In March, the number of users was doubled, including amongst others freight forwarders Schenker, DSV, Ceva, and Yusen Logistics, and only 6 months after the first deployment partners representing 80% of the total cargo volume were onboarded. Ground handler Swissport, who will be using the application integrated with their own Dock Door Management Application, will onboard later this year.
According to David Bellon, DHL Global Forwarding, “The slot booking app has been a true game changer, improving efficiency, predictability and transparency throughout our cargo pick-up and delivery process. It has reduced waiting times by on average 30 to 60 minutes per pick-up or delivery, going up to up to several hours during peak times. Also at the gates we are saving precious time, thanks to much faster and more efficient handling. This allows us to make better use of our resources and deliver our customers a better, more reliable service."
Eliminating waiting time
Right from the start, important benefits have been recorded, as confirms Jeff Segers at Skyfast: “During the first days of the go live Skyfast could already eliminate a lot of waiting time at the ground handlers’ facilities. We have been able to deploy our staff more efficiently than before. On the long term the Slot Booking application will definitely result in cost savings.”
According to a satisfaction survey that was run amongst users of the application, freight forwarders and trucking companies are gaining on average between 30 minutes and 1 hour per delivery or pick-up - time they would usually lose before getting access to the gate. This generates important savings, as according to a recent study of ITLB, the Belgian Institute for Transportation & Logistics, 1 hour of traffic jams costs Belgian transportation companies on average 80€. It also increases safety and security on the cargo grounds as less trucks are hanging around idle, often parked illegally.
In addition, 100% of users indicate that goods are being handled faster at the gate, resulting in additional time savings. This mitigates the risk of missing cut-off times and unhappy customers. Freight forwarders or trucking companies also no longer need to learn and manage different tools, as slots can be reserved via a unified booking form.