Overview
OAKCHAIN - Development of a Digital Tool for the Intelligent Management of the Oak Woodland Value Chain was a project dedicated to advancing and consolidating a digital solution for organising, managing and valorising the acorn value chain.
Promoted by LandraTech, the project built upon the technological work carried out under WebLand. While WebLand established the digital architecture, stakeholder database, user profiles, order-management mechanisms, geographical visualisation and artificial intelligence layer, OAKCHAIN focused on the functional evolution, testing, validation and operational preparation of the platform.
Context and Identified Problem
The acorn value chain continues to have a limited level of organisation, characterised by fragmented forest ownership, difficulties in connecting supply and demand, insufficiently structured logistics processes and limited information flows between producers, processors and industrial customers. Despite the annual availability of significant quantities of acorns, a considerable proportion of this resource remains unused. This restricts the creation of new economic activities, contributes to raw-material waste and reduces the potential value of Quercus woodlands.
OAKCHAIN addressed these challenges through a digital platform capable of organising information, facilitating commercial interactions, supporting order management and improving decision-making throughout the value chain.
Objectives
OAKCHAIN’s main objective was to consolidate an intelligent digital platform supporting the management of the acorn value chain and prepare it for progressive use under real operating conditions. The project sought to:
- Connect forest owners, producers, processors and customers;
- Structure a digital marketplace for trading acorns and acorn-derived products;
- Organise information on raw-material availability, stocks, species, products and processing capacities;
- Improve the management of contacts, orders and operational flows;
- Support supply-and-demand matching;
- Integrate decision-support mechanisms relating to raw materials, location and logistics;
- Test and validate the platform with different stakeholders;
- Prepare the solution for future commercial exploitation;
- Contribute to waste reduction and the sustainable valorisation of forest resources.
Technological Development and Innovation
The project consolidated the functional structure of a platform with different user profiles adapted to the needs of the main value-chain stakeholders:
- Producers and forest owners, with functionalities for registering species, stocks, production and raw-material availability;
- Processors, with information on capacities, processes and supply requirements;
- Customers and buyers, with access to products, commercial information and order generation;
- Administrators, with tools for managing users, products, orders and platform activity.
The solution includes front-end and back-end components, profile management, data organisation, product and order management, geographical stakeholder visualisation and decision-support mechanisms.
The platform’s intelligent component supports functionalities such as:
- Calculating the raw material required to fulfil an order;
- Calculating distances between producers, processors and customers;
- Selecting producers according to available stock and proximity;
- Generating route options;
- Matching available supply with market requirements.
These functionalities were developed to reduce information asymmetries, improve stakeholder coordination and support more efficient and sustainable logistics decisions.
Impact and Contribution
OAKCHAIN contributed to the digitalisation of a traditional value chain and to the creation of conditions supporting the more efficient and sustainable use of acorns.
Its main contributions included:
- Improving the organisation of information on acorn production and availability;
- Connecting producers, processors, operators and customers;
- Reducing communication barriers and information asymmetries;
- Supporting shorter and more efficient supply chains;
- Potentially reducing waste and logistics costs;
- Increasing the economic value of an endogenous forest resource;
- Promoting circular bioeconomy models;
- Encouraging the management and preservation of Quercus woodlands;
- Strengthening digital transition in rural and forest areas.
The solution provides a technological foundation for the future commercial operation of a specialised marketplace focused on the integrated valorisation of acorns and their derivatives.
Project Information
Programme: Recovery and Resilience Plan - RRP
Component and Measure: C16 - Digital Transition of Businesses - Vouchers for Startups - New Green and Digital Products
Call: 2022-C16i02-10
Measure Code: TD-C16-i02
Project number: 0045
Project Title: OAKCHAIN - Development of a Digital Tool for the Intelligent Management of the Oak Woodland Value Chain
Approved Eligible Investment: €30,000.00
Funding Rate: 100%
Start Date: 01/04/2023
End Date: 31/03/2024
Beneficiary and Promoter: LandraTech
Technology Support: MORE Colab - Laboratório Colaborativo Montanhas de Investigação
Status: Completed
Marketplace: Armazém da Bolota