Transforming Container Shipping IoT and GPS for Smart Logistics

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As the saying goes, “You can’t manage what you cannot measure.” Deploying IoT sensors across your physical infrastructure generates the data points that you can measure. IoT blurs the lines between physical devices and the measurable impact they are generating. With the increase in sensitive and expensive cargo, demand from global shippers has focused on more technology-driven solutions, specifically IoT-driven options. IoT-driven smart devices have changed the shipping industry landscape and increased the system’s overall efficiency. In this article, we explore the multiple use cases of IoT in the shipping industry.

The global shipping industry is riding a strong tailwind. With the increase in globalization and an uptrend in consumer preferences, global trade is moving in the right direction of growth. The shipping industry is estimated to bring in $208 Billion in profits. With this increased focus on profitability, attention has shifted to increasing overall efficiency further and preventing loss. IoT-enabled technology has a lot to offer in the modern age; with the advent of advancements in communication technology using 5G and improvements and breakthroughs in semiconductor technology, the industry has come to adopt a plethora of devices that provide unprecedented visibility across areas such as real-time tracking, temperature monitoring, humidity, shock and intrusion events, allowing companies drive efficiency, reduce costs, and improve security.

The growth in the IoT market has also been the backbone of improved connectivity at sea. Low-orbit satellites and 5G capabilities deliver better connectivity. The open seas are in constant motion, and shifting weather patterns and currents impact how ships travel across the ocean. As with the ever-changing weather conditions, so should the decisions behind each route call. Data should back all of it. These real-time updates facilitated by smart sensors help navigators chart a better route, thereby increasing fuel efficiency and translating directly into savings. The Industrial IoT at Land and Sea: Maritime report found that 47% of vessel owners collect data for environmental monitoring.

So, how does IoT enable this degree of visibility? How is the industry modifying and updating its outdated processes, which typically result in logistics blindspots?

IoT is a transformative technology that allows increased control over the entire supply chain and gives deep insights to the mariner to make critical decisions. Let’s review some of the use cases.

Real-Time Tracking and Monitoring

Maersk, one of the most prominent shipping companies based in Denmark, uses IoT and GPS-based sensors to track and monitor its containers. Maersk is at the cutting edge of technology, where it leverages not just the cloud but also the edge. Automated cranes work in tandem to move containers to predefined locations in absolute precision. Real-time tracker sensors on the containers generate the data points, which are then consumed by the analytics software to determine the best placement. It’s also important to note that tracking an empty container is also equally significant. Many container companies, such as Maersk, would want to track empty containers; the same is enabled via the proximity-based sensors installed inside the containers. IoT sensors can remotely scan the container’s contents. RFID tags can populate a manifest for accuracy and completeness, eliminating most human-based tasks, which could be time-consuming and error-prone.

Maersk routinely uses Track and Trace and Container status notifications to keep its customers updated on the status of their cargo.

“Robotic automation has been in play in this industry for many years. We have automated assets such as cranes and berths, and then there’s [the challenge of] how to make them more autonomous. After the pandemic, customers are now starting to reconfigure their supply chains,”

Gavin Laybourne, global CIO of Maersk’s APM Terminals Business

Advanced devices are available in the market that allow tracking and address other use cases like temperature and humidity. These trackers carry embedded gPS trackers supporting cellular networks, are waterproof, and allow easy installation.

Temperature and Humidity Monitoring:

Carrier Transicold, a part of Carrier, a leading global provider of intelligent and sustainable cold chain solutions, is a pioneer in providing cold chain solutions to global container shipping line companies. The advanced technology used in these reefers is responsible for ensuring fresh, safe products are delivered to customers globally. The IoT sensors actively monitor temperature and humidity inside the cold storage while the container moves across the shipping lines. These sensors transform a regular container into an integrated, controlled, atmosphere-monitored refrigerated container. The sensors allow efficient performance and, when coupled with control systems, will also enable a temperature control range. One can monitor the overall airflow and effective humidity during transit, guaranteeing the integrity of perishable goods.

“Our aim is unveiling these new digital solutions is to bring to our customers convenience, visibility and actionable intelligence, ultimately to derive more savings for them,”

Kartik Kumar, Vice President and General Manager of Carrier Global Container Refrigeration.

Temperature and Humidity sensor beacons allow tracking of light levels and fall detection; refrigerator containers carry these devices and allow monitoring of humidity and temperature. These beacons communicate with gateways and allow easy transfer of records to either handheld systems or feed into enterprise software, which acts like a control tower to monitor overall operations.

