Category Archives: Technology

GMR Aero Technic (GAT), the MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) division of GMR Air Cargo and Aerospace Engineering Ltd. (GACAEL), has been awarded an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Boeing Global Services (BGS) contract to convert 737-800 passenger aircraft into a 737-800BCF configuration. GMR Aero Technic is the first Boeing Converted Freighter (BCF) partner to be located in India. The partnership will support conversions of both domestic and foreign aircraft. GAT has bagged the contract through a global competitive RFP (request for proposal) bid which Boeing had announced to identify MROs for their B737BCF program. GAT has been selected for the program post a detailed due diligence conducted by Boeing. GAT will be the 4th location after China, UK and Costa Rica, where the freighter conversion work will be performed for the B737 BCF program. Initially, this program will cover 30 plus aircraft BCF conversions, occupying multiple lines successively for appx. five years beginning in year 2023. Speaking on this partnership, Mr Ashok Gopinath, CEO, GMR Aero Technic said, “With the rise in the Indian aviation industry, MRO services in India has been one of the fastest- growing market globally. The partnership with Boeing reaffirms our capability to provide world- class MRO services and further contribute to the “Make in India” initiative. We thank Boeing for the opportunity given and look forward to working together for future initiatives.” “Our cooperation with GMR Aero Technic not only a testimony of the maturation of Indian MROs in the country to support the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat, but also supports the anticipated growth of the cargo sector in the region,” said Salil Gupte, president, Boeing India. Key features of GAT – GMR Aero …

FedEx has announced plans to open its first Advanced Capability Community (ACC) in Hyderabad, India in 2023. The opening is part of a broader multi-year initiative to strengthen the recruitment and development of the company’s diverse workforce all around the world and build a more efficient and agile organization to enhance how we deliver for our customers. FedEx plans to set up ACCs in different parts of the world in the future. Locations will be selected based on business needs and access to highly skilled talent pools. Each community is planned to be staffed by full-time FedEx team members across many functional areas who will provide shared services to support the technological and digital requirements of the entire FedEx enterprise. The digital innovation these communities will provide will enable the company to provide even greater value in the global supply chain ecosystem. The Indian government’s focus on providing world-class infrastructure to build a technology-driven and knowledge-based economy makes the country an ideal location for the first ACC. The first ACC will be situated in Hyderabad and is anticipated to launch in the second half of 2023. The state of Telangana and its capital, Hyderabad, has been focusing on its engineering and digital enterprise talent pool to support international organizations that want to set up a presence here. “FedEx is creating the world’s most flexible, efficient, and intelligent supply chain for our customers,” said Raj Subramaniam, FedEx Corp. president and chief executive officer. “The opening of our first Advanced Capability Community in India, a critical market for FedEx, will enable us to be faster, more flexible, and secure as we innovate digitally. This move supports our long-term vision to grow our …

IBS Software has announced the completion of a transaction to acquire Accenture Freight and Logistics Software, which provides technology platforms to help airline and ocean transportation companies manage freight operations and grow through digital transformation. The acquisition will strengthen IBS Software’s leadership as a technology provider to the airfreight industry by bringing together complementary solutions and a shared vision for innovating and transforming the air cargo businesses, a company spokesperson announced. VK Mathews, Executive Chairman of IBS Software, said the acquisition is an important milestone for the company’s cargo and logistics business in its bid to broaden its global footprint, with ocean transportation being a natural adjacent industry to expand into. “It is also a synergistic opportunity to bring decades of our experience and expertise to the ocean cargo business, as well as strengthen our own capabilities to provide greater value to the air cargo customers.”

CargoAi, airfreight’s fastest-growing digital enabler, is proud to announce the launch of CargoWALLET, a modern payment solution for air cargo with supply chain financing capabilities, allowing freight forwarders to make payments for their air cargo shipments directly within the CargoMART booking flow. CargoWALLET’s key USPs for freight forwarders are summed up as follows: 1. Streamlined Booking & Payment: Search and book shipments instantly – no IATA Cass Number, AWB stock, or bank guarantees required. 2. Flexible Finance: Manage cash flow effectively with extended payment terms (PayLater). 3. Global Reach: Book air cargo from anywhere in the world, with local payment in more than 30+ currencies. Started as a project 2 years ago and accelerated with the CargoTech partnership, this groundbreaking payment solution is revolutionizing the way the air cargo is booked and is now finally released to all freight forwarders, following months of successful testing. CargoWALLET enables shipments to be booked and paid for without an IATA Cass Number, without an AWB stock, AND without any bank guarantee, specifically tailored to empower small to medium-sized freight forwarders. CargoWALLET also addresses the needs of medium to large freight forwarders who have an IATA Cass number, but may not have AWB stock with all the carriers due to expensive bank guarantees, or certain airlines still requiring such forwarders to produce bank guarantees. All of these scenarios require additional steps for freight forwarders to fulfil their daily business demands, adding up to more costs and time required. “We are excited about the exponential capabilities CargoWALLET brings to the industry. Not only does air cargo booking become more seamless, but the entire procurement from search, quote, booking, and now payment can be done within …

