Data sharing specialist Nallian has extended its Landside Management Suite with the Road Feeder Management app, empowering trucking companies and ground handlers to coordinate airport-to-airport pick ups and deliveries. The application is an extension to Nallian’s proven Slot Booking app and is integrated with Be-Mobile’s mobile app for truck drivers, “Truckmeister”.
The Road Feeder Management app enables trucking companies providing Road Feeder Services and their associated ground handlers to also enjoy the benefits of Slot Booking, such as zero waiting time and accurate planning of resources; it also facilitates coordination through real-time updates of the estimated arrival times and communication with drivers on the road. Following recent successful testing, in a first phase the app will be used by handlers WFS and Aviapartner and by trucking companies H. Essers, Ninatrans and Jan De Rijk Logistics, starting July.
A dynamic approach to Slot Booking
Traditional Slot Booking empowers trucking companies and freight forwarders to book time slots for pick-ups and/or deliveries at a ground handler’s premises according to his capacity. This is a challenge for trucking companies who are operating Road Feeder Services and operating off premises, as ETAs are prone to shift due to longer travel distances. Also, the data and communication flows for airport-to-airport deliveries are different, with specific requirements and expectations. The Road Feeder Management app is designed to answer these specific needs: with the app slots are booked dynamically, meaning they are adjusted automatically in view of the actual ETA. For this, the application integrates with Be-Mobile’s Truckmeister app, which is used by drivers for a.o. navigation using traffic guidance and updating the ETA during the drive. It also enables communication between handlers and drivers, with push notifications available in 9 languages.
Increasing efficiency at Brussels Airport
One of the reasons for missed slots and inefficient transport planning is the increasing volume of traffic on our European roads. With accurate ETA calculation and Nallian’s dynamic slot booking platform the waiting time, and therefore also the financial loss for transport is reduced to the minimum. In addition, ground handlers can better manage their activities knowing when to prepare for an arriving truck. Truckmeister allows for a smoother move of cargo from anywhere in Europe, towards, at and from Brussels Airport. As Truckmeister supports 9 languages, foreign truck drivers are guided to their destination in their native language.
An automated, digital approach
Using the Road Feeder Management app, the entire Slot Booking process is streamlined thanks to an automated, digital flow:
- As soon as an order is created in the TMS of the trucking company, the ground handler receives a pre-announcement of the pick-up or delivery, allowing him to plan and inform staff ahead.
- Once this order is planned in the TMS, a slot is booked automatically based on the specifics of the order, such as ETA, import/export, load meters, etc. Similar orders are grouped into one slot to maximize efficiency at the zone.
- During the drive, the actual ETA is updated via the Truckmeister app and time slots are adjusted accordingly; if an adjacent slot is unavailable the ground handler is invited to manually propose a new time.
- The ground handler can manage all reserved slots (Road Feeder slots and the “traditional” slots used by the on-premises community) from the same integrated User Interface.
- At all times, the handler can communicate with the driver through the Truckmeister app, with messages available in 9 different languages to accommodate the international background of drivers.
- In the future, the digitization of the process will be further expanded with capabilities such as the uploading of documents, for example e-CRM.
Brussels Airport’s cargo community first to enjoy the benefits
The Road Feeder Management app will initially be used at Brussels Airport’s cargo community by H. Essers, Jan De Rijk Logistics, Ninatrans, Aviapartner and WFS, starting July. Steven Polmans, Director Cargo & Logistics at Brussels Airport, comments: “Since 2018 we have been successfully using Nallian’s Slot Booking app and we have seen the huge benefits it is bringing the community, especially the forwarders and handlers operating at our cargo zone, such as the elimination of 90% of waiting time. We are delighted we can now also extend those benefits to our partners who are running Road Feeder Services and operate off-premises. The Road Feeder Management app is yet another reinforcement of BRUcloud, our community’s Cargo Cloud and yet another step towards more integrated, collaborative work.
Says Jean Verheyen, CEO of Nallian: “With our suite of Landside Management apps we strive to empower cargo communities to digitize and hence streamline their A to Z freight management process. We are excited to extend its benefits to more actors in the network and to empower Brussels Airport’s cargo community to once again lift the bar for collaborative cargo operations.”
Gerd Nees, Business Unit Manager for Tolling and Logistics at Be-Mobile, adds: “The success of operating a slot booking platform depends highly on getting an accurate ETA from trucks driving towards Brussels Airport. Having the most up-to-date traffic information allows us to notify Brussels Airport of early and late arrivals so they can communicate and take appropriate actions accordingly.”
