Worldwide innovations trends in logistics and distribution in 2023

May 22, 2023

In the logistics and transport industry, demand and supply are changing rapidly due to the network dynamics in which companies are interconnected, resulting in a rapid pace of innovation and the introduction of new products and services. The individual situation in which a company finds itself will determine the direction of business development.

The highest breakthrough points are often on the line when a company wants to increase its sales. The company will then provide a budget for market research and development. It will be important for software companies that work in logistics and transport to develop a highly personalized product that can meet current business needs. For transport and logistics companies, it will be important to provide a high-quality service at the lowest possible price.

Novacura visited the Transport Logistics 2023, the International Exhibition for Logistics, Mobility, IT, and Supply Chain Management, from 9-12 May 2023 at the Messe München Trade Fair Centre in Munich, Germany.

Fairtrade events have common characteristics that allow companies to introduce innovation and a learning perspective, as well as an internal business perspective. Such views integrate different approaches that influence market and business development.

Transport and logistics focus on operations where business processes remain the same. However, there will be a significant need for continuous improvement when it comes to mobility, IT, and supply chain management, which partly shape logistics and transport operations. This is due to the prospect of increasing competition in the market and narrowing revenue margins caused by the ever-reducing cost of services. Logistics and transport companies have embarked on large-scale development to remain competitive through innovation, which leads to maintaining low business costs in the long term.

During the event, we could observe innovations in technology and business management, where mobility and IT services played a leading role. We were able to observe innovations in these areas:

Mobility and business software providers – software providers focus on corporate objectives, including business units, functional business areas, and supply chain strategies, which are the common game plan for logistics and transport. Therefore, software companies provide mobile applications as the absolute standard in logistics, providing companies with the ultimate benefit of TMS and WMS. Today’s software development trend in logistics and transport is linked to component supply chain integrators, synchronizing customer demand with other components and supply systems to provide the basis for operational decisions and set the boundaries of available strategic options.

Technology – innovation in range availability in building products that are safer and easier to use in logistics and transportation. Companies providing pharmaceutical and healthcare products, services, and solutions are now more innovative and providing a more cost-effective service as, in many cases, external contractors are beginning to see the healthcare niche as highly profitable. Furthermore, despite many changes in the industry, such as modern freight containers in the airfreight industry, we have seen that highly technological hardware has always been supported by software with mobile applications.

Transition to green energy – a unique strategic competence in product quality, distribution, design, and engineering was demonstrated on-site through the ability to transition to green energy, including the use of sustainable energy resources. This aspect was mainly seen as part of a differentiation strategy, as companies that could implement energy-efficient designs today will remain more innovative and in line with today’s challenges in transport and logistics. Management of energy systems, and electric vehicles were introduced along with software solutions and mobile applications to provide better control of the business.

Looking through the perspective of an entire event such as the International Exhibition, there is no doubt that innovation or technical superiority is supported by industrial software solutions. Companies in the logistics and transport industry are constantly looking for solutions that provide value to customers at the lowest possible price. Given today’s business trends evident at the Munich Logistics and Transport Fair, we can conclude that there is a demand for configurable and cost-effective mobility support software.

Novacura provides the Novacura Flow solution based on low-code technology. Novacura Flow provides users access to a low-code platform with a user-friendly interface for creating business applications linked to an ERP system. Users can manage the structure of business management systems that allow processes to be designed from the ground up and integrate different systems across the organization.