Descartes’ IoT tracking tech could limit losses

Canadian software provider Descartes Systems Group launched a partnership with Etihad Cargo this summer for enhanced air shipment visibility by using Internet of Things Bluetooth tracking for unit load devices — a collaboration that includes Jettainer ’s ULD management services. The IoT technology is intended to streamline ground-handling operations by using software to track unit load devices (ULDs) “and to gain data-driven insights into the transport and ambient conditions of air cargo in transit,” a release from Descartes said. [caption id="attachment_57136130" align="alignright" width="300"] Etihad Cargo has partnered with Descartes Systems Group and Jettainer to further automate its air cargo processes. (Photo/Etihad Cargo)[/caption] Such processes, which help automate the industry, are imperative, Scott Sangster , general manager of global logistics service providers for Descartes, told Air Cargo Next . “Digitization is the newest of catchphrases around what we’ve been trying to do for years, which is to automate processes within the supply chain,” Sangster said. The goal is “to take out some of the inefficiencies and allow partners to collaborate better.” Lack of automation In many links of the supply chain, but particularly with air cargo, there is a serious lack of digitalization in operations, Sangster said. One obstacle to technology implementation is that users do not have the infrastructural resources to implement the solutions, he added. During the pandemic, when business was conducted from home, consumers and supply chain operators began to question the lack of visibility and manual data entry in the industry. Since that time, IATA , TIACA and the International Civil Aviation Organization have all emphasized the importance of digitalizing the supply chain to make it more efficient. “There are a lot of people in this industry that said, ‘I’ve been doing it this way for 20-plus years, you know. There’s no need for me to change,’” Sangster said. “And I think that’s what holds some people back from accelerating and adopting changes in technology.” Tech could reduce loss ULDs account for more than $1 billion of supply chain operations, according to IATA ; as more than 1 million aircraft use them to transport freight, they require proper oversight. About 7% of ULD shipping, equivalent to millions of dollars, is lost each year, according to Canadian nonprofit organization ULD Care . This is where Descartes’ technology comes in, Sangster said. The company’s IoT tracking devices increase visibility and improve ground-handling operations, making shipments move faster and more accurately, potentially reducing losses, he said. The tags can attach to containers or pallets, and transmit data to mobile applications and networks, allowing ground-handling agents and others to keep track of ULDs in an automated system. The tags can be affixed to the ULDs prior to loading and provide users with information in real time, including shipping location, condition of shipment data, temperature, humidity and movement, according to Descartes. Thomas Schurmann , head of cargo operations and delivery at Etihad Cargo, said in the release that “Etihad Cargo expects to reduce the number of lost ULDs — those that lose their trail somewhere at the airport, at the ground-handling agent or the forwarder — by being able to tell exactly where they were last seen. We furthermore expect to simplify ground processes, for example, by reducing the time and effort spent on stock take.” Join Air Cargo Next for the second annual Air Cargo Tech Summit on Monday, Sept. 18, and Tuesday, Sept. 19, at the Brussels Marriott Hotel Grand Place in Belgium. For more information on the summit and to register, click here .

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