The digitalization of the transport delivery chain on roads

The project was preparatory and investigative and layed the foundation for a larger pilot project where one by using available freight-relevant information, adding new data sources and sharing these amounts of information in a controlled manner can achieve a higher level of security with regard to when the transport arrives and a better knowledge of the impact that the transport has had on the goods (eg sustainability for food).

The project also studied the possibility of reducing manual processes such as scanning of pallets and handling of paper documents.

Finally, the project explored the possibility of increasing societal benefits by describing the sustainability impact the transport has had in terms of both ecological sustainability and social sustainability (such as regulatory compliance with regard to driving and rest times) appropriate to monitor contract compliance and CSR policies, for example. The possibility of supplementing Fair Transport was investigated.

Conclusions

The visibility of the supply chain is a very complex problem requiring more actors onboard. This includes logistics providers, academia, IT system suppliers etc. We have identified several areas for continuation.

One area is to make a proof of concept solution to radically lower the thresholds in the form of cost and complexity for introducing a digital freight transport chain by the vehicle manufacturer (OEM) by integrating a basic functionality in the vehicle that can report back from a goods sensor in the trailer. This would enable the haulier to digitally make the goods' position available over time to the consignor. Since the position of the goods is reported in real time, better decisions can be made. This can lead to more efficient transports, a higher degree of filling and the possibility of following up key figures to identify potential for improvement.

A second area is to find suitable ways of sharing the information with a special focus on who “owns” the information and which stakeholder is considered a reliable partner where both traditional centralized, federated and distributed (blockchain-based) solution hypotheses can be explored.

A third area is to continue to build on the learnings of the value proposition canvases that were created in the project and to study how business models can be created so that all necessary players in the chain have incentives for their activities. To achieve this, it is important to 1) create sufficient added value through efficiencies and improvements in the process 2) ensure that this value is distributed in an appropriate manner between the parties in the value chain.