Triple digitalization: Time slots, door management and license plate recognition / Extension to other users beyond handling agents / More security and minimization of peaks in handling

FRA – DB Schenker in Germany is the first freight forwarder at Frankfurt Airport to introduce slot booking and ramp management via the FAIR@Link Cargo Community System developed by allivate. In addition, a license plate recognition system automatically opens the barrier gate to the site for pre-registered vehicles. The slot booking and ramp management system is already well established at the handling agents Frankfurt Cargo Services (FCS), LUG, Swissport and Çelebi.

“With FAIR@Link, we have combined many benefits at once. We are making pick-ups and deliveries more flexible, balancing out door occupancy and providing automated and secure access to our facilities,” explains Nouri Boulahrouz, Head of JETCargo Handling at DB Schenker. Between 200 and 300 trucks arrive at the logistics company's air freight facility in CargoCity Süd at Frankfurt Airport every 24 hours.

"Starting immediately, dispatching and receiving companies as well as transporters can digitally reserve a time slot for loading and unloading. Since handling times vary greatly depending on the freight, FAIR@Link automatically calculates the individual duration of the time slot based on cargo details. “In 80 percent of air freight cases, the average slot length is 45 minutes,” says Dirk Gladiator, Management Director of allivate, providing a point of reference. Boulahrouz adds, “We are observing a positive change in behavior in terms of deliveries. The traffic system takes advantage of the increased flexibility in comparison to fixed schedules.”

In addition to making planning easier for truck drivers, DB Schenker is also using FAIR@Link to optimize management at the eleven ramps available for slot bookings so that they can be used to their full capacities. According to Boulahrouz, a further integration phase is currently being rolled out: “We are in the process of implementing an interface from our goods management system (WMS) to FAIR@Link in order to continue automated use of the data.”

For allivate Management Director Gladiator, the successful introduction at DB Schenker in Germany at Frankfurt Airport shows that slot booking and ramp management are ideally suited to other user groups such as freight forwarders and logistics companies and can produce high added value.  

About DB Schenker - JETCargo

DB Schenker operates an air freight hub for Europe at Frankfurt Airport in CargoCity Süd, which ensures fast and precise air freight handling for international transports. Over 30 DB Schenker offices in Germany alone use the hub and maintain scheduled services with the JETCargo hub in Frankfurt for their air freight imports and exports.  

New service developed by allivate joint venture to expand digital Cargo Community System – Real-time dashboard to show incoming cargo consignments at CargoCity South – World-first system for entire cargo process chain at FRA

A new ‘Cargo Dashboard’ service will display incoming cargo volumes and processes at Frankfurt Airport (FRA) in real time – representing yet another milestone in optimizing cargo processes through digitization. The aim of the dashboard is to provide participating companies in the cargo community with a comprehensive overview of current operating conditions. Companies can use this data to assess these conditions realistically, allowing them to adjust their processes if necessary.

Martina Schikorr, Managing Director at allivate GmbH, explains: “The Cargo Dashboard supplies at-a-glance information about the entire process chain to all participants. This includes distribution of cargo volumes across the day, current throughput times, infrastructure utilization, as well as the overall process performance. The system allows bottlenecks to be identified and for resources to be more efficiently allocated. It also provides customers with reliable insights into performance.”

The user-friendly dashboard will be integrated into the existing FAIR@Link platform as part of the digital Cargo Community System to provide cargo community decision-makers in particular with valuable insights into current on-site process quality and efficiency.

The innovation from allivate has been made possible thanks to comprehensive data from the systems of a large number of companies, matched with the combined expertise of airport operator Fraport and IT firm DAKOSY.

Particularly noteworthy is the high level of cooperation from the companies at the site, which provide their data transparently. This underlines the close and trusting cooperation within the cargo community, which played a key role in the development. Unlike conventional Business Intelligence (BI) dashboards, allivate’s solution integrates data from a range of sources to provide a comprehensive and overarching state-of-play for all participants.

Anchoring digital infrastructure / Developing and operating cargo community systems / Faster market launch of new air cargo applications

The software provider DAKOSY and airport operator Fraport have established the joint venture allivate GmbH, in which both stakeholders hold a 50 percent share. The basis of the joint venture is the establishment, operation, and further development of cargo community systems for air freight. The partners endeavor to further advance the digitalization of air cargo processes both at Frankfurt Airport and internationally. Martina Schikorr (Fraport) and Dirk Gladiator (DAKOSY) have been appointed as Managing Directors.

The main goal of the venture is to further expand the jointly-established FAIR@Link Cargo Community System. With the founding of allivate, Fraport demonstrates its strong commitment to the cargo business. Schikorr sees this as a signal: "A functioning digital infrastructure is a must-have for every modern cargo hub. We want to offer our customers the best cargo community system possible so that their processes will run simply, smoothly, and quickly. More than 1,000 participating companies are thus given the commitment to have Fraport alongside DAKOSY as reliable partners for digital infrastructure and, with allivate, one central point of contact on site.”

Customers benefit from the synergies resulting from the alliance. Fraport contributes comprehensive airport know-how and its function as a neutral link to the local cargo community and the authorities. DAKOSY adds its wide-ranging IT expertise in all aspects of cargo handling and customs clearance as well as many years of experience in the development, operation and technical support of the Cargo Community System - Made in Germany. For Gladiator, the processes of air freight handling and digital infrastructure are inextricably linked: "We are pooling our strengths and can therefore launch innovations and digital solutions onto the market faster. The active role of the cargo community in Frankfurt plays an important part, as together we jointly develop all digital processes along the supply chain there.”

At the Frankfurt site, the partners are already taking digitalization to the next level with the Cargo Community System and its comprehensive database. Gladiator and Schikorr have identified three specific areas in which processes can be further streamlined and optimized. For example, customs requirements can be even more conveniently implemented, the digitalization process for land pick-ups and deliveries is to be further developed and e-commerce functionalities are to be automated to an even greater extent.