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CHEMICAL LOGISTICS
TALKING TO TANKS DIGITISATION • ITCO HAS DECIDED THE TIME IS RIGHT TO DEVELOP STANDARDS FOR DATA COMMUNICATION IN THE TANK CONTAINER AREA AND HAS ENLISTED HELP FROM NEXXIOT AT ITS LAST members meeting in Amsterdam in early October, the International Tank Container Organisation (ITCO) decided to establish a dedicated work group to look at standards for data communication and telematics. “Standardisation is an evolving practice with inbuilt adjustment mechanisms,” says Patrick Hicks, ITCO’s general secretary. “ITCO involves as many stakeholder groups as possible, to enable a discussion comprising all the important technological and commercial concerns.” As part of the move, ITCO has accepted a request from Nexxiot to join the Organisation. Nexxiot will, it says, be able to play a central role within ITCO in the development of international standards for the tank container industry. “Nexxiot’s contribution to ITCO’s work, as an expert in digitalisation of the freight market, will contribute to work that the organisation is undertaking and proved benefits to our members,” Hicks says. STANDARDISE FOR EFFICIENCY “Standardisation is a key for a highly efficient digitised supply chain,” says Tim Thiemnn, Nexxiot’s segment head, tank containers. “Particularly in the area of IoT, there must be agreed upon standards to ensure that quality, safety and sustainability in the tank container industry are maintained in the future. Nexxiot works with the most advanced solutions for the supply chain and we have extensive
NEXXIOT ALREADY HAS PLENTY OF EXPERIENCE IN DIGITISATION IN THE INTERMODAL SECTOR
HCB MONTHLY | DECEMBER 2019
experience in digitising large fleets of cargo assets. That is why we want to use our know-how to support the goals of ITCO.” New standards will reduce conflicts among the various technology providers, as open and inclusive standards ensure the market is not flooded with inappropriate IoT technology. Agreed standardisation processes will guarantee that business cases are supported and operability issues are covered. “The global supply chain stakeholders require interoperability, which means inclusive standards for both hardware and software, open protocols for communication platforms and business processes,” explains Marianna Levtov, commercial project manager at Nexxiot. “Interoperability standards will increase supply chain efficiency and enrich
the market with better suited products which do not compromise on quality.” For the tank container sector, the value of standardisation is particularly important in the field of cargo quality. The ability of ITCO’s members to handle sensitive cargo appropriately will strengthen their position within the market, Nexxiot reasons. “Great value is extracted from gaining a strong mutual understanding of the requirements and challenges and can help to define an industry-wide vision which forms the basis of any consortium of interests and subsequent ongoing negotiations,” the company says. Nexxiot creates transparency along the supply chain and enables customers to differentiate their own business models and optimise their existing process. When attached to transport assets, Nexxiot’s IoT sensors generate data on such factors as location, temperature, shock and more. This data is then analysed by Nexxiot’s algorithms and provided via a cloud platform directly to the customer in near-real time. As a leading enabler of the digitised supply chain, the company is adept at taking care of the requirements and needs of all parties in the supply chain and will leverage that experience to help ITCO’s members. www.nexxiot.com international-tank-container.org
