When Freight Writes Its Own Log
Know where the freight is at all times, whether it will arrive in time, and whether it was damaged in transit — a new logistics solution from Bosch Digital makes for high transparency along the supply chain. The aim is to achieve a continuous digitized material flow.
A digital travel log in the Cloud
Supply chains of manufacturing companies are very complex. A great number of companies are involved in the processes with an even greater number of different IT systems. The result is nontransparent supply chains. The solution is Track and Trace. With this holistic logistics solution, the freight writes its own digital logbook. Not only, does the freight transmit each station along the route, but also the present location and status are sent to the Cloud
at regular intervals. For instance, schedulers can view at any time where the freight is located and whether it can be expected to arrive in time. In addition to the location, data relating to temperature, vibration, and humidity is also transmitted. The logistician knows right away if conditions are not right for the packages. Track and Trace provides seamless tracking of the transported goods, making capacity and material requirements planning easier.
Track and Trace makes it possible to depict complete transport processes: By using appropriate IoT devices, such as wireless sensors and gateways, data is acquired about each packaged unit, such as load carrier with its goods, their position and their condition in transit are tracked.
Material Tracking
In Material Tracking, each package is equipped with a sensor and linked to the shipping information during the pairings. The sensor then transmits data to the gateways at short time intervals. Depending on customer requirements, the data relevant for product quality, such as temperature, humidity and vibration, can also be communicated.
Asset Tracking
In the same way, Track and Trace can also be used to monitor containers or load carriers. For this purpose, the containers are permanently equipped with sensors and can be located at any time in nearly real time. The transparency thus achieved permits optimized planning, a higher degree of utilization of the containers, and new forms of billing for the rental. Furthermore, bottlenecks can be avoided and losses analyzed.
Track and Trace is implemented in the supply chain by Plug & Play. System integration is thereby unnecessary. In addition, supplied data can be rapidly integrated in existing logistics applications.
Two consumers, one logistics solution
Bottlenecks never again
A customer from the automotive industry uses the logistics solution for long intercontinental and intermodal supply chains. The solution makes it possible to generate reliable almost real-time data about the location of individual packages and their shipping status. The data is forwarded directly to the parties involved to identify possible bottlenecks in good time and to initiate appropriate countermeasures.
Optimized container management
A machinery and plant manufacturer, uses Track and Trace to monitor a closed circuit of containers. The closed circuit covers three plants and includes several external service providers. The result: The load carriers are easier to trace, the container fleet has a higher degree of utilization, and losses can now be analyzed precisely along the entire supply chain.
