Digital transformation and tech take center stage at LogiChem U.S. 2019

Brett Calamari, Cordstrap’s Director - Chemical Segment is attending LogiChem U.S. 2019, September 9-10 in Houston, TX. We caught up with Brett to discuss the key trends and topics at this year’s event. If you’re attending LogiChem U.S. you can find Brett and the Cordstrap team at Booth #16.

Digital transformation is, once again, high on the agenda at this year’s LogiChem. What progress do you think has been made over the past year?

After reviewing the agenda for this year’s conference, it’s interesting to see there’s been a shift from what might be achieved to what is being achieved. This indicates that we’ve moved from a theoretical to a practical phase, and the chemical industry’s logistics operations are really moving forward with digital innovation — case in point, Cordstrap. This past year, we added a revolutionary new cargo monitoring element to our already established line of engineered cargo protection solutions. In deploying IoT technology, we can monitor location, temperature, humidity, security, and shock data at an individual container level. That gives our customers real-time vigilance over their shipments. Perhaps even more important, that data allows us to understand precisely what protection future shipments will require, and provides Cordstrap the opportunity to engineer protection solutions precisely matched to the risks facing your shipments. The longer the system operates, the deeper our insights grows on the magnitude and likelihood of those risks.

There is a lot of discussion about geopolitical changes currently underway around the world. What particular challenges do you feel this poses to chemical supply chains?

Practically every news report brings more information on how trade disputes are escalating with both the US and China taking increasingly combative positions. This kind of tit for tat approach to trade is not unique to those countries. In addition, the UK is still figuring out how it is going to part company with the EU. Japan and South Korea are setting up trade barriers affecting chemical shipments between the two countries, over a dispute that stems back to WW2, and US sanctions on Iran have prompted considerable disruption to shipping in the gulf. These pressures will inevitably take their toll on global supply chains. It’s important to ensure that your business is adaptable, and can react quickly to changing market conditions while providing flexibility to deploy new trade routes, if necessary. That’s one of the reasons Cordstrap places such a strong emphasis on providing truly global support and developing engineered protection solutions that are certified in every major jurisdiction. This facilitates swift tactical adjustments without any sacrifice in quality or consistency of service.

One of the morning sessions of this year’s conference focuses on the three main pillars of the supply chain. How can Cordstrap impact on operations, efficiency, and analytics?

At Cordstrap, innovation is in our DNA. We’ve been responsible for some of the most important advances in cargo protection over the past 50 years. Every one of those innovations focused on those key pillars of supply chain.  We’ve engineered cargo protection solutions that deliver greater safety for cargo and for the people that handle it. We’ve reduced loading times for every conceivable form of cargo, and engineered cargo protection solutions like CornerLash, reduce the manpower needed to apply it while increasing its effectiveness. To accomplish these feats, the engineers in our R&D department partner with the world’s key insurance and regulatory bodies like the IMO and the AAR, to fully understand the forces at play and the risks to shipments.  Now that we can gather and analyze data from individual shipments, we will be able to engineer more innovative protection solutions, driving further operational efficiencies right across the chemical industry.

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