BUS606: Operations and Supply Chain Management

4PL providers operating in a maritime context generally seek to minimize costs related with sea freight brokering. FreightHub embarked on this endeavor, too, and currently partners with over 1000 carriers to quickly draw up offers for suitable shipping spaces without the high margins charged by ship brokers. FreightHub provides a central platform, called Single Source of Truth Checklists and AI (SCAI), which serves as an interface covering the complete process: requests for quotations, booking, document management, worldwide real-time tracking of freight, proactive problem solving, and supply chain data analysis. Thus, the entire exchange of communication and flow of information between all involved actors is available in one place. To this end, there is a joint workspace for each specific operation/order, in which the entire order process, including all the relevant documents and various reports, can be displayed with maximum transparency.

With their SCAI platform, FreightHub has developed an internal system that uses new, digital technologies to meet the demand of networked operations. The basis for efficiently organizing the transport process and effectively communicating with the customer is a reliable database founded on real-time information. Customers benefit from proactive communication, particularly in situations where emerging problems can be detected and assessed in advance. This is ensured by having a single point of contact, who accompanies the customer through the entire shipping process.

Increased transparency also reduces complexity. All the data from the internal systems, the transport management system (TMS), the sales department, and business partners converge in one place and are automatically processed. This prevents data silos, which can lead to duplicate sets of data with different time stamps. It also creates very high-quality data. Every employee has real-time access, from any location, to the entire dataset of schedules, pending tasks, and previous communications. Information and documents, from the shipment booking to the delivery of the goods at the final destination, can be viewed and monitored by all employees at the same time. Instead of multiple contact persons, a central point of contact is responsible for supervising the entire transport process, from booking to delivery, and provides assistance for each step. This not only leads to higher employee satisfaction, but also to greater reliability and a better customer experience.

Higher quality data aggregated in a single source also enables fast and uncomplicated data exchange and leads to agility and proactive situation analysis. FreightHub's SCAI system, using AI, makes accurate predictions at an early stage, which leads to proactive problem solving and, in turn, increasingly reliable delivery performance. Among other advantages, the customer particularly benefits from avoiding high delay charges - e.g., through warehouse overloads. Agile dispatch scheduling further enables intelligent re-routing. In sea transport, various complications can occur at loading or discharge ports, which can cost valuable time. In such events, it is difficult for customers to react in time. FreightHub continuously monitors the entire transport chain, and can prevent this from happening. For example, if a customer's warehouse has reached capacity, a FreightHub employee will suggest an inexpensive inland terminal for temporary storage to avoid demurrage and detention.

Digital checklists are used to process all shipments. These checklists are special because they are not only digitized, but also fully automated. Behind the checklists is an intelligent system consisting of more than 80 algorithms. The data is sorted according to urgency, and the system sends a notification if action is required. This ensures that any information requiring immediate attention appears on the screen. The automated processes again lead to data transparency, which enables all parties involved to work together smoothly and without complications. Based on the dual control principle, the system permanently checks incoming data, detects any need for action, and reports this autonomously. FreightHub states that the "most important feature, however, is [its] ability to prioritize and assign tasks to the required hierarchical level before they reach a critical stage. In the event of unscheduled developments, a previously defined responsible person at management level would be notified, whereby the warning can be linked to a defined sequence of appropriate actions". The systematic aggregation of individual data by means of AI effectively assists risk management along the transport chain. In addition, routine, time-consuming tasks, such as filling out forms by hand, are no longer necessary. This makes "every day" work easier, and allows employees to focus on the most important tasks.

SCAI also provides the option to monitor the supply chain in real time. Through real-time updates of all shipment schedules, it is possible to track the whereabouts of each individual shipment. Shipment tracking for sea transport is carried out via Automatic Identification System (AIS) ship tracking. The AIS is a data exchange system introduced to improve shipping safety and enable the exchange of data, at national and international levels, about passengers, ships entering or leaving ports, and hazardous or environmentally harmful goods being transported by ship. The main purpose of introducing AIS is to provide a wider range of available, continuous, and reliable navigational data. It has become common practice to use data transmitted by AIS to increase shipping safety. Apart from being useful for marine traffic control, AIS data can be a very important source of information for avoiding collisions.