At the CNA Logistics Forum, the focus was on sustainability and resilience

More than 100 participants from the logistics industry and academia discussed innovative solutions for transport & logistics at the CNA Logistics Forum in Nuremberg. This year, the focus was on the tension between resilience, sustainability, and efficiency, in which the industry must position itself. An award was also given to Lobster Logistics.

(Nuremberg) Logistics is undergoing change: Not only since the Corona crisis have the demands for sustainability, resilience, and efficiency increased in the industry. But how can these conflicting objectives be reconciled? What role can digital platforms play? And how can transport modes and transport orders be sensibly interconnected?

These questions were at the center of the 11th CNA Logistics Forum on November 15, 2021, in Nuremberg. Over 100 participants engaged in the dialogue platform around innovative concepts and technologies for transport and logistics at the fully booked Congress Center of the Meistersingerhalle.

At the opening, Dr. Rudolf Aunkofer, Managing Director of CNA e.V., and Dr. Roland Fischer, Managing Director of the Working Group for Supply Chain Services at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS and a board member of CNA e.V., welcomed the audience. Dr. Fischer pointed out the contribution of digitalization to a more sustainable and resilient logistics: “Digitalization combined with data expertise is a key factor for the future viability of the industry. Because digital transformation not only leads to more flexible transport or more efficient production processes and thus to economic resilience. It also contributes to greater ecological and social sustainability.” Helmut Schütz, head of the department at the Bavarian State Ministry for Housing, Construction and Transport, explained the role of politics in fostering innovations: The ministry supports the further development of logistics through funding research projects, from infrastructure adjustments to investment grants for companies.

Sustainable transport as a challenge

That the economy is already making progress was demonstrated by the keynotes in the morning: Dirk Weberskirch, technology manager for fuel cells at MAN Truck & Bus, reported on the status of fuel cell drives for trucks. He made it clear that powerful drive technology based on hydrogen has already been developed. However, manufacturers are still waiting regarding hydrogen supply – it is still unclear whether infrastructures will prevail that allow refueling with liquid, gaseous, or hydrogen bound in a carrier substance.

Given the lack of “green” hydrogen from renewable sources or suitable batteries, the current focus is primarily on changing transport modes to reduce emissions in transport. Sebastian Schilling, Head of European Sales & Corridor Development at DB Cargo AG, and Matthijs van Doorn, Director of Supply Chain & Logistics at the Port of Rotterdam, provided insights into the opportunities that combined transport offers, especially in hinterland traffic. Connections have been expanded in recent years and can be used more comfortably thanks to digital technologies – such as booking and tracking platforms.

Dr. Johannes Söllner, a member of the management of the Geis Group, demonstrated how medium-sized logistics service providers assess these and other innovations for transport and storage. Concepts must always be critically evaluated concerning the given framework conditions – infrastructure, error susceptibility, cost potential. Subsequently, company-specific pilots are necessary to identify suitable technologies for their own processes. He illustrated how this is practically done within the Geis Group using various examples from e-forwarding to picking assistance systems.

Lobster Logistics wins Technology for Future Award

In a pitch session, five digital pioneers for transport & logistics presented themselves to the audience’s judgment. The topics ranged from loading assistance systems from Digilo to booking platforms for more transparency in transport like Timocom or IMSLOT to inflow control for terminals from CONROO.

However, the Technology for Future Award 2021 ultimately went to Niko Hossain, CEO of Lobster Logistics Cloud GmbH. With the logistics.cloud, he presented a cloud-based platform for supply chain management. The integrated solution is intended to help companies automate the integration, transparent tracking, and management of supply chains. The modular system, including shipment tracking, reporting, telematics connection, and much more, ultimately convinced the audience. “We are very happy about this confirmation of our work and thank CNA and the Logistics Forum for this great award!” Hossain expressed his joy over the recognition.

Pitch by Technology for Future Award winner Niko Hossain, CEO
Lobster Logistics Cloud GmbH

Shaping the future of transport

How data can be used more effectively to make transport more sustainable and resilient was demonstrated by Axel Bagszas and Uwe Veres-Homm from the Working Group for Supply Chain Services at Fraunhofer IIS. Using various examples, they showed the added value of data analytics applications in combined transport. Steffen Riedel from Eckes-Granini explained that even simply sharing data can help utilize transport capacities more effectively in inter-company collaborations. Prof. Dr. Ulrich Müller-Steinfahrt from the University of Würzburg-Schweinfurt and Michael Liepelt from LKW Walter finally supplemented practical examples for more sustainable transport, from digital delivery notes to switching to rail.

In conclusion, Major d.R. Herwig Rubin from the Bavarian State Regiment made clear the challenges military logistics faces in war and peace. The analogy to “civilian” logistics was clearly evident: robust, standardized systems are also successful here. Nevertheless, the informal “corporal’s way” and flexible planning always play a crucial role in ensuring the supply and equipment of the troops.

Current data for logistics in Bavaria

In addition to the expert presentations, Dr. Rudolf Aunkofer presented initial results of the Logistics Sentiment Barometer Bavaria from the Logistics Initiative Bavaria. The survey monthly assesses the business situation, business expectations, and the sentiment regarding current challenges for the Bavarian transport & logistics industry.

The Logistics Initiative Bavaria thus provides an industry- and region-specific economic climate. Additionally, the survey offers data on current challenges in the industry. Recent surveys have shown that already today, 79% of customers in transport & logistics consider sustainability an important factor for their logistics. The most significant obstacles to the industry’s business development identified in October 2021 were the shortage of skilled workers (73%), lack of capacity (65%), and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic (51%).

This confirms the relevance of the challenges that the 11th CNA Logistics Forum 2021 revolved around. The contributions presented solutions but also addressed the difficulties of the innovation process. “The path from the first idea to a market-accepted and thus successful innovation is not easy, especially in the logistics industry. CNA e.V. supports innovative founders as well as start-ups or established companies that want to transform their innovations into functioning business models.”

About the CNA Logistics Forum

The Logistics Forum is the innovation congress for transport & logistics in Bavaria. In cooperation with the Working Group for Supply Chain Services at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, CNA e.V. hosted the congress in Nuremberg for the eleventh time in 2021.

Photo: © CNA / Caption: Keynote Dr. Johannes Söllner, Managing Director Geis Group