Lufthansa Cargo joins air cargo digitalisation project

Lufthansa Cargo has joined a new air cargo digitalisation project which aims to improve the networking of airfreight companies in Germany.

The Digital Test Field Air Cargo of the German Federal Ministry of Transport (BMVI), which is coordinated by the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics (IML), is looking to increase the efficiency and performance and competitiveness of air cargo in Germany.

As part of the project, Lufthansa Cargo will focus enhancing data exchange between partners in the transport chain. This data exchange is then used as the basis for all “data-driven optimisations and artificial intelligence based applications”.

Digital accompanying documents from manufacturers to consignees will be made available to all parties by using IATA’s open One Record standard.

Likewise, temperature data, position data and photos of the entire transport chain are to be made available in order to identify and solve problems earlier.

“This can increase transparency and make processes and capacities more efficient through better forecasts and higher data quality,” Lufthansa Cargo said. “Eventually, this also leads to a reduction in CO₂ emissions.”

The project was launched as air cargo in Germany is in “fierce competition with locations and providers in Europe and the world”, the carrier said, adding that “air cargo has proven its systemic relevance for supplying the German and European economy and society during the pandemic”.

Lufthansa Cargo’s executive board member for operations and human resources Harald Gloy, and a member of the BMVI’s Innovation Commission, said: “We are pleased that the Federal Ministry of Transport has clearly committed itself to airfreight in Germany with the Digital Test Field Air Cargo.

“We want to contribute to further strengthening Germany as a business location. That is why we are contributing our many years of experience in digitalisation along the supply chain to this nationwide project and ultimately also want to set international standards.

“Digitalising airfreight further also means making it more sustainable. To this end, we see great potential in optimised data exchange between all partners in the airfreight transport chain, for example, which we want to leverage.”