# A Non-Fungible Token Solution for the Track and Trace of Pharmaceutical Supply Chain
## 3 Track and Trace and Serialization Process of a Pharmaceutical Factory  
Track and trace is one of the most important and valuable properties of advanced supply chain operations. It refers to the capability of monitoring a product along its lifetime, particularly until it is delivered to the final user. In particular, tracking refers to the ability to follow the path forwards from the starting point to wherever the object currently is, whereas the tracing of an object refers to the ability to follow the path backwards from its current point to where it began. It is often difficult to achieve without a technological infrastructure; therefore, it is generally dedicated to certain types of goods or services for which it is possible to keep track of all the locations and users that have handled it. In fact, both processes rely on a consistent system of identification that allows for a guarantee of the uniqueness of the identification of the object. For the pharmaceutical market, both these processes are very important and, nowadays, the implementation of a robust process of track and trace is more affordable due to the technological progress of automation and, in particular, the Industry 4.0 revolution. In regards to the pharmaceutical industry, one of the main advantages of an effective traceability is that it can enable robust pharmacovigilance measures by favouring a prompt, accurate identification and mitigation of the specific products, manufacturers, and batchesof a biologic that can be the cause of potential adverse drugs reactions [78]. To this end, each actor of the supply chain distribution has to maintain lots of information for several years, in particular, the one related to their specific responsibility which pertains to their handling procedures. For the pharmaceutical manufacturers, this duty refers to the activity of generating a digital version of the batch record (electronic batch record), which, according to the good practice quality guidelines and regulations (GxP), implement an efficient data retention and archival policy to keep all the production information of a lot of products secure and available. The technological solutions that allow the automation of the required procedures to produce the electronic batch record [79] have already been available for many years, due to the diffusion of integrated software systems that are able to communicate and control the production layers of the factory. Among these, enterprise resource planning (ERP) and manufacturing execution systems (MES) are the most evolved [80]. An ERP system aids in processes such as sales functions, batch production, quality assurance, inventory control, and accounting, increasing the flexibility in the production process and improving the supply chain and distribution collaboration, whereas the MES acts as a central system with effective interoperations with other manufacturing systems and departments including the operations, quality, maintenance, and inventory control. As previously stated, together with traceability, tracking can become an essential feature of the pharmaceutical market as it offers a foundation for an improved, trust-based relationship framework among producers, consumers, and all the actors of the distribution network. In these last few years, this process has gained the attention of researchers and practitioners because, due to digitalization, Internet of things, smart devices, and sensors, its feasibility with real-time up-to-date information has become affordable. Figure 1 shows the implementation of an effective tracking process, involving not only the pharmaceutical manufacturer, but also all the other stakeholders of the supply chain, before dispatching to the final customer. The prerequisite for the implementation of the 2011/62/EU Directive, known as serialization, is that all the prescription drugs must have a unique identifier that allows for quick identification; in this way, the safe removal of counterfeit drugs and falsified medicines can be more effective [81].