Trusted Carrier – the digital door opener

Logistical processes must become simpler, faster and more efficient. This is almost always the decisive motivation when it comes to putting the interaction between shippers and transport companies on a broader digital footing. That’s why the German Road Haulage, Logistics and Waste Management Association (BGL) is now using its concentrated networking power to ignite the turbo for the next stage of digital interaction between supply chain players. “Trusted Carrier GmbH & Co KG” is the name of the company founded in May 2021, which is dedicated to the development, implementation and marketing of digital services to support logistics processes. “The focus is currently on simplifying transport handling in road freight transport. We are focusing on an IT solution that digitalises the registration process and should thus enable faster truck clearance at the loading and unloading points,” explains Andreas Schmidt, who is responsible for member services at the BGL and is also the managing director of Trusted Carrier in a dual role.

The brand new IT solution promises shippers and transport service providers tangible benefits. Both are dependent on always fulfilling the technical and legal requirements for a transport order. In the case of barrier handling, as is common in the chemical industry, for example, a large number of documents and certificates relating to the transport company, driver and vehicle have to be submitted and checked in order to provide proof of qualification and equipment. Trusted Carrier wants to put an end to this lengthy and cumbersome registration process. Even getting started using the system is simple. First, a transport company creates an electronic profile on Trusted Carrier’s IT platform. There are three modules for this – one is assigned to the company, one to the driver and one to the vehicle. For each module, users upload the master data as well as the corresponding receipts and documents.

In the next step, Trusted Carrier closely examines the data, documents and certificates of the logistics provider. If everything is in order, the auditors confirm the trustworthiness of the submitted material. Then they set a validity period for the data. If a company is later due for a general inspection or a driver’s license check, it receives a message with sufficient advance notice that the data field in question must be updated and, if necessary, proof must be provided. Trusted Carrier plans to offer the software as a specialized IT solution for the steel, petroleum and food industries in the course of the year. For this purpose, the individual modules are to receive industry-specific adaptations. In the current version, however, the modules are specifically tailored to the needs of the chemical industry.

A perfect reference for Trusted Carrier is provided by the consumer goods manufacturer Henkel, which is active in the detergents and cleaning agents business segment, among others. In a pilot project that has just started, the group from Düsseldorf is using the IT solution in practice for the first time together with several transport companies. Around 140 drivers will be given access to the plant premises using the innovative system. In the first phase of the project, drivers no longer need to be pre-registered at the terminals: the trucker can steer his truck directly to the gate via a dedicated lane. He then goes to the counter with his smartphone, where a plant employee scans the previously generated QR code with the driver data. The next expansion stage of Trusted Carrier for the chemical industry envisages automated access. The relevant transport data will then be sent to a shipper’s location in advance. The driver no longer needs to leave his vehicle and can drive directly to the loading point.