Digitalisation may be the buzzword echoing across industry events, but for BlueBox Systems,, it remains a deeply entrenched challenge that is more systemic than technological.
“It’s definitely clear that digitalisation is one of the three, four main drivers,” Martin Schulze, CEO of BlueBox Systems, said. “But the whole industry is still facing this core problem—that it is so heterogeneous and that so many partners need to be aligned to really benefit from digitalisation.”
The crux of the issue isn’t the software itself, but the friction between stakeholders. While larger players may have streamlined their own digital operations, the fragmented nature of logistics makes seamless digital integration difficult. “Everybody works with cargo handlers, with the freight forwarders, with the shippers, the airport, and so on, and digitalisation is always a problem at the interfaces. That is not an IT problem. It’s a governance problem,” he outlined.
“Often the blockers [are] that the one who gains and the one who needs to invest are different entities,” he explains. A perfect storm of misaligned incentives that stymies even the best-laid transformation plans.
A ticking clock
Schulze doesn’t mince words when it comes to those hesitant about embracing digital tools: “When you look at retail, they were good in the business, and then it was five to ten years, and they were out of business. That will happen here as well.”
While logistics firms may not vanish overnight, failing to invest in digital capacity puts them on a dangerous path: “You need to adapt before it’s too late. That often means your business case needs to really look into the future, as it may not pay off until the end of the year.”
This is why BlueBox Systems focuses on more than just selling tools—they emphasise communication and education. “To show how data can really help to improve the business,” Schulze explained. “I think data is still under-leveraged in the industry… compared to other parts in logistics, when you look at an integrator… or other industries who really rely on data.”
Real-time visibility
The topic of real-time tracking has grown into a customer-facing essential—but Schulze sees its real power in internal optimisation. “It’s very much seen as, ‘OK, the customer is demanding this. I give it to them.’ But the integrators, DHL and UPS, invented this in the 90s… not about informing the customer… they wanted to understand what is going on in our network.”
Schulze argues that the true value of tracking lies in performance improvement: “Where are weak points, how good are we? If we find out where the improvement potentials are, what can we do about them? That is what data was telling them.”
“We have real-time visibility, which we provide to freight forwarders and shippers. But when we look at this in an aggregated way… you see very interesting patterns that give you some insights about your business and also about your partners and their quality of service.”
Logistics in the Crosshairs
If there is one area BlueBox Systems feels the industry needs a wake-up call, it’s cybersecurity.
“I would formulate it even stronger. I think we are living in a world where we are in a kind of cyber war already,” Schulze stated plainly. “For cybercriminals, logistics companies provide a potentially attractive target … you can have potential access to a lot of other companies… in logistics but also their customers.”
Yet many in the industry are underprepared. “It’s a low-margin business, so they are often missing the capital to do the necessary investments.” While he acknowledges that awareness has risen, “there’s still some way to go… a key point for the small and medium ones to keep up to date.”
Data Democratisation
As visibility increases, BlueBox Systems believes transparency will become an embedded expectation rather than a competitive edge—and it will benefit smaller players more than anyone.
“A lot of freight forwarders… don’t provide visibility to their customers because they’re afraid of the costs,” Schulze explained. “The costs are already low and will become way lower… They can provide the same service in regards of transparency as the bigger ones.”
On the internal side, it’s equally transformative. “To use [data] internally to drive improvements… make it useful in the own organisation will become way easier and cheaper. You don’t need a big IT department.”
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Author: Edward Hardy