Movement Alerts

Companies that focus on providing complete solutions for cargo monitoring and tracking cargo movement within the shipping containers often use a collection of IoT sensors and software designed to consume that data and translate it into actionable events. Keeping an eye on the asset on the move is no longer a manual task. If, for any reason, the container is left at the dock, you can get alerted in real-time and take action, rather than waiting on shipping lines’ website updates, which may not be in real-time. Cargo on the sea is always susceptible to high shock levels due to loading and unloading events; accidents happen; if there is a warranted movement of the cargo, the system alerts again, allowing you to react; for instance, instead of waiting to find out the cargo was damaged, one can proactively order again ahead of time. Miniature accelerometers and geographical logging devices accomplish this and report on a comprehensive log dock to dock. They also support compliance needs and adherence to regional regulations by providing time-stamped evidence.

Inventory Management and Predictive Maintenance

The use cases for IoT devices are ever-expanding. Keeping track of one’s inventory is one of them. A mature inventory management process bolstered by IoT allows businesses to meet customers’ high demands successfully. RFID tags coupled with scanners enable administrators to understand their assets’ locations, thus allowing automation, visibility, and precise information. The use of IoT-enabled workflows replaces any use of manual methods and paper trails. Traditional methods are prone to error, whereas speed is crucial in today’s business. ( RFID Link ). The following are the key advantages of using IoT in Inventory Management.

1) Accuracy: Errors in manual counting may lead to issues down the line, such as over-ordering or even initiating wasteful steps to recover lost inventory. It can also impact capacity planning, in which one may over or under-plan an inventory, thereby extending wasteful expenses.

2) Improved Low Stock Notifications: Businesses can be more agile with an exact view of their inventory. While it may look too simplistic, multiply the inventory by warehouses nationwide. The issue has now magnified to significant proportions.

3) Improved Decision-making: With near real-time data available at their fingertips, businesses can make strategic decisions that can impact the efficiency of overall operations. Lost time equates to missed opportunities for implementing corrective actions. It also allows administrators to take thorough actions instead of being occupied with minor, low-end tasks.

One of the critical aspects of running shipping operations is ensuring the health of the equipment used on the dock and even the containers themselves. Standard methods included in preventive maintenance are scheduling regular checkups, which often include downtime of the equipment in question. Imagine having a few of the cranes out of order or down for scheduled maintenance; it adversely impacts the performance of the port, and overall efficiency makes you take a nose dive. The industry has now moved away from preventive maintenance to preventative maintenance to predictive maintenance. IoT devices are set up all around the equipment to be managed and monitored for maintenance. Constant steam of data from IoT devices is fed into machine learning algorithms, and numbers are crunched and compared to historical data to predict a potential failure. Setting up IoT devices to deliver data points allows intervention by maintenance engineers only when required rather than scheduling proactive downtimes.

Data collected spans over vibrations, temperature, and pressure to multiple other device-specific data points, such as rotations, fuel consumed, etc. The key benefits of predictive maintenance can be summarized as follows.

1) Optimized Maintenance Schedule – Disruptions due to proactive maintenance are minimized as data is analyzed and patterns are understood. Machine learning converts the data from IoT into actionable data points, thereby dictating potential maintenance schedules needed for optimal performance and uptime.

2) Cost Savings – by analyzing data and predicting future failures, one can plan the actual and required maintenance windows, reducing overall costs of avoiding emergency maintenance and saving on workforce typically used during preventive maintenance.

3) Improved Safety – Predictive maintenance allows early detection and helps plan maintenance activities. Early addressing of potential failure dramatically improves safety and helps minimize accidents due to equipment failure.

In essence,

shippers globally can now deliver goods more efficiently and effectively. Capturing the benefits goes beyond asset tracking. The advent of IoT ushers in a new era of data analytics and impacts all aspects of a modern supply chain, which goes into the realm of AI as the data collected by IoT translates into digital twins, which further helps and enhances the overall mechanics of a ship and associated systems. The impact is not limited to a shipment loss due to temperature variance; it has a more profound effect on life-saving drugs from reaching the right patients on time. IoT in the shipping industry allows us to pave a way forward that is enriched with heightened efficiency and transformative developments; it will be an era where data drive decisions are automated, heralding further breakthroughs.