Nagel-Group Receives ECR Innovation Excellence Award from GS1

The Nagel-Group, together with its subsidiary B+S GmbH Logistics and Services and its corporate venture LEAFR, has been awarded the prestigious ECR Innovation Excellence Award by GS1 Germany. Together with project partners EatFresh GmbH, European EPC Competence Center GmbH (EECC), and Bünting Wholesale and Service GmbH & Co. KG, the company successfully implemented a pilot project for a fully digitized delivery process with RFID tracking and real-time data.

(Versmold) How can fresh food be efficiently, transparently, and sustainably provided in cities with increasing demands for delivery speed, traceability, and environmental compatibility? This question forms the starting point for a joint pilot project that specifically addresses the challenges in food logistics: lack of transparency in cold chains, missing digital networking between production, logistics, and trade, and insufficient real-time data along the supply chain. The goal was to standardize digital networking for all parties involved and create a continuous flow of data while ensuring data sovereignty as a basis for quality assurance, traceability, and low-emission delivery.

Digitized Supply Chain from Production to Consumer

The solution is a fully digitized delivery process that has been successfully developed and implemented as part of the project. This process can be exemplarily illustrated using freshly produced wraps: The Bünting Group produces the wraps and performs RFID tagging (“Radio-Frequency Identification”) directly during packaging into the GS1 SMART Box. The RFID tags used were evaluated by EECC GmbH and enable standardized data exchange via EPCIS (“Electronic Product Code Information Services”), a GS1 standard that digitally captures and makes traceable all steps such as production, storage, and delivery.

After packaging, the wraps are temperature-controlled transported by the Nagel-Group to the warehouse of B+S GmbH Logistics and Services in Alzenau. There, order picking takes place, where the products are prepared for delivery. The delivery to the intelligent vending machines of EatFresh is carried out with low emissions by LEAFR. Through the automated refrigerators, the wraps finally reach the end consumer directly.

From production to order picking to delivery and sale, every step is documented and traceable in real-time thanks to the RFID tag. Modern technologies such as RFID, GPS tracking, and real-time temperature monitoring successfully interlink, creating a future-proof solution for urban supply.

Award for Excellence in the Supply Chain

The ECR Award from GS1 Germany honors projects each year that achieve significant efficiency and sustainability gains through collaborative partnerships along the supply chain. At the center is the idea of ECR (“Efficient Consumer Response”): a joint action by industry and trade aimed at enabling consumers faster, cheaper, and more sustainable goods flows.

The evaluation of the submitted projects is based on a clearly defined criteria catalog that allows the jury to make an objective and comparable assessment. Both the optimization of processes and costs as well as measurable revenue growth and ecological and social sustainability play a central role. Additionally, the degree of implementation is included in the evaluation, particularly the question of whether the project has already been successfully realized and is in a comprehensive rollout.

Award Ceremony in Bonn

The ceremonial presentation of the ECR Innovation Excellence Award took place on September 29 in Bonn and honored outstanding projects that actively shape the future of the supply chain. The Nagel-Group accepted the award together with its project partners B+S Logistics and Services, LEAFR, EatFresh, and the Bünting Group.

For LEAFR, Max Klostermann, Venture CEO, represented the project at the award ceremony. As the person responsible for the last mile, he accompanied the project from the beginning and presented the concept together with the partners to the professional audience and the jury.

“With LEAFR, we are focusing on low-emission, digital, and highly flexible solutions for urban food logistics. That we were able to stand on stage together with our partners shows how important sustainable delivery concepts are for the future of supply and how much we can achieve when we think together,” says Max Klostermann, Venture CEO of LEAFR, during the award ceremony.

On the Right Track

Hendrik Krukow, Executive Director Sales & Marketing of the Nagel-Group, also emphasizes the importance of the award: “The award confirms that we are on the right track with our approach. Digital transparency and low-emission logistics are no longer future topics. They are already feasible today and create real added value for customers and consumers.”

Photo: © Nagel-Group