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In an interview with Air Cargo Week Nanne Onland explains how Schiphol becomes the smartest airport in 2018 by cooperation, better and faster processes and a renewed information platform.

Interview Air Cargo Week 18 July 2016:

Cargonaut targets full digitisation and paperless system

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol’s information platform, Cargonaut is reinventing itself.

In January this year it was given two million euros to modernise the system with half the money coming from a Top Sector Logistics grant, with the remainder provided by Dutch Customs, Logius, Air Cargo Netherlands, Schiphol Group and Cargonaut.

The cash will be invested in the next two years to renew the community information platform and applications. Cargonaut says large-scale information sharing is among the challenges that lie ahead.

Cargonaut chief executive officers, Nanne Onland explains: “It is challenging and exciting, which it has been for some time and we are busy with the project. We need to modernise Cargonaut and for the benefit of Schiphol. It is important for the industry we are reinventing ourselves and we reinvent processes for the industry.”

Onland says the target at Schiphol in two years’ time is to be 100 per cent paperless, fully digitised, and to have developed standardised trade lanes. He notes: “We need to prove it can be done in a number of trade lanes with a new platform and work with airport friends and work together sharing data, best practice and information. Hopefully in two ears time we have the quality and the value is there and the model is then copies by other airports”. Onland adds: “All parties at Schiphol will reap the fruits. With the help of a renewed Schiphol Community Information platform, better and faster processes will be supported with modern tools, and can also be further developed towards the creation of new ‘Green Fast Lanes’.

“Strong co-operation, well-managed processes and maximum support from the state-of-the-art IT resources are the keys to increase the competitiveness of Schiphol, and therefore of all stakeholders, including the government.”

Air cargo needs modernising across the entire supply chain, and although much is being done, many feel it is well behind where it should be. Onland feels the industry has to work together in a new way and upgrade processes: “The supply chain for the great majority is a process that we developed in the past century and to redo it again – we have to reinvent it as we would not redesign the it is now.

“The way we get to that is experimentation and there are no big bangs. Big programmes will not get us there, we need small steps. Think big, start small and innovate.”

Onland says the goal is to make Schiphol “the smartest airport by 2018” and it is working with other gateways with the aim of improving standards and processes across trade lanes.

He says: “We are working with Heathrow Airport, Frankfurt Airport and Brussels Airports – talking about cargo performance, processes and need to work together. “We can only make ourselves ‘smart’ but we have to develop standards and must share to others so they can put it into their network. It is all about making trade lanes smart with standards, sharing data and information to improve efficiency and processes. We need collaboration to reach out to other network communities, check the boxes so things are more efficient across the supply chain, with standardised processes, and so boost trade.”

 

What is the context?

KLM, Dutch Customs, Schiphol and Cargonaut are collaborating on a Smart Mainport programme to make Schiphol the smartest cargo airport in the world. This includes designing and implementing smart new supply chains with 100% predictability.

What does the NLIP project consist of?

KLM Cargo, cargo handler Swissport, air cargo trucking company Jan de Rijk and shipping agent Kuehne + Nagel are developing, via a Proof of Concept, a method for implementing these new chain designs and digitally exchanging data in practice for lorry transport from Frankfurt to Schiphol. Cargonaut is responsible for developing the technology which enables data to be reused between cooperating parties. This means that data supplied once can be reused, supplemented or modified as necessary by the other parties in the chain, in accordance with the current situation. In addition to exchanging administrative data, it also enables the parties to share shipment status information and temperature data, for example. The parties are only permitted to access information if they meet certain conditions (identification/ authorisation) and sign a protocol.

What is the working method and schedule?

For the Proof of Concept, the logistics chain has been ‘split up’ into a number of steps:

1. Data transferred from customer to KLM.
2. Shipment accepted in Frankfurt (e.g. load safety check, data accuracy, schedule). 3. Transport by lorry to Schiphol (e.g. ordering and prioritising loads, checking for correct CMR, departure and arrival times).
3. Arrival at Schiphol (e.g. unloading schedule: where, when, which aircraft).
4. Data shared across the chain (e.g. what data, how to collect it, how to enrich it with new data).

