Hapag-Lloyd has started rolling out real-time tracking devices on its dry container fleet to offer visibility and boost transparency across the supply chain.
The first IoT devices are being installed on dry containers at the CMR depot in Wilhelmsburg, Hamburg.
In the coming weeks, the carrier said installations will begin in other selected container depots in North and South Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Within the next year, up to 200 depots worldwide will take part in the installation of 1.6 million devices on standard containers.
Most of Hapag-Lloyd’s containers are expected to be trackable by the end of 2023.
The container fleet is currently being equipped with devices from the established TradeTech partner Nexxiot, and devices from ORBCOMM, a global leader in IoT solutions, will also be installed starting later this year.
“We are very excited to get started now. We are the first carrier in the industry to undertake such a far-reaching step towards the digitalisation of container shipping,” said Dr. Maximilian Rothkopf, COO of Hapag-Lloyd.
“The containers leaving our depots with a tracking device will now be fully visible to us and, in a next step, to our customers as well – whether they are in a warehouse or moving on a truck, train or barge.
“We believe that the increased transparency has the potential to improve the management of strained supply chains for the benefit of our customers.”
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The tracking devices will be able to transmit data in real time from each container and make supply chains more transparent and efficient, according to Hapag-Lloyd.
The new solution will supply location data based on GPS, measure ambient temperature within the container, and monitor any sudden shocks to it. The devices also integrate energy-harvesting technology and low-power consumption techniques.
“Digitalising our entire container fleet will be a challenging task. We are now making the first steps of a large-scale project,” said Andrea Schöning, Senior Director Container Steering, Hapag-Lloyd.
“In this first rollout phase, it will be important to streamline all processes together with our IoT partners so as to achieve the technology’s full potential.
“At the same time, we aim to make this product quickly available to our customers, as they require and increasingly expect these kinds of digitalised solutions.”
Hapag-Lloyd said its product for dry containers will become available for customers over the course of 2023.
Revenues increased in the first half year of 2022 to $18.6 billion, mainly due to higher freight rates.
