Project Purpose

The Internet of Things is a network of connected devices that contain sensors and other embedded devices that are able to gather, connect and exchange data. The Internet of Things has quickly become one of the most important technology trends of this decade.

In the context of trade facilitation, the Internet of Things will play a crucial role as it enables the collection of timely and accurate data, some of which was previously not available, and its seamless integration into the flow of information used for supply chain management. The growth of the Internet of Things has led to the development of smart devices and new applications using the data that they generate in order to facilitate processes and drive efficiency in trade, agriculture, climate control, water and energy management, healthcare, foreign trade, supply chain etc.

There is ongoing research on how to further, develop and improve the ability of this technology to be used for various purposes, including its interoperability with other cutting-edge technologies such as Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence. A number of use cases were presented during the  April 2018 UN/CEFACT conference held in Geneva which focused on use of IoT for Trade Facilitation.

One current project within UN/CEFACT focuses on the use of Smart Containers to track critical data, such as location, temperature or events such as door opening or closing, about shipments from origin to destination.

IoT technology has immense potential for facilitating supply chain and trade processes. The purpose of this project is to look at this technology in the context of UN/CEFACT’s mandates and create a whitepaper that focuses on how IoT can be used to facilitate trade processes and key issues that need to be addressed while collecting, analyzing and using IoT data. Potentially, this work could also provide guidance to data providers, IoT device manufacturers, application developers and technology adopters.

Project Scope

The project scope is to define and create white papers on the collection, analysis and use of IoT data in the context of trade processes with a view to examining:

• How IoT technology could be used to facilitate trade and related processes
• How existing UN/CEFACT deliverables could be used by IoT applications
• Possible changes to existing UN/CEFACT deliverables, or new deliverables, that could be considered in order to support IoT trade-facilitation related applications
• Key issues to consider while collecting, analyzing and distributing IoT data

All of the above will be examined from the perspective of UN/CEFACT’s mandates in order to provide input to the Bureau, Programme Development Areas and Domains on

1. Possible future work and a possible common approach to IoT-related projects
2. IoT application developers as a potential new user group for UN/CEFACT standards

Project Purpose

Reference Data Models (RDMs) provide a comprehensive subset of the UN/CCL and its associated code lists with all the information pertinent to a sector of activity such as Buy-Ship-Pay (BSP RDM), Supply Chain Management (SCRDM), Cross-Border Management (CBMRDM) or Multi-Modal Transport (MMT RDM). Many government agencies already use data coming from these RDMs as well as other processes which are well documented in the UN/CCL.

This project aims to provide a Sustainable Development and Circular Economy Reference Data Model as a view on the top-level Buy/Ship/Pay Reference Data Model within the UN/CEFACT semantic library.