Honeywell launches new shipment monitoring solution

The Morris Plains, N.J.-based industrial conglomerate’s new Connected Freight solution is designed for high-value and perishable goods.    Industrial conglomerate Honeywell has launched a new shipment monitoring solution for high-value and perishable goods today, called Connected Freight, the company said.
   Connected Freight was developed in collaboration with Intel and three third-party logistics companies, which include DHL, Expeditors and Kuehne + Nagel.
   The new solution provides real-time information about the location and condition of critical freight while in transit.
   Sameer Agrawal, vice president of supply chain solutions at Honeywell, told American Shipper the Connected Freight solution will monitor a variety of goods, such as semi-conductor equipment, high optical equipment, electronics, groceries, pharmaceuticals and plants.
   The solution is starting off by providing monitoring for freight in transit on the road, rail and at sea, but between the end of the third quarter and the early fourth quarter of this year, it will begin monitoring air shipments as well, Agrawal said.
   The solution consists of sensor tags that can be affixed to pallets or individual packages to detect a range of environmental conditions, including temperature or vibration, Honeywell said.
   The data is captured by a mobile gateway placed inside a shipping container or truck, and then transmitted via cellular networks to a cloud-based command-and-control platform.
   The solution can alert manufacturers of high-value, highly sensitive technology if equipment has been damaged during loading or unloading, or if it may have been stolen.
   In addition, the cloud can store data for compliance and audit needs, and provide predictive and reactive analysis, including which routes to avoid.
   A spokesperson on behalf of Honeywell noted how vital the solution is, saying how “76 percent of companies reported at least one supply chain disruption within the last 12 months, and 30 percent of all packages shipped are damaged, delayed or lost.”
   “For shippers, logistics providers, retailers and others faced with a host of costly freight challenges, such as theft, damage, spoilage and delays, this convenient cloud-based solution provides customers with detailed analytics in order to plan, anticipate and react immediately to incidents that occur during shipment,” said Taylor Smith, president of Honeywell’s Workflow Solutions business.
   “Armed with the Connected Freight solution, Kuehne + Nagel can offer a variety of new services tailored to our customers’ specific needs,” said Martin Kolbe, chief information officer at Kuehne + Nagel International AG. “There are ongoing trials of the technology with one of our customers in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry, which is of strategic importance for Kuehne + Nagel.”