 

At each step, the parties must identify what is needed to achieve the desired results. This involves general and process-related agreements, allocation of roles and the necessary technological functionalities. Steps 1 and 2 will be tested from September to December 2016. Steps 3, 4 and 5 will be tested from January 2017 onwards. A second Proof of Concept for a smaller chain will follow after the first Proof of Concept in order to test the general usability of the technology and working method. The schedule will be defined in further detail.

Completion of project: April 2017.

When will the project be considered successful?

• Proven added value: faster processing*, no delays due to repairs at Schiphol and data that is always accurate (Air Waybills and House Waybills)
• The parties have finalised their agreements regarding the data sharing process through general-purpose (process) agreements/contracts.
• The new technology is capable of facilitating this process.
• The platform and working method can also be used for other/smaller transport streams

*Targeted handling time at Frankfurt: 3 hours -> 2 hours; Schiphol: 5 hours -> 3 hours.

September 2016

Cargo Gateway Amsterdam – Air Cargo Week August 29, 2016:

Network expansion helps Schiphol grow tonnage

Tonnage at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol was up two per cent year-on-year (YOY) in the first seven months of 2016 – as July boosted the figures when YOY growth was 4.4 per cent reaching 139,650 tonnes.

During the period, Europe has performed strongly, up YOY by 42.6 per cent and driven by the addition of new carrier Silk Way Airlines, from Baku, and Jet Airways to India, while AirBridgeCargo Airlines, has extended services via Moscow, and DHL and Cargolux have also upped frequencies.

Schiphol’s network is set to grow further and cargo director, Jonas van Stekelenburg, says it is in a number of promising discussions with carriers, and is looking to announce more at the end of the year. The Far East has delivered despite concerns about the Chinese economy, as imports were up YOY by 4.1 per cent in the first seven months of the year. Indeed, Van Stekelenburg puts much of the growth down to Schiphol’s strong connectivity into Asia Pacific, the hub’s biggest market. He is confident the airport remains an attractive hub for the rising amounts of e-commerce shipments coming from the region despite uncertainty in China, and it experienced only a 0.9 per cent YOY dip for Asia during July. For 2016 as a whole, Van Stekelenburg predicts based on Schiphol’s own performance and the rest of the market, it will see YOY growth of two per cent on 2015. He explains: “The upcoming half-year will further boost our stronger verticals such as perishables and drive up the high-tech market, particularly from Asia, as more and more gifts are bought online.” Schiphol is somewhat of the flower hub in Europe, which keeps its performance in the perishables sector strong and steady, while Van Stekelenburg says it is also seeing promising results in pharmaceuticals and e-commerce. Pharma has been boosted in part by the Pharma Gateway Amsterdam (PGA) initiative at Schiphol, put in place by the whole community and Van Stekelenburg says it means through clarity and tracking Schiphol is providing the “best service ever” to pharma customers. He adds: “E-commerce has surprised us with the performance; through conversations with Dutch Customs, with whom we work closely, it is clear that the number of small shipments are up, and they are seeing an increased number of declarations each month. We see this particularly as an area of opportunity to improve service delivery.” 2016 has not shown the same strong increase in bellyhold tonnage, which it saw last year but rather held at consistently high levels, a trend it attributes to the increase in e-commerce shipments,as smaller parcels are transiting Schiphol in ever increasing numbers, a sentiment he notes is echoed by  colleagues in Customs.

 

