Contact usSpringtime was memorable for Nippon Express and Cathay Cargo’s Jakarta team when they collaborated on the first shipment from Indonesia to use Ultra Track.
The shipment in question was a consignment of leatherleaf ferns, from Jakarta via Hong Kong to Kansai International Airport in Japan. For additional shipment care Nippon Express opted to ship the plants under the Cathay Fresh solution, which adds extra cool-chain assurance for temperature-sensitive and perishable shipments.
The shipment in Jakarta warehouse awaiting build-up
Ultra Track provides even more assurance for vulnerable cargo. For these shipments, Cathay Cargo embeds low-energy Bluetooth readers inside ULDs or cooltainers. These readers record and transmit multi-dimensional information to agents in near-real-time when the devices are in range of beacons in the cargo terminal and some airport ramp areas. Otherwise data is stored for later download or when they next come into contact with a beacon. Additionally, some agents will also be able to get Ultra Track data updates to their own operational control towers via an API (application programming interface).
During the flight component of the shipment, the monitoring switches to flight tracking website to show progress of the flight with the shipment on board.
Ultra Track shipments are monitored by Cathay Cargo’s Operations Control Centre
Tracked metrics include Cargo iQ Milestones, GPS location, temperature and humidity, and these can be extended to include light and vibration. For this trial flight in March, Nippon Express specified a temperature range of 8-11°C for the first shipment of around 70 boxes totalling around 950kg.
The metrics are monitored 24/7 by Cathay Cargo’s Operations Control Centre. Should the OCC see a potential temperature excursion starting to happen, they will take proactive steps by getting warehouse personnel to check containers, for example, dry ice or battery levels, and top up or charge as requested.
Cathay Cargo Sales Executive Muhammad Fikri Al-Kautsar explains that Nippon Express opted for the trial shipment following a training and demonstration session held at the carrier’s Jakarta office. ‘We would like to say a big thank you to our loyal customer PT Nippon Express Indonesia, for their cooperation in using our Cathay Fresh solution and for being the first cargo agent to use Ultra Track in Indonesia,’ he says.
Building up the shipment in Jakarta
‘We have since secured this business as a regular shipment every week and Nippon Express has told us that they would like to use Ultra Track in each of these shipments.’
Nishi Kentaro, General Manager Nippon Express Indonesia, adds: ‘We believe Ultra Track offers a high-quality solution. We can monitor the temperature situation, which makes the whole shipment more secure. We can see it benefiting customers with perishables and pharma shipments.’