IPP is Pooling Partner for the GS1 SMART Box

As a sustainable and innovative pooling service provider, it was logical for IPP GmbH to support the GS1 SMART Box from the very beginning. 35 percent less CO2 and 60 percent less cardboard speak for themselves. With higher efficiency, lower costs, and more sustainability, the GS1 SMART Box has successfully established itself in the market.

(Ennepetal) The GS1 SMART Box is the first standardized and serialized reusable transport box in the FMCG sector. Trade logistics processes become more environmentally friendly, efficient, and cost-effective. The serialization of the GS1 SMART Boxes enables a fully digital management of the load carriers. All boxes are recorded using a barcode, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), or a data matrix. This ensures seamless tracking and identification of the load carriers. This forms the basic requirement for efficient data exchange between industry and trade. IPP, as a leading pooling service provider, has been involved in the SMART Box project from the very beginning.

Ingo Schimmelpfennig (Managing Director of Production & Logistics at Procter & Gamble) confirms: “The SMART Box is our long-term solution to avoid CO2 emissions through significantly better truck utilization and to replace increasingly expensive single-use cardboard. We are working to implement it throughout the entire supply chain in the future.”

Many well-known companies have already recognized the advantages of the GS1 SMART Box. Since its market launch in September 2021, manufacturers such as Procter & Gamble (with Gillette and soon other products), Beiersdorf, Colgate-Palmolive, Cosnova, Henkel, Kao, L’Oréal, and retailers like dm-drogerie markt, Rossmann, Budnikowski, Müller, Edeka, Postlogistics, and dm Austria are currently participating.

“We at dm have chosen the SMART Box to become more sustainable and particularly to reduce packaging material, to increase productivity – as the handling effort with the SMART Boxes is significantly lower – and last but not least, to deliver products faster to our dm stores. So far, we have already made good progress in all areas,” says Christian Bodi, Managing Director at dm responsible for logistics and for 300 dm stores in NRW.

“From our perspective, the GS1 SMART Box has come to stay. It is as sustainable as it is efficient. I can only advise all interested parties to take a closer look at it now, because the earlier you decide to use it, the more you benefit, especially in the FMCG segment. In the long run, the cost savings will be very high,” explains Stefan Herbergs, Managing Director of IPP GmbH.

Features of the GS1 SMART Box:

A milestone for sustainability

• Resource-saving reusable transport packaging (up to 60 percent less cardboard)
• Plastic boxes are more durable and can also be repaired
• Stability of logistics chains even in times of raw material shortages
• Standardized sizes ensure optimal cargo space utilization
• Conclusion on climate balance: On average, up to 35 percent less CO2 emissions

Significant Increase in Efficiency

• Acceleration of delivery networks (across countries and companies)
• Optimization of production cycles and ordering processes
• Standardization of the transport box simplifies handling and supports automated processes in the warehouse
• Track & Trace: Digital and detailed traceability of goods (current location, speed, and type of movement of goods are tracked)
• Flexibility also for automated warehouses (the box can be rotated, turned, and stacked)
• Volume-optimized return creates optimal utilization of trucks

The GS1 SMART Box received the “Logistics Innovation Gold Award” in the category “Implementable Solutions.” This also points to the enormous future potential of this innovative transport box. Started in the drugstore segment, the expansion of the container family to the entire FMCG sector (including food and clothing) has begun. More about the GS1 SMART Box: https://www.ipp-pooling.com/de/expertise/sustainable-logistic-partnerships.

The IPP Pooling Network is Growing

The IPP pooling system allows for very high flexibility, transparency, and comfort in delivery processes. It can be expanded at any time, enabling continuous growth of the GS1 SMART Box network.

Photo: © Georg Utz / Image caption: The GS1 Smartbox