Transportation & Logistics Antwerp 2023

Following the Benelux market trends

Trade fairs dedicated to logistics and transportation are significant events in central Europe. The ongoing trends in transport, distribution, and automation are of great interest because of the high density of transport routes in countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. Therefore, these Benelux countries, along with France, are playing a crucial role in international transportation.

From October 17 to 19, Transport & Logistics Antwerp 2023 took place in Belgium. The event attracted more than 11,000 visitors and featured 300 exhibitor companies from logistics, transportation, real estate, technology, and the IT industry. Software development companies formed a strong base of nearly 20% of all the exhibitors. This figure clearly shows that companies from logistics and transportation are actively pursuing automation trends. They are seeking solutions for real-time fleet tracking within route planner software and transport management software.

Adexin was a guest at this exciting event. We had the great pleasure of immersing ourselves in the logistics and transportation market of central Europe. We listened to the local market needs of various transportation companies, and it was evident to us that there is a high demand for quality data management and seamless transportation document exchange.

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Article by:

Iryna Stepchenko

International freight forwarder in central Europe

A great example of the added value to such an event is the Port of Antwerp-Bruges in Belgium and the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. These two places are often the transshipment sites for transportation channels that span across Europe. For example, in 2012, the Port of Antwerp-Bruges handled more than 14,000 sea trade ships with over 190 million tons of cargo. While its neighbor, the Port of Rotterdam, took 15.3 million TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units) in 2022. This is, in total, nearly 468.7 million tonnes of cargo. These figures speak for themselves and provide a clear view of this region as an essential player in the transportation industry. [1][2]

With such a high transport volume comes the entire transportation chain. International forwarders play a crucial role in supporting multimodal transportation objectives. There is an endless number of forwarders that organize cargo transport by air, truck, or rail. Rail transportation was highly appreciated during the event in Antwerp because rail transport is a significant channel from one of the biggest ports in Europe, the Port of Antwerp-Bruges.

The Port of Antwerp-Bruges – global freight and challenges for an intermodal channel

During the event, we had the opportunity to listen to 75 speakers in 25 seminars. Our attention was driven by the workshops related to sustainability and global freight. These two subjects are one of the highest interest to us. Adexin is actively pursuing sustainability in transportation, which involves solutions to minimize fuel usage through intelligent route planning, retrieve real data from tachometers, and reduce paper document flow through transport document digitization.

For the special attention disserve presentation made by Tineke van Ginneke, Account Manager Shippers and Forwarders from Port of the Antwerp-Bruges, about new transportation channel between the United Kingdom, Port of Antwerp-Bruges and Poland. At that point, Tineke introduced modern way transport via sea and rail, stating that rail transport is very energy efficient.

This kind of multimodal transport involves various modes, including sea, rail, and road transport. The final stage of delivery to warehouses still depends on trucks and trailers. Regardless of the mode of transport, it involves several different ways of transport, which requires seamless document management.

The biggest challenges for the freight forwarders in this transport documents flow between various transportation companies. A good example of such a document flow can be given by the Certificate of Origin (COO), which validates the manufacturing place for goods. And so, goods produced in China are delivered to the Port of Antwerp and transported to the warehouse in Frankfurt, Germany, which will still require a COO.

The COO is still handling the paperwork. How much easier that could be once each involved party could use a single system to manage documents in digital format. Here is where document management system (DMS) can come up with a custom software development and embedded solution for document digitizing. Any transportation business can easily leverage its capabilities by using document scanning software that directly digitizes transport documents and provides them to each stakeholder.

This kind of solution for transportation can reveal the following benefits:

Better accessibility

Digitized data can be accessed from anywhere. You can break down location and time barriers. No matter if the shipment is from China or North America. You can streamline data flow, giving access to your customers and partners to the same source of data.

Cost-effective

Digitization eliminates the need for physical document storage. Your company can reduce costs associated with office space, warehouse storage, security, and maintenance.

Robust Security

Digital access allows for precise control and quick access to data. This increases security and protection against leaks through appropriate cybersecurity measures. Access to data is much more difficult as only specific users can access it.

Increased Productivity

Digitized data can be accessed by multiple carriers simultaneously, saving time and effort in handling paper documents.

Reliable Data Storage

Digitized data can be stored in multiple secure locations. Using various servers accessible through the secured network, you can protect it from damage or loss, unlike physical documents that are vulnerable to natural disasters.

Green and Sustainability

Digitization reduces the need for printing and promotes environmentally friendly data handling, saving natural resources. Average transportation companies have permanent contracts for delivering paper for print. The costs of paper can vary even up to 40,000 per month.

Competitive edge

Immediate access to digitized data enables smooth record retrieval and analytical insight. In that way, you can provide a competitive advantage as many companies don't understand the value of digitization and use obscured solutions, pushing their staff to create multiple copies of paperwork.

Summarizing

Transportation trade fairs provide important value to businesses seeking to stay updated with the latest industry trends. Our presence at this event demonstrates our commitment to the Benelux market, which plays a crucial role in international freight forwarding.

We truly appreciate the insights shared by the speakers, many of whom have emphasized the significance of document digitization in the transportation industry. With our custom software development solutions for transportation, we can deliver significant value to carriers and freight forwarders. Regardless of the transport segments they represent, we have numerous cases where we've supported transportation companies.

Would you like to learn more about document digitization for transportation? We can help simplify the complexities of your transport operations for your day-to-day tasks. Contact us today, and let's explore how you can gain a competitive edge.

References:

[1] Retrieved from: https://www.portofantwerpbruges.com/en

[2] Retrieved from: https://www.portofrotterdam.com/en