From Shipment to Container, Gain Logistics Visibility at a More Granular Level

[Doug_DeLuca]

Scientists use microscopes.  Birders use binoculars.  Being able to put-eyes-on-the-details is how practitioners are able to meet their objectives. 

So how do supply chain professionals get the logistics visibility they need to meet their objectives?  SAP’s latest enhancement to SAP Business Network Global Track and Trace now enables supply chain practitioners to put-eyes-on-the-details for improved granularity in global logistics visibility. 

There are three significant benefits to having highly granular logistics visibility, but let’s cover some background first. 

Delivered in the 2402 Release for SAP Business Network for Logistics, shippers now have the details they need to get an even more granular level of logistics visibility. 

The SAP Business Network Global Track and Trace solution now provides clear, easy to access detail on individual Tracking Units of a Shipment, Freight Order or Freight Booking.  A Tracking Unit represents the lowest level of physical goods tracked during transportation processes.  Examples of Tracking Units are a container, a truck, or a parcel ID. 

Shipments can contain a very large number of Tracking Units, which may travel different routes to their destination.  Now, in addition to tracking at the shipment level, the journey of Tracking Units can be individually visualized with event reporting. 

To gain logistics visibility at the Tracking Unit level, transportation planners and other members of the shipping organization can drill-down from the 'Shipment Details' or 'Freight Unit Details' page into each Tracking Unit in a Freight Order, Freight Booking or Shipment, and then delve into the 'Tracking Unit Details' page to see:

• Transportation route and events visualized on a scalable map in real-time
• Detail on events, including:
  - Loading Start and End
  - Proof of Pick-up and Delivery
  - Departure and Arrival
• Carrier reference documents
• Tracking and execution statuses, both customizable and out-of-the-box

All of this information is available for a Tracking Unit, while keeping an eye on the bigger picture, in terms of Freight Order, Freight Booking, Shipment, Freight Unit, and Delivery, as well as Sales Order, Purchase Order or Stock Transport Order, for logistics visibility in business context.  

So what does this type of highly detailed logistics visibility at the Tracking Unit level mean to a shipper? 

There are three significant benefits in business context to such highly granular logistics visibility:

1) Better customer service through faster problem resolution

With detailed visibility into individual tracking units, you can provide more accurate and timely updates to customers regarding the status and location of your shipments. And when issues arise during transit, such as delays, damages, or lost shipments, you can pinpoint the exact location and status of affected units, to take immediate corrective actions, such as rerouting shipments or initiating investigations  This transparency serves to enhance customer satisfaction by reducing uncertainty, improving responsiveness, and enabling better communication, which goes a very long way when building customer loyalty.

2) Improved operational efficiency, including better inventory management

Logistics visibility at the Tracking Unit level allows companies to optimize their transportation and distribution processes by identifying inefficiencies, streamlining routes, consolidating shipments, to minimize delays, improve resource utilization, and drive cost savings.  Such detailed logistics visibility even enables more precise inventory management. You can monitor the movement of goods in real-time, accurately and with sufficient granularity to forecast inventory levels to avoid stockouts and unplanned long lead times... or excess inventory and spoilage on the other end of the scale.

3) Enhanced risk mitigation through data-driven decision making

Analyzing routes, events and statuses at detailed level can provide valuable insights into supply chain operations.  But combine such detailed insights with the higher-level business context of a Sales Order, Purchase Order, or Stock Transfer, natively integrated into your ERP… and trend overall performance, risk, and sustainability with the SAP Business Network, intelligent insights add-on solution… and supply chain executives will have their required foundation for key strategic decisions, such as supplier sourcing, route optimization, and inventory allocation, all leading to improved business performance and competitiveness from a more resilient supply chain.

See the details of Tracking Units in SAP Business Network Global Tack and Trace. 

Learn more about all of the SAP Business Network for Logistics solutions.   

Read more about how Cloud-based Visibility Equips Trading Partners to Counter Tomorrow’s Supply Chain Disruption Today from Joern Keller, Executive Vice President and Chief Product Officer, SAP Business Network. 

The take-away: Driving for this level of logistics visibility is the next level of value-add that supply chain resources bring to the overall success and competitiveness of their business.