Expansion needed

Integrators are doing particularly well, while freighters and bellyhold are currently on par, with full freighter movements up 7.1 per cent in the first seven months of 2016. Expansion of cargo infrastructure is also on the cards and Van Stekelenburg says he is in the planning stage with all stakeholders, but the hub needs to make sure it gets development right from the very beginning. But it is much needed as due to passenger numbers rising each year, Schiphol is facing new considerations regarding airport capacity, especially when planning any expansion. He says: “A month ago airport movements at Schiphol were second largest in Europe with an almost 10 per cent increase compared to last year. We celebrate such positive results and look forward to tackling the challenges they present. “Currently we’re considering how we would accommodate for idle aircraft and other spaces, a decision we expect to involve our whole cargo community in making.” The big opportunity for Schiphol is the pharma sector in Van Stekelenburg’s opinion as the PGA initiative is able to provide customers with the levels of quality and transparency they expect:  Forwarders, handlers and airline members of PGA work together to devise and hold one another  accountable for a single set of high quality pharma handling standards.” Hot on the heels for opportunities is e-commerce, which is an area of huge growth at Schiphol especially for small parcels and the gateway is  embracing the cargo landscape and working with the cargo community on initiatives aimed at providing  customers with the best quality they can.

 

E-Freight drive

Like many airports with major cargo flows, digitising processes and going paperless is seen as vital to improve efficiency and drive business. Schiphol was an early adopter of the e-freight process, and is part of the International Air Transport Association 360 program and e-freight at Schiphol continues to grow and now represents 40 per cent of all freight. This is likely to grow further and Van Stekelenburg says uptake for  the Schiphol Cargo Community’s eLink program, which is based around a smart card enabling paperless transfer of all shipment data to handlers at the airport, has risen steadily throughout 2016. He says  Schiphol is committed to working with all sectors of the industry to accelerate the implementation of e-freight across the supply chain, with eLink integral to this, Van Stekelenburg says: “The benefits of eLink are significant and has been shown to save up to 25 per cent of time on some ground handling processes. “The elimination of data rekeying also helps with accuracy, which will become even more important as new security initiatives including advance data requirements are brought in. “The challenge is to engage all sectors of the air cargo chain and at Schiphol we are doing just that.”

ACW Digital edition 29^th August 2016

Cargonaut becomes first dedicated Air-PCS member of International Port

Community Systems Association

The International Port Community Systems Association (IPCSA) has welcomed its first dedicated air cargo Port Community System member, the Netherlands company Cargonaut.

Based at Schiphol Airport, Cargonaut celebrated its 30th anniversary in May (2016), and brings to IPCSA a wealth of experience in the field of Air-PCS services.

Cargonaut, a market leader in information services for the air cargo industry, provides specialist software and consulting services to airlines, freight forwarders, handling agents, carriers, consignors, Customs and other public administrations.

“Joining IPCSA will enable us to work with other Port Community Systems and join forces nationally and internationally,” said Lex Werkhoven, Senior Strategic Advisor at Cargonaut. “We look forward to working together towards the standardisation of information and air cargo processes, to optimise and create value for our customers. IPCSA also provides the benefit of promoting a joined-up approach of business and government agencies.”

A number of IPCSA’s members already operate in the air environment as well as the ports environment. As a dedicated Air-PCS operator, Cargonaut will bring to IPCSA conferences, working groups and discussions its own in-depth knowledge and expertise in the air cargo business, including market intelligence, processes, information and use of data, as well as technical knowledge in the field of data, messaging, connectivity and system architecture, said Mr Werkhoven.

Port Community Systems, whether they are working in the air or sea cargo sectors, operate in a fast-moving, dynamic environment. For Cargonaut, a key issue is the creation of ‘Green Fast Lanes’, requiring cooperative working between business, Customs and other government agencies.

“Other challenges include modernising the use of data and re-design processes to make the maximum use of reliable data – changing from digitised documents to pre information based processes,” said Mr Werkhoven. “A further challenge is the creation of a ‘network of networks’, connecting Port Community Systems, to benefit customers both nationally and internationally.”

Richard Morton, Secretary General of IPCSA, said: “We are delighted to welcome Cargonaut as our newest member and as our first dedicated Air-PCS member. This represents not only a further expansion of our membership but also adds a new dimension, as Cargonaut brings its very specific experience in the air cargo sector to the Association.

“IPCSA was founded as a European association five years ago; since then, it has continued to expand rapidly and we now have more than 30 members around the world, providing representation in each of the five UN Regional Commission regions.”

IPCSA’s geographical reach enables it to address the needs of members on a regional as well as international basis. The Association also has consultative status at the International Maritime Organization, providing an important platform for representing the needs of its members at the highest level.