Why You Should Care About Big Data In Shipping And Freight

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT BIG DATA IN SHIPPING & FREIGHT

JOIN THE CONVERSATION ON TWITTER

@XENETA_AS

ABOUTXENETA

At Xeneta we believe there is an untapped potential for everyone in the industry, to systematically learn from our individual and collective efforts. We hold true that "if you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it". That’s why we think actionable metrics is the key to continuously evolve for every business, and ultimately the entire industry. Rethinking global logistics is the vision of Xeneta.

With international experience from the logistics industry, we have first-hand knowledge of the challenges related to high volatility and lack of transparency in the ocean freight market. By combining logistics background and information technology expertise, we found the solution to these challenges.

WE ARE TRANSFORMING GLOBAL LOGISTICS

ARE YOU PAYING THE RIGHT CONTAINER

FREIGHT RATES?

DISCOVER SAVINGS POTENTIAL IN REAL

TIME.

CONTACT US.

WHAT IS “BIG DATA IN SHIPPING?”

FIRST, IT'S IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 'LOTS OF DATA' AND 'BIG DATA.' TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY HAS BEEN SERVING ORGANIZATIONS’ ANALYTICS NEEDS FOR DECADES, ALLOWING THEM TO ANALYZE LARGE DATA SETS FROM TRADITIONAL SOURCES SUCH AS WAREHOUSING AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS.

‘BIG DATA’ TAKES IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL, ALLOWING COMPANIES TO HARNESS EXTREMELY LARGE DATA VOLUMES INCLUDING NON-TRADITIONAL DATA TYPES SUCH AS TEXT, AUDIO AND VIDEO IN CONJUNCTION WITH INFORMATION FROM BUSINESS SYSTEMS IN A MUCH MORE ECONOMICAL FASHION.

THIS IS JUST AN EXPENSIVE IT SOLUTION THEN?

NO – IT'S NOT ABOUT IT AT ALL; REMEMBER THE TERM “GARBAGE IN = GARBAGE OUT? THAT'S TOO-MUCH DATA, NOT BIG DATA. A COMPANY NEEDS TO DETERMINE WHAT THEY WANT TO DO...REDUCE COSTS? INCREASE REVENUE? OPTIMIZE TRANSIT TIMES?

HESE ARE ALL SERIOUS STRATEGIC ISSUES FOR BOTH A CARRIER AND A SHIPPER, WHOSE IMPLEMENTATION – OR NOT – AFFECTS PROFITABILITY ON EVERY VOYAGE

THE CARRIER NEEDS TO SIT WITH A COMPANY LIKE OURS IN ORDER TO FIGURE OUT THE QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ASKED IN ORDER AFFECT POSITIVE OUTCOMES, AND DETERMINE WHAT IS THE TRADITIONAL AND NON-TRADITIONAL DATA THAT GOES INTO PROFITABILITY.

ARE YOU PAYING THE RIGHT CONTAINER

FREIGHT RATES?

DISCOVER SAVINGS POTENTIAL IN REAL

TIME.

WHAT'S TRADITIONAL DATA VS. NON-TRADITIONAL

DATA?

TRADITIONAL DATA IS LOOK-BACK DATA

FROM ORDINARY BUSINESS

SYSTEMS; FUEL COSTS, TRANSIT TIMES, WAGES,

INSURANCE, REVENUE PER TEU.

IT'S ACCOUNTING DATA THAT'S USED

TO DETERMINE THE PROFITABILITY OF A

VOYAGE.

BUT NON-TRADITIONAL DATA IS TIME-SENSITIVE DATA – WEATHER

AND TRAFFIC DELAYS, PORT STRIKES, UNEXPECTED REPAIRS. IT’S ALSO EXTREMELY LARGE VOLUMES OF DATA BEING GENERATED FROM

SENSORS, GPS DEVICES, RFID TAGS AND TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT

SYSTEMS.

AND NON-TRADITIONAL DATA IS QUANTIFIABLE?

THE CARRIER NEEDS TO SIT WITH A COMPANY LIKE OURS IN ORDER TO FIGURE OUT THE QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ASKED IN ORDER AFFECT POSITIVE OUTCOMES, AND DETERMINE WHAT IS THE TRADITIONAL AND NON-TRADITIONAL DATA THAT GOES INTO PROFITABILITY.

