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Tag: air cargo|IT|software

Google’s Logistics Partner of the Year Announced

Posted on by Will Priestman

Manhattan Associates Inc has received ​the 2025 ​Google Cloud Partner of the Year Award for Supply Chain and Logistics. This prestigious award highlights Manhattan’s role as a​n​ innovator within the Google Cloud ecosystem, its commitment to driving customer success, and its pioneering application of Agentic AI and Generative AI (GenAI) within the Manhattan Active® Suite over the past year.

“Google Cloud’s Partner Awards recognize partners who have created outsized value for customers through the delivery of innovative solutions and a high level of expertise,” said Kevin Ichhpurani, President, Global Partner Ecosystem, Google Cloud. “We’re proud to announce Manhattan Associates as a 2025 Google Cloud Partner Award winner and celebrate their impact enabling customer success over the past year.”

“We are honored to be recognized as Google Cloud’s 2025 ​Business Applications Partner of the Year Award for Supply Chain and Logistics​,” said Sanjeev Siotia, executive vice president and CTO, Manhattan Associates. “This award is a testament to the deep collaboration between Manhattan and Google Cloud, as we work together to bring cutting-edge cloud infrastructure, data analytics, Agentic AI and GenAI capabilities to our joint customers. We look forward to continuing this partnership and driving the future of resilient, AI-driven supply chains and omnichannel commerce.”

At the core of Manhattan’s AI-powered innovations is Manhattan Active® Assist; an intelligent, contextual GenAI assistant designed to transform how users interact with the Manhattan Active solutions. Included with all Manhattan Active subscriptions, Manhattan Assist provides a natural language summary of how applications are currently configured and gives instant, accurate responses to questions about product functionality, API structures and more, across multiple personas, roles, and functions.

Manhattan Active® Maven is the company’s Agentic AI offering – an AI powered agent infused with order, payment, store location, and product availability information to deliver personalized, contextual customer service, akin to those delivered by human agents. Built on an Agentic AI platform and Google Gemini​ models​, Manhattan Active Maven is easy to implement and embeds seamlessly with websites and mobile applications, deflecting customer service inquiries, while boosting customer satisfaction and loyalty.

“Manhattan Active Assist and Manhattan Active Maven showcase the real-world power of AI in supply chain and logistics, driving unprecedented levels of personalization, productivity, and cost-savings. Manhattan’s continued partnership with Google Cloud enables us to deliver scalable, resilient and innovative solutions that address the complex challenges of modern supply chain networks,” Siotia finished.

Recently, Manhattan and Google Cloud collaborated on the second edition of the Unified Commerce Benchmark—the industry’s only analysis of unified commerce in specialty retail based on real-world purchases, returns, and customer interactions across digital and physical channels.  The 2025 edition revealed the common attributes of the most successful retailers, tangible retail best practices, and key opportunities to enhance customer value through modernized operations.

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BIFA Freight Service Awards Winners Revealed

3 Conveying Lessons Learned at LogiMAT 2025

Posted on by David Priestman

At LogiMAT 2025, one thing became crystal clear to: logistics operations are under more pressure than ever. Rising energy costs, unexpected breakdowns, and the push for sustainability mean businesses simply can’t afford inefficiencies. Florian Kley shares with you three key Conveying related lessons taken away from this year’s event.

Conveyor systems must work smarter, last longer, and be easier to manage.

1. High energy costs are straining budgets – but there’s a smarter way

With energy prices constantly fluctuating, every kilowatt really does count.

Many of the professionals I spoke with are under immense pressure to cut costs while still ensuring their operations perform at the highest level. This is where Ammeraal Beltech’s AMMdurance rPET belts come into play.

Their dry fabric treatment reduces friction, lowers power consumption in long-term by 17% in average, and extends their lifespan. This means real energy savings without compromising performance. Compared to standard synthetic belts, our PET fabric solutions also reduce CO2 emissions by 1.2 kg and decrease greenhouse gas release by 70%. It’s a smarter, more efficient way to operate.

2. Downtime is a constant headache for business

I’ve heard this time and again: every minute of downtime is lost revenue.

When unexpected breakdowns occur, especially during peak seasons, it’s a nightmare. Many visitors shared their frustrations about belts wearing out too quickly or breaking at the worst possible moments. This is exactly why we focused on ZipLink® belts.

Designed for ultimate flexibility, ZipLink® belts allow splicing at any length with just a single pin. The unique mesh structure not only simplifies splicing without special tools but also ensures quick maintenance and minimal downtime—critical for keeping operations running smoothly during those high-pressure peak seasons.

3. Managing conveyor belts shouldn’t be a hassle

One consistent issue I heard during my discussions with logistics experts is that finding technical data, certifications, or maintenance records shouldn’t slow down operations—but it often does. That’s why I was excited to see how well Ammeraal Beltech’s AMMcare Connect resonated with so many visitors.

With a simple QR code scan, everything operators need is right at their fingertips. This makes belt management effortless, helping to minimise downtime and make operations more efficient.

Stay ahead of competition!

The logistics industry is evolving rapidly, and the challenges are undeniable. But with the right conveyor solution, combining efficiency, durability, and digitalisation is within reach.

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New Product Line Optimizes Mid-rate Sortation

Three Themes to Shape the Logistics Industry in 2025 

Posted on by David Priestman

2024 has seen continuous evolution across all aspects of the warehouse and logistics sector, from the increased adoption of electric vehicles in logistics fleets to new sustainability initiatives being implemented across the industry. However, in an age where technology is rapidly evolving, leaders must be wary of the impact this has on their workforce and focus on employee satisfaction and upskilling. Looking ahead to 2025, the key themes set to shape the warehouse and logistics sector fall across robotics, sustainability, and the employee experience.

The Era of Humanoid Robotics

In an industry driven by precision, robots have proven to excel in compliance, whilst also improving accuracy in stock counting and speeding up the response time across the warehouse. The Robotics market in the UK is expected to grow at a rate of 17.37% annually until 2029, resulting in a market volume of £2.5bn by the end of the decade. Within that, there is a particular focus on the growth of humanoid robots that are projected to reach USD 1.3 billion by 2030.

This growth is largely fuelled by the rapid adoption of AI technologies across various industries, and the governments emphasis on digital transformation. Across the globe, we are already seeing an uptick in companies adopting robots within the warehouse sector, with companies such as Tesla and Boston Dynamics already beginning to develop their own humanoid robots at pace.

Earlier this year, Iron Mountain partnered with Dexory to implement its mobile robots and the AI powered DexoryView platform across its warehouses. These robots will be able to scan 15,000 locations per hour, without impacting day-to-day operations. Ultimately, this will enable staff to upskill and reduce the need for taking on laborious and often, time-consuming tasks.

The Race for Energy

In the final quarter of 2023, the UK reached a significant milestone in its renewable energy production and matched the previous peak in 2022. This milestone saw the proportion of electricity generated from renewable sources rise to a new UK record of 47.3% This is encouraging in a landscape of ongoing financial pressures facing businesses due to the rising energy costs and the challenges posed by environmental targets. Equally, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine is continuing to result in increased issues linked to the supply of non-renewable energy.  Despite that, the warehouse and logistics industry must focus on making a sustainable energy future. With the April 2030 deadline for all warehouses to have an EPC B rating or above in order to sign a new lease, organisations are continuing to ramp up their sustainability efforts.

One of the initiatives being implemented is solar-based energy due to the substantial amount of available roof space at warehouses. For instance, at Iron Mountain’s Rugby Campus Energy Centre, there is an integration of rooftop solar PV, battery storage, and a combined heat and power plan. This system delivers resilient, 24/7 solar electricity and ensures supports sustainable energy consumption. By utilising a mix of energy sources and advanced distribution systems, it ensures continuous operation without heavy dependence on traditional power grids, significantly reducing its carbon footprint. As we look to the year ahead, and a greener future, we can expect to see more organisations finding new ways to futureproof their own infrastructure, address the energy challenges and reach their sustainability goals.

Reshaping The Employee Experience

It’s been over a year since the phenomenon known as “The Great Resignation” swept the world of work, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down. The UK warehousing and logistics sector is in the grip of a labour shortage, with employers across the country expressing concerns over the shortage of drivers, engineers, pickers, and packers. Historically, warehouse employees have been viewed as short-term shift workers that ‘clock in and clock out.’ But things across the industry are steadily beginning to change. Employers are beginning to realise that to gain and retain talent, it is crucial for warehouses to create spaces that speak to today’s diverse workforce.

Whether it is a prayer room, a communal dining area, or a quiet room for employees to take personal phone calls, sit in counselling sessions, or break a religious fast, these details can lead to employees feeling more valued, more seen, and respected. With many of the UK’s warehouses being based in diversely populated areas of the country, including the famous Golden Logistics Triangle in the Midlands, there is a growing focus on reshaping the warehouse experience to serve the needs of the area’s population. In the coming year, the industry must continue to listen, learn, and create spaces for their employees to thrive at work. Doing so will motivate existing employees, while also attracting talent from a diverse range of backgrounds.

BlueBox Systems partners with IoT developer Hanhaa

Posted on by David Priestman

BlueBox Systems, provider of the unique Air Freight Tracking SaaS solution BlueBoxAir, together with Hanhaa Supply Chain Solutions, provider of Internet-of-Things tracking and asset management devices and solutions from the UK, have launched the partner product Air FreightLive. This product, based on BlueBox Systems BlueBoxAir, logically expands Hanhaa’s product portfolio of specific supply chain software and innovative trackers.

With Hanhaa Supply Chain Solutions, BlueBox Systems was able to gain one of the most exciting IoT providers and developers on the logistics market as a partner. The UK-based company combines its own hardware solutions and service platforms with its own mobile network to create powerful IoT solutions for the international logistics market. This portfolio is now being expanded to include a real-time tracking platform for air freight.

