Koch International Launches Digitalization Project with Qwyk and SimpliShip

Koch International is launching a joint project with startups, the freight technology provider Qwyk and SimpliShip, to develop a comprehensive portal solution for the German logistics company. For Koch, this is a milestone in digitalization. The project is scheduled for completion by the end of the second quarter of 2021.

(Osnabrück/Rotterdam/Boston) The innovative portal solution will equip Koch International’s customers with tools for self-quoting, online booking, track & trace options, and a seamless booking management system for both air and sea freight. Additionally, other global QwykPortal customers will have the opportunity to access nationwide pre- and post-haul rates through Koch International. The expansion of European truck rates, which Koch International offers in collaboration with network partners, is planned.

The collaboration with Qwyk and SimpliShip is a key pillar of Koch International’s digitalization strategy and a milestone in optimizing air and ocean customer service. By providing easy access to live data and an innovative customer portal, Koch International aims to significantly enhance the efficiency of its transport supply chains for its customers.

Expanding Service for Customers

“With the new platform, we can further expand our service for customers. We are very pleased that in the future they will quickly and easily get a comprehensive overview of all their shipments with just a few clicks,” says Silvia Schminder, Intercontinental Business Development Manager at Koch International. “The advantage is not only transparency but also speed. The platform allows for flexible responses to changing conditions in the supply chain. Furthermore, users have the option to access offers 24 hours a day. We are particularly excited that we can attract new customers and offer them tailored transport solutions. Through the collaboration with Qwyk and SimpliShip, we are taking our sea and air freight services to a new level.”

Expanding Our Own Portfolio

“We are very pleased to have gained Koch International as a new customer – but also as a partner,” says Harm Wessels, CCO of Qwyk. “With this new cooperation, we will not only be a provider for the digitalization of a customer’s product range, but we will also expand our own portfolio by offering an easily integrable EU trucking API for door-to-door deliveries and pickups. This will allow our carriers to further automate their quoting processes. That has been our goal from the beginning! Koch International has a compelling strength in the German and European trucking market, and the fact that we can now also provide other customers access to this compelling product is a win-win situation for all parties involved.”

About Qwyk

Qwyk is a venture-funded company supported by TechStars and angel investors. Martyn Verhaegen founded Qwyk in 2017 with the goal of helping logistics companies leverage the benefits of new technologies. Verhaegen worked for more than 10 years in senior positions in the NVOCC/consolidator and freight forwarding sector.

About SimpliShip

In 2015, supply chain veteran Cory Margand set out to create operating system connections in a fragmented freight industry by founding SimpliShip. SimpliShip focuses on API connectivity and freight procurement innovation, creating solutions that enable carriers, BCOs, and B2B marketplaces of all sizes to procure or offer the best international air and ocean freight rates and services with an easy-to-use freight quoting tool.

About Koch International

As a service-oriented provider, Koch International develops customized transport and logistics concepts for customers from various industries: from national general cargo and LTL/FTL shipments as well as European traffic to sea and air freight handling, including pharmaceutical transport and complete warehousing logistics.

Photo: © Koch International