Intel’s new Connected Logistics Platform helping players to reduce freight spoilage
New report by Dimensional Research from ITU News has revealed that about 89 per cent of logistics and shipment service providers believe a lack of visibility into the status of their supply chain is one of the biggest challenges they face during operations.
Already, Intel’s new Connected Logistics Platform (CLP) is designed to give companies detailed levels of insight into the status of assets as they move through the supply chain, allowing them to make intelligent, real-time decisions.
This, analysts say can hopefully minimise loss or spoilage of freight (30 per cent of all perishable goods spoil before reaching their destination), maximise asset utilisation, and optimise end-to-end supply chain operations.
Globally, transportation and logistics companies are faced with costly challenges when shipping high-value freight, sensitive equipment and perishable goods.
CargoNet has also noted that the US and Canada saw 554 cargo thefts with an average loss of nearly $207,000 per shipment in 2016.
Chet Hullum, GM for Industrial Solutions at Intel said “After assessing our internal supply chain needs and the needs of the industry, we forged a unique collaboration with Honeywell,” noting that “Together, we’ve customized Intel’s Connected Logistics Platform technology to deliver an IoT offering that solves real logistics problems. Thanks to data accessibility, shippers and carriers will be able to establish a more reliable supply chain network by having deeper visibility and information on shipments.”
On Connected Freight, Intel’s announcement was made in conjunction with Honeywell unveiling its Connected Freight IoT and cloud solution.
The solution is based on Intel’s CLP and was developed in collaboration with logistics providers DHL, Expeditors and Kuehne + Nagel. It uses cost-effective sensor tags that sense a range of factors, including location, temperature, humidity, shock, vibration, tilt, pressure, proximity and exposure to light.
Businesses need direct access to data that informs them weather conditions during transit or during the loading process have not damaged the product. This monitoring could involve knowing if perishable goods – such food and flowers – or pharmaceuticals were exposed to heat that could spoil the product, or if excessive vibration on the road has damaged sensitive equipment.
Connor Charles, VP of Technology Sector Americas for DHL was of the view that “We see visibility tracking solutions such as this as an important component to our semiconductor logistics efforts and is something we believe will bring tangible value across other sectors within DHL as well.”
According to him, “Shipment visibility solutions such as the Connected Freight solution are a critical solution path for logistic service providers to meet the long-term goals of in-transit visibility, security and handling care that are critical elements in industries such as life sciences, semiconductor and others in the future.”
