LOGISTICS
UPDATE
Streamlining ground
operations
As the air logistics industry struggles
back to resume its vital role, there is a
greater than ever need to reduce costs
and for more transparency and effi ciency in
all aspects of the supply chain process. This
is especially true of ground operations, where
cargo can often be delayed unnecessarily,
thereby creating expensive and unacceptable
delays. The recent pandemic has thrown a
new light on air cargo operations and the
need for more effi ciency and digitisation.
To deal with this pressing need for better
solutions, a recently launched innovative
collaborative decision making (CDM)
trucking platform offers transparency,
predictability and a slot allocation planning
mechanism to streamline the loading
and unloading process between trucking
companies and handling agents. Handling
agents can allocate timeslots and door
numbers and anticipate through real time
ETA update times from trucking companies’
drivers, thus ensuring optimal effi ciency
and avoiding long delays. Raoul Paul, CEO
and founder of CargoHub’s Trucking CDM
platform, explains the thinking.
“The main advantage of the CDM
platform is to share relevant
data and information between
all stakeholders involved in the
truck movement, enabling them
to make the best decisions to
avoid delays. This is especially
important as it allows the
handlers to allocate slots and
for trucking companies to
manage their drivers’ movement
schedules effi ciently and
thus eliminate unnecessary
waiting. This also gives the
airlines accurate information
for informing their customers
about the progress of any
individual shipment. Even
after loading, by using the
platform, the handling agent
can continue to track the
shipment in real time, whereas
normally the agent loses control of the goods
once they leave the warehouse. The data
can be shared to international airports and
handlers, thus helping to predict and track
the complete cargo process accurately.”
Congestion at large airports has become
a major cause of delays, increasing pollution
and cost.
“This problem of congestion on the
forecourt is frequently discussed, one
possibility being that of not allowing
trucks to enter the handling agent’s site
before registration and approval has been
completed. The message that the cargo is
ready for loading and the assigned door
number can be received by drivers via the
CDM platform. Not only does this improve
the fl uidity on the site, but the truck
driver can follow instructions without the
intervention of the company’s management.”
The project has been launched initially in
the Netherlands with a view to expanding it
throughout Europe and beyond. Participating
pilot partners include AirBridge Cargo,
Menzies World Cargo, Swissport, dnata, Jan
de Rijk, Fast Forward Freight, supported by
Air Cargo Netherlands.
RHENUS’
STRATEGIC
RELOCATION
On May 11, Rhenus Air & Ocean
moved from Herstal, in Belgium,
to its new location some 20
kilometres away at Liège airport.
The reason behind the move has
been that of the strategically
advantageous position in the socalled
Golden Triangle that links
Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Paris.
At the new branch, Rhenus Air &
Ocean plans to offer multi-modal
solutions and expand Rhenus’
global airfreight network.
Handling more than 900,000
tonnes of transported goods a
year, Liège is Belgium’s largest
freight airport and the fastest
growing cargo airport in Europe.
A multitude of large airlines and
charters, like Qatar Airways,
AirBridgeCargo and Ethiopian
Airlines, use Liège as their
European hub and link it with
numerous regions worldwide.
“In addition to attractive
fl ight schedules, Liège airport
has excellent multi-modal
connections, which will enable
us to offer our customers more
air and rail freight products in
addition to sea freight products in
the future,” Frank Roderkerk, CEO
of Rhenus Air & Ocean Northern
Europe, notes. “Several trains a
week connect Liège with China
along the land bridge, including
Yiwu and Zhengzhou.”
For the future, Rhenus Air &
Ocean Liège will offer its clients
air, ocean, rail and project
transports and Europewide
distribution of goods, as well as
organise customs clearance and
fi scal representation. Rhenus also
offers the storage of goods within
the Rhenus Belgium network in
the ports of Genk, Antwerp and
Brussels, as well as at Brucargo.
www.airlogisticsinternational.com August 2020 7
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