Schenker: RFID in sea freight provides greater transparency in the supply chain

New technology being tested for suitability in global freight transport • Test phase starts with partners in Hong Kong and Hamburg

News Item Entered: Monday, August 21, 2006

(Essen / Hamburg, 08/18/2006) Today at the Port of Hamburg Schenker put into service ten containers equipped with RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology. The official commissioning of the new equipment took place in the presence of customers and industrial partners from the Port. This is the first step in a practical test to examine the suitability of new security technology for global freight transport. The new containers will be used in a shuttle service between Hamburg and Hong Kong.

An ‘RFID tag’, an electronic labeling, is used to improve the transparency of the supply chain. “This is pioneering work we are doing for our sea freight customers, especially for groupage shipments,” emphasized Dr. Wolfgang Dräger, Vice President Seafreight, Schenker. The container tag will be automatically registered at points where liability changes hands. This means that the shipment will become immediately visible at important transitional milestones in the transport chain. The first test phase commences with the partners at the port packing stations. The next step will involve the container terminals as well. Schenker will also test the ‘e-seal’, an electronic seal that documents any opening and closing of the container, as well as a range of other security devices that will keep tabs on the shipment.

With annual sales of 8.9 billion euros, 42,000 employees and about 1,100 offices around the world, Schenker is one of the world's leading providers of integrated logistics services, offering land operations, air and sea freight as well as comprehensive logistics solutions and global supply chain management from a single source. Schenker is a part of DB Logistics, the Transportation and Logistics Division of Deutsche Bahn AG.