning Objectives

This case is suitable for strategic and operations management courses at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, including MBA and executive MBA students, especially those focusing on supply chain management, innovation, and disruptive technologies.

After completing the case study and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following:

Describe the challenges faced by the automotive industry.
Gain a basic understanding of the characteristics and advantages of blockchain technology.
Describe how to implement blockchain technology to reshape the conventional automotive chain platform and identify the advantages and disadvantages of blockchain technology implementation.