Innovation essential to the logistics business
For all its challenges, one of the upshots of Covid-19 is that, particularly due to more and more consumers being compelled to shop online, it accelerated the digitalisation of economic life. This, says GM of business change management at DSV South Africa, Nicholas Diemont, provided opportunities for the logistics industry to innovate.
“Demographic and digital trends were already driving the growth of e-commerce, but the pandemic-induced spurt was significant and irreversible, and we have seen e-commerce grow upwards of 1,000% across our client base,” he says.
In addition, while supply chains might already have been addressing issues around shorter product life cycles, rising consumer expectations and online trading before March 2020, the lockdown significantly changed the flow of goods and flagged many other challenges, from resilience and design to visibility and renewed emphasis on managing costs and inventories.
“The experience of 2020 pushed businesses to ask for more real-time visibility of their products so they could more easily manage their customers’ expectations and experiences,” he says. “This required immediate response and means constant innovation has become an essential part of the logistics business.”
Driving both competitive advantage and operational sustainability, DSV’s commitment to innovation means it has to work across many different touchpoints to deliver benefits to its clients and their customers.
“By innovating on both horizons (that is, competitive advantage and operational sustainability), we are able to
create more efficient solutions, reduce costs for our customers and invent new products and services that improve customer experience and offer growth opportunities,” he says.
Among the activities receiving ongoing attention at DSV is supply chain design and mapping. The company’s objective in this regard is to ensure every material, process and shipment is documented and integrated into a compelling and effective customer supply chain strategy.
The company’s electronic data interchange and application programming interfaces automate the exchange of data between DSV and its customers’ transport and warehousing systems, handle invoices and enable customer partners to book transport with DSV.
“The process is simple and efficient, reduces administrative time and increases security and efficiency and improves effectiveness for both customers and ourselves.”
In keeping with global and local business and technology trends and demands, there are several other innovative projects under development at DSV’s Africa Innovation Hub. Among these is the application of the Internet of Things via the company’s visibility platform to counter increasing risk of theft and pilferage, and to advance temperature monitoring on temperature-sensitive cargo. DSV is also developing the use of biometric verification to validate an identity without the need for physical identification. Research and development is also under way regarding the automation of mundane and repetitive tasks via robotics process automation in DSV offices and automated guided vehicles in its warehouses.
In addition, DSV plans to introduce an automated expected time of arrival service in SA for road distribution deliveries, following the success of the service in Europe. In addition, the company is looking to introduce automated drones to help manage warehouse efficiencies.
The pandemic inspired DSV to make use of 3D printers to produce hygiene products, including contactless door openers. Also, DSV fast-tracked the development of a Covid-19 app to monitor the location and safety of its employees.
“The new system gave us full visibility of all employees while observing protocols and enabled us to better manage our way through a particularly disruptive time,” says Diemont, adding that DSV encourages its employees to propose ideas and work with the Africa Innovation Hub to rapidly build and test prototypes.
THE PANDEMIC INSPIRED DSV TO USE 3D PRINTERS TO PRODUCE HYGIENE PRODUCTS, SUCH AS CONTACTLESS DOOR OPENERS