A View from the Board

Jan Kleine-Lasthues, Chief Operating Officer Airfreight, Hellmann Worldwide Logistics, shares the latest work of the Cargo iQ Board and his vision for optimizing the supply chain through these efforts.

What are the key goals being addressed by the Board at the moment?

It is important to bring Cargo iQ into the future. To further develop communication via the Cargo iQ standard, our goal should be to integrate additional features into the messaging, such as temperature updates as well as sustainability information about the carbon footprint of each shipment. I believe this would add significant value to our services.

Furthermore, it is our ambition to increase the use of Cargo iQ as a global standard by gaining new members from all relevant sectors. These include not only airlines but also GHAs and forwarders. We also need to intensify the cooperation with small and medium sized forwarders. The fact that we have recently gained FIATA as a new member is a very important milestone in this respect, as it opens up a whole new pool of potential members for us.

Another topic we are looking at is AI. Because only with standards can we drive automation through digitalization. No doubt - AI is a buzzword that is used everywhere, but it can create real added value in the air freight business if we have established our standards and can automate workflows with AI.

What are the current biggest challenges in the supply chain and how is Cargo iQ helping to address these?

We have had a turbulent few years in the air freight industry. Because basically nothing went as planned due to global market disruptions. As a result, we look back on a time when route planning was impossible because everyone was happy to find any possible routing without worrying about transportation milestones. Now, after the pandemic, business is returning to a "new normal." Cargo iQ supports this positive development with its standards to bring back more planning, quality, and reliability to global supply chains.

What benefit do you see in Cargo iQ membership?

As a member of Cargo iQ, we can design and drive the future of air cargo standards and shape them to create real added value. This means you have the opportunity to actively support the working groups, contribute new ideas and set the standards. In addition, as a member you can benefit from all Cargo iQ features.

Why would you encourage other businesses to become a member of Cargo iQ?

The Cargo iQ standards are fundamental in increasing the quality of operations by allowing for a better planning of shipments and by reducing manual workflows. This also allows for an optimized supplier performance management.