Locus launches ‘Last-Mile Maturity Assessment’ – an industry-first benchmarking tool designed to help enterprises evaluate strengths, uncover hidden inefficiencies, and identify new growth opportunities in their last mile. To help businesses evaluate the maturity of their last-mile operations, the free interactive online assessment conducts an in-depth analysis through well-researched questions spanning five fundamental performance indicators: • Last-Mile Excellence: How robust last-mile capabilities are in the face of exceptions, unpredictable volumes, and profitability • Customer Experience: The quality and consistency of the customer experience an organization’s last-mile offers • Workforce Empowerment: Employees’ abilities to handle last-mile challenges • Advanced Analytics: The opportunity to leverage last-mile data and make more informed decisions on the supply chain • Sustainability: How environmentally sustainable a company’s last-mile function is today The assessment then scales enterprises on a 5-point rating system and categorizes them as businesses in the Emerging, Growth, or Optimized stage. Assessment takers walk away with a 360-degree comprehensive report that delivers personalized recommendations and actionable insights on how to unlock new revenue, & make delivery experiences a differentiator for enterprises. “Last-mile is the face of the modern customer experience, and while many companies are starting to prioritize this function more than ever before, not all know exactly where to start to successfully and strategically improve their operations in impactful ways,” said Nishith Rastogi, Founder and CEO of Locus. “What Locus’ Last-Mile Maturity Assessment brings is the power of knowledge – not at the execution level where many of our customers are currently focused, but in the planning and back-end stages that shape critical roadmaps. We’re arming enterprises with actionable insights on not just where they can level up these processes but how they …

Sharing his predictions for New Year, Nitish Rai, CEO and Co-Founder, FreightFox says, “2022 has been a year of reckoning for global logistics and supply chains. The year created the sensitivity and need for strong supply chain visibility and resilience across manufacturing logistics. This year has also been instrumental in laying the foundation of rapid digitalisation and data-led transformation to create future-ready logistics. Also, 2022 saw strong tailwinds with organisations globally talking about ESG / Sustainability also as a core theme and taking aggressive objectives towards building net zero value chains. We believe this year was foundational in many ways and learnings post-Covid and carved a well thought future path for transformation and resilience in 2023.”

Online cargo booking portal CargoAi and Logistics management platform Magaya have entered into partnership to connect and use APIs, allowing Magaya customers to retrieve and compare airfreight schedules, availability, pricing, information on aircraft types and a CO2 calculator. “We are excited to now offer the ability for our Rate Management customers to discover the best air shipment schedules and rates in a matter of seconds with our CargoAi partnership,” said Mark Buman, chief revenue officer at Magaya. Matt Petot, founder and chief executive of CargoAi, added, “Our integration with Magaya Rate Management will allow freight forwarders to benefit from operational efficiencies while our airline partners gain access a greater network of buyers.” CargoAi recently agreed a strategic partnership Chain.io, a cloud-based integration platform linking players across the global supply chain.

Mahindra Logistics Limited (MLL) announced the strategic collaborations with 10 innovative technology startups during the CATAPULT Premier Day at Bengaluru. The CATAPULT incubator program is one of the most ambitious technology-based initiative of Mahindra Logistics. Six cohorts of CATAPULT 2.0 have been collaborating with MLL over the past nine months and technology MVPs (pilots) were successfully piloted during this period. MVPs were focused towards developing sustainable solutions and enhancing operational efficiencies in the logistics and mobility space. CATAPULT Cohort 2.0 covered wide technology domains such as Vision tech, Advanced analytics, AI-based optimizer, location-based monitoring tech and sustainable LMD solutions. Six startups part of Cohort 2.0 were Accio Robotics, Linkeddots, Constems—AI, SenseGiz, Jidoka Technologies and Aurita Bikes. During the award ceremony, Strategic Collaboration MoUs were signed with eight startups–HiPer, Enmovil, KoiReader, Accio Robotics, Aurita Bikes, Constem–AI, Linkeddots, and Sensegiz. The technology startups will be integrated as part of MLL’s ‘Smart Automation Program’.

WIZ Tracks flagged off its fleet of trucks for temperature-controlled shipments at the recently concluded Cold Chain Unbroken 2022 event in Hyderabad. Guhan murty, Director, Land transportation Solution Wiz Truck said, “We operate a fleet of over 1600 trucks. We currently operate around 25 reefer trucks and we have plans to scale it up to 50 trucks by December. We see a lot of growth opportunities in this segment because it’s highly fragmented and there are very few big players who are supplying cold chain products pan-India. We have plans to cover all the pin coded in India.”

Kale Info Solutions (Kale), the US subsidiary of Kale Logistics Solutions, has entered a partnership with Chicago Rockford International Airport (RFD), USA, to implement its Airport Cargo Community System (ACS), the pair announced at the 13th annual Air Cargo Handling & Logistics conference. Kale’s ACS implementation will reduce manual documentation and data entry time for cargo handlers at RFD, increasing process efficiency at the airport as well as reducing truck congestion and streamlining cargo flows. RFD has seen annual air cargo throughput triple over the last five years, with a 25% increase in volumes recorded in 2021, and the airport has increasingly become an important Midwest hub for e-commerce and international trade. “As the fastest growing cargo airport on the planet, we’ve partnered with Kale to provide the RFD cargo community with the most efficient, transparent cargo IT platform in the marketplace,” said Mike Dunn, Executive Director, RFD. “Kale will allow us to further streamline the digitisation and movement of cargo at RFD today and to keep up with the demands of our growing cargo operations in the future.”