With the rapid growth of e-commerce, most products we use in our day-to-day life are shipped by air, sea, rail, and ground. To keep ahead of the competition, increase efficiency, optimize delivery, and reduce costs, T&L companies have already entered the digital era and embraced smart data’s potential.
Thanks to IoT, software solutions combined with sensors and connectivity technology have given life to parcels and containers, sending beneficial information and helping T&L companies to track and trace their goods. That is why implementing standard-based solutions for the shipping industry is key to ensuring their technology investments remain viable for years to come.
In a recent article, André Simha, CIO of MSC and spokesperson of the nascent association, said, “It’s in the customers’ and all stakeholders’ best interest if container shipping companies operate with a common set of information technology standards.” And A.P. Moller-Maersk’s CTO/CIO Adam Banks adding, “A joint set of technical standards ensures interoperability enabling all parties to concentrate on value-adding differentiation as we move the container shipping industry towards further digitalization.” Indeed, as the shipping industry continues to gain in scale and volume, competing organizations and their respective competing IT ecosystems will need to talk to each other as business models, consumer demand, and efficiencies continue to evolve. Interoperability is key to avoiding fragmentation and being locked out of future opportunities.
Like other industrial sectors, the shipping industry is excited by the opportunities Industrial IoT (IIoT) represents. In this rapidly changing business environment, it is essential that companies digitally transform to stay competitive. Standards like LwM2M/IPSO allow organizations to pursue business opportunities while eliminating the risk as technological landscapes continue to evolve.
Some companies, like TRAXENS, involved in the industry interoperability workgroups, have already integrated IoTerop’s IOWA standard-based SDK solution into their IoT projects to make sure all connected devices onboard can be monitored and maintained remotely. Lucas Moulin, TRAXENS’ Program and Solution Director explains,
“TRAXENS strongly believes that having a turnkey solution like IOWA with robust, open services helps reduce time-to-market, future-proof our solutions going forward while ensuring full interoperability. The IOWA SDK allows us to create an IoT ecosystem in which all stakeholders can share the benefits.”
Next level value is created when businesses collaborate on multi-party optimization across multiple enterprises, from embedded systems to cloud to shipping goods. Openness benefits the entire T&L industry. Those lacking the ability to ensure interoperability, device management, and security will increasingly find themselves left behind. Contact us to learn how IOWA can safeguard your company’s future.