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By way of a novel sensing device, the BPW Innovation Lab is bringing transparency to the goods tracking segment.
By way of a novel sensing device, the BPW Innovation Lab is bringing transparency to the goods tracking segment.

Press release -

Breakthrough for digital goods monitoring – BPW Innovation Lab makes cargo tracking affordable

  • BPW Innovation Lab develops resilient tracking solution
  • Complete transparency for hauliers, shippers and recipients
  • Supply chain transparency enhanced by digitised transport processes


Wiehl/Siegburg, 14.12.2017 --- Situated in Siegburg, the think tank of BPW Group has unveiled an all-new digital goods tracking solution capable of significantly improving supply chain transparency. Costing around one-third of existing systems, it runs autonomously for up to two years without requiring a battery change. The solution is currently undergoing testing and scheduled to enter the market in 2018.

Before an invited audience of transport industry journalists,BPW early in December presented a breakthrough in interconnected logistics. The BPW Innovation Lab, a BPW Group think tank established in Siegburg just a year ago, has conceived an entirely new tracking solution. Priced at around one-third of the cost of most existing concepts, it puts digital goods tracking within reach of nearly all applications. At the heart of the innovation is a new, especially low-cost and resilient sensing device or tracker, which is attached to the load carrier (pallet, rack, tank, cask etc.). It continuously captures and transmits data indicating the condition and location of the cargo. According to Alexander Lutze, who works in the BPW Innovation Lab, “This information is very valuable for the shipper, recipient and haulier. At last there is a system that can answer the most frequently asked questions. Will the goods arrive on time? What time exactly will the consignment arrive? Because the data can be integrated in ERP systems, such as SAP, this solution creates transparency throughout the supply chain. The status and location of a consignment can be viewed at any time. Thanks to late-running and arrival alerts, it also allows the automation of otherwise manual process steps.”

The project overseen by the BPW Innovation Lab brought together merchandise management and ERP experts from SAP with BPW Group’s own logistics, mechatronics and telematics specialists.

Unlike the large majority of current solutions, the new tracker does not rely on an external power supply and can transmit data for up to two years without a battery change.

Marcus Sassenrath, a member of the Innovation Lab and head of BPW Group’s IT and digital strategy, comments, “The internet of transport is now being put into practice. Everyone involved in the transport process – shippers, hauliers and recipients – benefit from greater transparency concerning goods streams, as well as real-time information sharing between businesses, and fully interconnected logistics. We are making tracking affordable for everyone.”

Extensive field tests are currently taking place with selected partners. The market launch is earmarked for 2018. The tracker solution is targeted at goods shippers and recipients, as well as transport operators wishing to offer their customers digital value-added services.

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About BPW Bergische Achsen KG
BPW Bergische Achsen KG is the parent company of the BPW Group. With more than 1,600 employees, including around 120 trainees, the family-run company has been developing and producing complete running gear systems for truck trailers and semi-trailers at its headquarters in Wiehl since 1898. BPW’s technologies include axle systems, brake technology, suspension and bearings. BPW’s trailer axles and running gear systems are in use in millions of vehicles around the world. An extensive range of services also provides vehicle manufacturers and vehicle operators with the opportunity to increase economic efficiency in their production and transport processes. www.bpw.de/en


About BPW Group
BPW Group, based in Wiehl, Germany, is a dependable international mobility and system partner for the transport industry, serving as a one-stop shop for innovative solutions. Its portfolio embraces axles, suspension systems and brake technologies (BPW), locking systems and bodywork technology (Hestal), lighting systems (Ermax), composite technologies (HBN-Teknik), and user-friendly telematics applications for trucks and trailers (idem telematics). BPW Group’s technologies and services support manufacturers’ cost-effective workflows and enable vehicle operators to manage their fleets efficiently by maximising the transparency of loading and transport processes. The owner-managed BPW Group encompasses 70 companies worldwide and employs around 7,000 people. www.wethinktransport.com

Contacts

Nadine Simon

Nadine Simon

Press contact Press Officer/Public Relations focus on: OE products and genuine spare parts +49 (0) 2262 78-1909 Nadine Simon on LinkedIn
Robin Becker

Robin Becker

Press contact Press Officer/Public Relations focus on: company, human ressources/training, sustainability +49 (0) 2262 78-1905 Robin Becker on LinkedIn

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Welcome to BPW Bergische Achsen KG!

About BPW Bergische Achsen Kommanditgesellschaft
BPW Bergische Achsen KG is the parent company of the BPW Group. With around 1,500 employees, including around 100 trainees, the family-run company has been developing and producing complete running gear systems for truck trailers and semi-trailers at its headquarters in Wiehl since 1898. BPW’s technologies include axle systems, brake technology, suspension and bearings. BPW’s trailer axles and running gear systems are in use in millions of vehicles around the world. An extensive range of services also provides vehicle manufacturers and vehicle operators with the opportunity to increase economic efficiency in their production and transport processes. www.bpw.de/en

About the BPW Group
The BPW Group researches, develops and manufactures everything needed to ensure that transport keeps moving and is safe, illuminated, intelligent and digitally connected. With its brands BPW, Ermax, HBN, HESTAL and idem telematics, the company group is a preferred system partner of the commercial vehicle industry around the globe for running gear, brakes, lighting, fasteners and superstructure technology, telematics and other key components for trucks, trailers and buses. The BPW Group offers comprehensive mobility services for transport businesses, ranging from a global service network to spare parts supply and intelligent networking of vehicles, drivers and freight. The owner-operated company group currently employs around 6,830 staff in 27 countries and achieved consolidated sales of 1.745 billion euros in 2023. www.bpw.de/en

BPW Bergische Achsen KG