Hanhaas says Air FreightLive offers unique benefits: End-to-end tracking means you always know where your freight is worldwide, whether at the airport or in the air. No EDI interface or extra hardware is required for this. All you have to do is call up the online dashboard and you will directly receive a detailed insight into your current shipments. In the future, the data of the ParcelLive trackers, for example, can also be integrated to ensure maximum transparency and data fidelity of the supply chain.

“Besides Hellmann Worldwide Logistics, Hanhaa is the next company for us, to whom we gladly and out of conviction provide our technology as a white label solution. We are sure that we will grow together and exploit potentials,” said Martin Schulze, CEO of BlueBox Systems.

“Air FreightLive is successively expanding our product portfolio. In BlueBox Systems, we have found a partner with whom we have been able to specifically build this great partner solution, which is in no way less than the usual quality of our products,” added Azhar Hussain, CEO of Hanhaa.

Transporeon partners with BlueBox Systems

Posted on by David Priestman

Supply chain digitalisation expert Transporeon and air freight real-time tracking platform provider BlueBox Systems are now working on joint solutions to enable even more transparency in air freight.

In an industry such as logistics, where increasingly precise figures and schedules are the order of the day, digitalisation is the logical consequence in terms of further development and optimisation of supply chains. With new technologies in tracking and the retrieval of logistics data in seconds, one’s shipments can be tracked precisely – an overview and transparency that the industry would have dreamed of 20 years ago.

Transporeon is one of the pioneers in this field and has quickly become one of the most important players in the field. It is constantly expanding its network and capabilities. In this context, the latest partnership between Transporeon and BlueBox Systems makes perfect sense.

Transporeon, with over 1,000 employees and offices around the world, offers a range of successful transport logistics platforms that it uses to connect all the players involved in a supply chain. This has resulted in one of the largest cloud-based logistics platforms in the world with a focus on process optimisation. Through the partnership with BlueBox Systems, solutions are now also to be developed that include air freight.

With its BlueBoxAir solution, BlueBox Systems offers a product that enables companies and logistics providers to track their air freight to the minute, analyse loading times at airports and thus plan optimal supply chains. In addition, the platform offers the possibility of displaying the respective CO2 emissions for each shipment.

Accordingly, the partnership of these two companies is very good news for the logistics industry, which will further advance goal-oriented digitalisation through new products.

“Transporeon was a kind of dream partner for us from the very beginning because, like us, they combine many years of industry experience with cutting-edge technology. A joint solution will have a lasting impact on the industry for years to come, I am sure,” says Martin Schulze, Managing Director of BlueBox Systems.

 

Industry-first ETA solution for airfreight introduced

Posted on by David Priestman

FourKites, a leading real-time supply chain visibility platform, has introduced its latest AI-powered innovation, Dynamic ETA for Air. For the first time, shippers, carriers and 3PLs can track 100% of air freight with highly accurate and automated estimated times of arrival (ETAs).

This unprecedented visibility into air freight means the supply chain can now have greater confidence in a mode of transport that is typically utilised for the most critical shipments, but that has been notoriously difficult to track. Real-time visibility into all air freight, with extremely accurate predictive ETAs, empowers supply chain partners to optimise downstream planning, reduce the time and expense of manual track-and-trace efforts, and increase customer satisfaction in the process.

“FourKites’ Dynamic ETA for Air has provided the visibility needed to help reduce turn times on urgent product requests for fulfilling critical customer orders, while also eliminating nearly 75% of shipment tracking email inquiries to our global logistics team,” said Kimberley Segel, Director of Global Transportation, Zebra Technologies.

Shipping via air has been estimated to cost 4-5 times that of road transport, and as much as 16 times that of ocean, but it is indispensable for shippers’ most critical and/or time-sensitive freight, including pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, perishable agricultural and seafood products, emergency shipments of spare parts or simply goods for which customers demand the fastest delivery. In addition, brands are increasingly turning to air cargo to expedite freight as inventory delays continue to plague supply chains.

To date, however, air freight has been plagued by a lack of real-time visibility, due to the complexity of the global air network, as well as multiple stopovers and transfers of goods in hub airports. As a result, ETAs for air shipments have only been available 40% of the time and could be off by as much as two days, creating myriad downstream logistical and customer service issues. By leveraging the latest and most advanced machine learning algorithms and knowledge graphs, FourKites’ Dynamic ETA for Air provides ETAs on 100% of air freight, and is accurate to within 9 hours.

This unprecedented predictive visibility means businesses can expect to spend far less time and money resolving delays, thereby enhancing their customer experience. In fact, FourKites customers have experienced two times higher customer satisfaction scores through their use of Dynamic ETA.

FourKites saw 97% growth in air loads tracked from 2020 to 2021. The platform now supports over 100 airlines and 17,000 airports, and has seen 40% growth quarter over quarter.

“When it comes to rapidly transporting critical goods, no other mode can compete with air,” said FourKites CEO and Founder Mathew Elenjickal. “Our announcement of Dynamic ETA for Air means that shippers, carriers and 3PLs can now enjoy greater ROI — not to mention peace of mind — from their significant investments in this critical mode of transport.”

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