IT\\\


Clever tech keeps Kerry on track


Global third-party logistics (3PL) supplier Kerry Logistics has


employed Internet of


Things (IoT) technology in its introduction of smart sensors that support supply chain visibility. Now able to offer real-time


information across the whole supply chain on its international shipments, Kerry Logistics can support more agile decision- making on the part of its customers and ensure that speed and efficiency are optimised along that chain. The Kerry Logistics


KerrierTRACK is a platform that offers customers a user- friendly and convenient way to track their shipment, retrieve shipment reports and download


shipment documentation – all for free – supported by multiple platforms and devices, including mobile, tablet, and the web. It uses smart sensors that


monitor shipments across ocean, air, and ground transportation around-the-clock. The devices, accepted in over 190 countries across the globe, transmit data on location and environmental variables including temperature, pressure,


tilt, shock, humidity


and pilferage. They were not developed by Kerry Logistics, but bought off the shelf, and then integrated into Kerry’s own in- house-developed KerrierTRACK platform. “End-to-end visibility has


become a prerequisite to the agility to any supply chain,”


says Mathieu Biron, managing director - global freight forwarding at Kerry Logistics. “Global supply chains are


increasingly complex. Our adoption of smart sensor [technology]


provides


international customers with greater visibility and control, thus improving the quality of their operations, exception management, and demand planning. And do so at


lower


operating costs,” Biron adds. The real-time data provided


by smart sensors are particularly useful for those shipping time- and temperature-sensitive shipments in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries. It also helps those shipping premium goods including such as valuable consumer electronic products. Both consignees and shippers


are able to obtain first-hand information about the physical environment of the cargo


Kerry Logistics had studied and compared the features of several sensor devices developed by several partners in the months aſter June 2018, recalls Kerry Logistics’ group director of IT, Wilson Lee. “We chose the best among them, and we began trials of smart sensors in air and sea freight in August 2018.” Sensor technology in the air


environment has long been a problem, given that their signals can possibly disrupt aircraſt systems like avionics


Issue 3 2019 - Freight Business Journal


through personalised alerts or via the KerrierVISION visibility portal. “We anticipate


the sensor-


based logistics solution becoming an indispensable part of the supply chain, with the increasing adoption of IoT in the global logistics practices,” Biron declares.


Quick to market


or navigation. Nevertheless, confirms Lee, “Technically, it has been proven to work in air cargo. But we are in an ongoing discussion with our vendor to fine-tune the application process in the real environment.” Kerry


Logistics a offers flexible the


system to customers as required through


charging


scheme, which can be rolled in with a service fee or separated as a regular rental fee. As to other IT-related


improvements that Kerry Logistics has planned for the future, Lee informs: “We are in the process of implementing the Warehouse 4.0 initiative for automation, which is key to improving efficiency amid increasing labour costs.” In another field of rapid


technological evolution, Kerry Logistics’ ‘Drone Warehouse’ was a theme of its recently held ‘Hackathon’, being one of the six major ingredients of the


enables users to take spot rates into account in their ongoing search for favourable rates, while it also enables value-add services such as brokerage or trucking fees to be considered as part of the whole rate package.


Hong Kong-headquartered shipping and e-commerce fulfilment specialist Tigers is adding an instant freight rate engine to the range of capabilities enjoyed by its freight forwarder agents and shipper customers. The engine has been


developed by US-based tech start-up Doozee, and will be free of charge for forwarders to install. It will be available across Tigers’ international agent network and is expected soon to be hosted live on the Tigers SmartHub:Connect portal. The Doozee freight rate


engine will allow Tigers customers to access live quotes between all the company’s global locations, and to customise the service they receive through SmartHub:Connect. The Cloud-based engine


enables Tigers’ agents to send customers full quotes in seconds via email or as an online link, with customers able to respond with the click of a button. Moreover, in the future,


as the engine is further developed, Tigers’ customers will be able to see instant


quotes on SmartHub:Connect by inputting details of their consignment and route on their dashboard. Doozee will further develop


the engine to include links to postal operators, supporting Tigers’ e-commerce customers. The Doozee engine is


available in 12 different languages and contains an algorithm for ranking freight forwarders by transit times, reliability, price, and online ratings. “This is a significant step in


the digitalisation process for Tigers,” states Mark Gatenby, Tigers’


chief information


officer. “Doozee is a free of charge, agnostic ‘plug-in and play’ for everybody, and it is unique because it


allows for


community and collaboration between a company and its agents.” Doozee’s founder, Scott


Deerwester, adds: “Tigers is a forward-thinking global company, and, as a technologist, I share their commitment to embracing digitalisation, which makes SmartHub:Connect the perfect platform to launch Doozee.” “Doozee has been designed in a way that is appropriately


transparent and the business rules are clear, so that it is easy to use,” he declares.


SmartHub:Connect


Tigers launched SmartHub:Connect last year. It describes it as “the world’s first combined freight, e-commerce, and logistics portal”. As reported in a recent issue of FBJ, the Cloud-based platform gives customers end-to-end visibility of their supply chain globally, from transport, to e-commerce fulfilment. The addition of a freight


rate quote engine capability was hinted at back then, and this


latest announcement


represents Tiger’s second big IT release of the last three months. Gatenby explained to FBJ


that the Doozee engine is now live, having passed its beta testing, although it remains in a ‘ramp-up phase’. Data on some of the primary shipping lanes is already available on the engine, but, Gatenby notes, the data needs to be “comprehensive” across all important lanes, so much more data still needs to be added by Tigers and its agent network (Tigers itself is present in 11 countries, with agents in


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many others). Only then will it be rolled out to customers, a process that may take another couple of months. The Doozee quote engine


was developed as a kind of informal joint venture, a partnership between Tigers and Scott Deerwester. With both partners having long experience


of the shipping


and e-commerce businesses, the engine benefits from being designed “within the industry”, Gatenby opines. Perhaps as a result, it offers


benefits that many of the other rate quote engines don’t, he suggests. For example, it


One-stop shop


Eventually, Tigers expects to open up the Doozee capability


Hackathon


25


initiative. Kerry Logistics’ first took


place in


February 2019, an event where young tech enthusiasts combine robotics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to devise applications for autonomous drones to enhance operational efficiency and accuracy. “We see the Hackathon as a


major platform to explore ideas, as well as a way to connect to the younger generations with


limitless creativity, and


will continue to maintain such a platform internally and externally to push forward the innovative mindset in all Kerry Logistics associates,” Lee declares. Finally: “We also plan to further


adopt blockchain in order to facilitate a real IoT supply chain in which automation will come together with smart sensors and blockchain as a total solution,” Lee concludes.


to the market generally, beyond its own agent and customer base. This move would give Tigers oversight over industry trends, how users of the engine around the world are acting and reacting to change, and what they are looking for in their businesses. As such, Tigers would be


acting as an industry disruptor itself, rather than being disrupted by small tech start- ups, Gatenby notes. Tigers would be able to react quickly to market trends and industry developments, supporting the agility that is a core part of its corporate strategy as an e-commerce logistics provider. It would represent another


facet of Tigers’ ability to act as a one-stop shop in terms of being able to offer full shipping fulfilment capability – with complete visibility over all links in the supply chain.


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