Brussels Airport’s cargo community will be the first to use Nallian’s Road Feeder Management app which allows trucking companies and ground handlers to coordinate airport to airport pick-ups and deliveries.
Data sharing platform specialist Nallian has extended its Landside Management Suite for airports with the Road Feeder Management app, which is an extension to Nallian’s Slot Booking app and is integrated with Be-Mobile’s mobile app for truck drivers, ‘Truckmeister’.
The Road Feeder Management app enables trucking companies providing Road Feeder Services and their associated ground handlers to leverage the benefits of Slot Booking, such as zero waiting time and accurate planning of resources.
It also facilitates coordination through real-time updates of the estimated arrival times and communication with drivers on the road.
Following recent successful testing, in a first phase the app will be used at Brussels by handlers WFS and Aviapartner and by trucking companies H. Essers, Ninatrans and Jan De Rijk Logistics, starting July.
Nallian said in a statement: “Traditional Slot Booking empowers trucking companies and freight forwarders to book time slots for pick-ups and/or deliveries at a ground handler’s premises according to his capacity.
“This is a challenge for trucking companies who are operating Road Feeder Services and operating off premises, as ETAs are prone to shift due to longer travel distances. Also, the data and communication flows for airport-to-airport deliveries are different, with specific requirements and expectations.”
In the Road Feeder Management app, slots are booked dynamically, meaning they are adjusted automatically in view of the actual ETA. The application integrates with Be-Mobile’s Truckmeister app, which is used by drivers for a.o. navigation using traffic guidance and updating the ETA during the drive.
It also enables communication between handlers and drivers, with push notifications available in 9 languages.
As soon as an order is created in the TMS of the trucking company, the ground handler receives a pre-announcement of the pick-up or delivery, allowing it to plan and inform staff ahead
Once this order is planned in the TMS, a slot is booked automatically based on the specifics of the order, such as ETA, import/export, load meters, etc. Similar orders are grouped into one slot to maximize efficiency at the zone
During the drive, the actual ETA is updated via the Truckmeister app and time slots are adjusted accordingly; if an adjacent slot is unavailable the ground handler is invited to manually propose a new time.
The ground handler can manage all reserved slots (Road Feeder slots and the “traditional” slots used by the on-premises community) from the same integrated User Interface.
The digitization of the process will be further expanded with capabilities such as the uploading of documents, for example e-CRM.
Steven Polmans, Director Cargo & Logistics at Brussels Airport, said: “Since 2018 we have been successfully using Nallian’s Slot Booking app and we have seen the huge benefits it is bringing the local community, especially forwarders and handlers operating at our cargo zone, such as the elimination of 90% of waiting time.
“We are delighted we can now also extend those benefits to our partners who are running Road Feeder Services and operate off-premises. The Road Feeder Management app is yet another reinforcement of BRUcloud, our community’s Cargo Cloud and yet another step towards more integrated, collaborative work.”
Jean Verheyen, CEO of Nallian, said: “With our suite of Landside Management apps we strive to empower cargo communities to digitize and hence streamline their A to Z freight management process.”
Gerd Nees, Business Unit Manager for Tolling and Logistics at Be-Mobile added: “The success of operating a slot booking platform depends highly on getting an accurate ETA from trucks driving towards Brussels Airport.
“Having the most up-to-date traffic information allows us to notify Brussels Airport of early and late arrivals so they can communicate and take appropriate actions accordingly.”
