Innovation in any sector is inevitable. When it comes to logistics, it’s surprising there hasn’t been more of it over the years, in an industry worth €5.725 trillion in 2020.
An innovation which is careering towards a necessity for shippers is visibility. The RTTVP (Real-Time Transportation Visibility Platform) space is becoming increasingly crowded. An increasing number of firms with international logistical supply chains are realising the potential every year.
So, what is all the fuss about? How do you achieve more location-analytics with air freight and why is important?
What is air freight visibility?
Visibility in logistics terms is exactly that. The ability to see where a particular shipment is at all times and at all stages of its journey along your supply chain. Visibility platforms place emphasis on being easy-to-use and the really good ones act as a single source of truth for all information relating to the goods.
That means Airway Bills can be stored in them, alongside any other documentation requirements. They also contain all the other important bits of data, including but not limited to:
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Shipment number
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Origin/Destination port
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Estimated date of departure/arrival
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Incoterms
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Weight/volume
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Much more...
So, the ability to see the precise location of cargo, is only a tiny part of the picture when people refer to ‘logistics visibility’. Tools give you a complete data set.
Over time you can compare cost and time data from week to week. Analyse the performance of different carriers, routes, and ports.
It’s data utilisation in a way that wasn’t possible before digitalisation.
Why is air freight visibility important?
As you can imagine, the benefits of air freight visibility are endless. Primarily around cost savings. Access to this kind of live data means inefficiencies can be spotted and removed as you streamline your supply chain. Disruption is minimised.
Over time, these enhancements increase the speed and robustness of your logistical supply lines.
You can read far more detail about the benefits of visibility in a supply chain in our article here.
How to achieve visibility in air freight
The big question. There are a range of visibility tools on the market. Some are offered by freight forwarders; others have been produced by venture capital funded technology start-ups. It’s becoming a congested sector.
The many location-analytical tools on the market offer different features and tracking methods. There is no shortcut, it just requires a certain amount of research to establish which one is right for you.
As you're looking for air freight geolocation, any of the options which specialise in sea freight container or road haulage tracking can be ruled out straight away.
Here are some points to consider when making your visibility tool decision:
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The amount of data you will be able to utilise. The more the better.
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How well you would be able to plan and anticipate disruptions.
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Whether you can work with the provider on additional features or improvement/enhancements.
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The ability to integrate the tool with your current systems.
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The type of tracking you would like, such as shipment or SKU.
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Whether the tool has AI learning to continually enhance the product.
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Accuracy of the data that is displayed.
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If a CO2 emission monitor is built in.
- Support offered as part of the onboarding process and beyond.
This is a crucial decision. One point of almost unanimous agreement is that you don’t want to be changing your visibility tool regularly.
Take your time. Trust in the provider is a huge part of this decision. Do they have experience in moving freight throughout their company? Do they understand the needs of a supply chain manager? Are they going to labour you with additional costs for every new feature that they release?
The WTA Platform, our market leading visibility tool is the consequence of over two years development and with 100 years’ experience in international freight behind it.
The combination of this tool and our high-quality service is an unbeatable setup for achieving supply chain reliability in a turbulent world. Acting as a single source of truth for all data, the huge range of information offered has potential to redefine your logistical efficiency.
Once you have a decision, begin the process of rolling out. But this is a seismic change in your businesses operations. Give it time and your supply chain will be your new competitive advantage.