SOME IS, SOME ISN'T, BUT IT'S ALL RELATED TO ISSUES THAT CAN BE RESOLVED OR AVOIDED. IF A STORM BLOWS UP, WOULD YOU STEAM THROUGH IT? PERHAPS NOT, BUT YOU’D USE A ‘BIG DATA’ SOLUTION TO ANALYZE GPS-TYPE INFORMATION TO QUICKLY DETERMINE THE COSTS OF OTHER ROUTES AS OPPOSED TO NOT DIVERTING.

PREVENTIVE TECHNOLOGY IS A LIFESAVER FOR MOST FORMS OF TRANSPORTATION FROM A CONTAINER SHIP TO A DELIVERY TRUCK; MODERN SENSOR TECHNOLOGY ENABLES THE CARRIER TO BE WARNED OF FAILURES BEFORE THEY OCCUR, WHICH ALLOWS MANAGEMENT TO AFFECT REPAIRS PRIOR AND ON A TIMELY BASIS.

OR A 3PL MIGHT GET A MESSAGE FROM HIS GPS ABOUT A HIGHWAY BEING CLOSED, SO INSTEAD OF HAVING THE TRUCK IDLING IN TRAFFIC BURNING FUEL AND TIME; THE DRIVER WOULD BE RE-ROUTED.

THIS SORT OF INFORMATION WOULD BE EQUALLY IMPORTANT FOR THE

SHIPPER?

ABSOLUTELY; WHETHER YOU’RE SHIPPING THE GOODS AS A VENDOR, OR RECEIVING THEM AS THE BUYER;

GETTING THEM TO THE FINAL DESTINATION ON TIME, UNDAMAGED, AND IN A COST-EFFECTIVE MANNER IS

IMPORTANT.

IS BIG DATA ALONE ALL YOU NEED TO MAKE YOUR

LOGISTICS PROCUREMENT BUSINESS SUCCESSFUL?

AT XENETA, WE HAVE THE INDUSTRY BUSINESS AND TECHNICAL EXPERTISE NEEDED TO MAKE SENSE OF THE ‘BIG DATA’ OUR PLATFORM AGGREGATES AND PRESENTS.

WE'LL WORK WITH OUR CUSTOMERS TO ARTICULATE AND ADVISE ON THEIR STRATEGIC DIRECTION AND ANSWER BUSINESS-CRITICAL QUESTIONS BASED ON THE FACTS WE SEE COMING FROM THE DATA WE HOLD: WHAT PROBLEMS ARE YOU TRYING TO RESOLVE? WHAT DIRECTION DO YOU WANT TO GO? WHAT DATA DO YOU NEED BROUGHT FORWARD? WHILE WE’RE IT PEOPLE; WE'RE BUSINESS PEOPLE FIRST.

IS THERE A PLACE FOR BIG DATA IN SUPPLY CHAIN

MANAGEMENT?

ABSOLUTELY; IN FACT IT'S WHAT MAKES ADVANCED SCM POSSIBLE.

IT'S USING BIG DATA TO START REPLACEMENT INVENTORY MOVING BEFORE INVENTORY IS EXHAUSTED.

FINAL THOUGHTS ON THE USE OF BIG DATA FOR

SHIPPERS AND CARRIERS

WHEN PROPERLY USED, BIG DATA WILL ENABLE MANAGEMENT TO TAKE A GUT-FEEL DECISIONS AND QUANTIFY IT, WHICH LETS THEM TAKE THAT GOOD IDEA AND MAKE IT WORK.

IT'S IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT BIG DATA IS USED IN ASSISTING YOUR COMPANY IN ACHIEVING IT'S BUSINESS OBJECTIVES, WHETHER REDUCING COSTS OR IMPROVING EFFICIENCY, WHICH IS OF OBVIOUS DAILY IMPORTANCE TO CARRIERS AND SHIPPERS, OR INCREASING SALES, WHICH IS OF INTEREST TO EVERYONE.

REQUESTDEMO

LEARN HOW XENETA CAN HELPYOU GET INSIGHT AND

INTELLIGENCE INTO YOUR GLOBAL OCEAN FREIGHT PRICES AND CHANGE YOUR LOGISTICS

BUSINESS: