Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

newsworthy

UPS joins blockchain industry group

Logistics giant says blockchain software could improve accuracy in its customs brokerage business by digitizing existing paper processes.

Transport and logistics giant UPS Inc. said today it has joined the Blockchain in Trucking Alliance (BiTA), an industry group created to guide the development of blockchain-based data-security software in the transportation industry.

Blockchain software is best known as the technological foundation of the Bitcoin digital currency, but it can be applied to any business sector with a need to ensure that data is quickly and securely shared. The technology works by ensuring that no single user can alter an electronic record without the approval of all parties involved in a transaction.


UPS joined the BiTA group to explore how it could apply blockchain in its customs brokerage business, the company said. Blockchain technology could help digitize those customs brokerage transactions by improving accuracy and by replacing existing paper-heavy and manual processes, according to UPS.

Trading partners can reach those goals by using blockchain as a digital database that can keep a record of any information or asset by using information "blocks" that are linked by secure cryptography, UPS said. In logistics, those assets could be either physical items like transportation containers or virtual items like digital currencies, according to UPS.

"Blockchain has multiple applications in the logistics industry, especially related to supply chains, insurance, payments, audits, and customs brokerage," Linda Weakland, UPS director of enterprise architecture and innovation, said in a statement. "The technology has the potential to increase transparency and efficiency among shippers, carriers, brokers, consumers, vendors, and other supply chain stakeholders."

BiTA members collaborate to pursue those goals by developing a standards framework, educating the market on blockchain applications, and encouraging the use of those applications through successful implementations, according to the BiTA website. UPS and its Coyote Logistics division will join other alliance members including TransRisk, McLeod Software Corp., PS Logistics, 10-4 Systems Inc., TMW Systems Inc., and Convoy, BiTA said.

In addition to the BiTA consortium, other companies throughout the logistics sector are working on independent blockchain projects.

One forum known as the "Trusted IoT Alliance" includes members like Robert Bosch GmbH, Cisco Systems Inc., and Gemalto NV who are cooperating in setting standards to boost the adoption of blockchain software and internet of things (IoT) networks.

Other examples of blockchain applications in logistics include initiatives by Danish shipping giant Maersk Line to digitize its trade data with help from software providers IBM Corp. and SAP SE, and a plan by food vendors Nestlé Unilever and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to tackle food safety challenges with blockchain software.

The Latest

More Stories

Warehouse automation project orders fell 3% in 2024

Warehouse automation project orders fell 3% in 2024

Warehouse automation orders declined by 3% in 2024, according to a February report from market research firm Interact Analysis. The company said the decline was due to economic, political, and market-specific challenges, including persistently high interest rates in many regions and the residual effects of an oversupply of warehouses built during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The research also found that increasing competition from Chinese vendors is expected to drive down prices and slow revenue growth over the report’s forecast period to 2030.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

screenshot of kodiak hub software

Swedish supply chain tech firm Kodiak Hub expands to U.S.

The Swedish supply chain software company Kodiak Hub is expanding into the U.S. market, backed by a $6 million venture capital boost for its supplier relationship management (SRM) platform.

The Stockholm-based company says its move could help U.S. companies build resilient, sustainable supply chains amid growing pressure from regulatory changes, emerging tariffs, and increasing demands for supply chain transparency.

Keep ReadingShow less

Logistics gives back: February 2025

Here's our monthly roundup of some of the charitable works and donations by companies in the material handling and logistics space.

  • For the sixth consecutive year, dedicated contract carriage and freight management services provider Transervice Logistics Inc. collected books, CDs, DVDs, and magazines for Book Fairies, a nonprofit book donation organization in the New York Tri-State area. Transervice employees broke their own in-house record last year by donating 13 boxes of print and video assets to children in under-resourced communities on Long Island and the five boroughs of New York City.
  • Logistics real estate investment and development firm Dermody Properties has recognized eight community organizations in markets where it operates with its 2024 Annual Thanksgiving Capstone awards. The organizations, which included food banks and disaster relief agencies, received a combined $85,000 in awards ranging from $5,000 to $25,000.
  • Prime Inc. truck driver Dee Sova has donated $5,000 to Harmony House, an organization that provides shelter and support services to domestic violence survivors in Springfield, Missouri. The donation follows Sova's selection as the 2024 recipient of the Trucking Cares Foundation's John Lex Premier Achievement Award, which was accompanied by a $5,000 check to be given in her name to a charity of her choice.
  • Employees of dedicated contract carrier Lily Transportation donated dog food and supplies to a local animal shelter at a holiday event held at the company's Fort Worth, Texas, location. The event, which benefited City of Saginaw (Texas) Animal Services, was coordinated by "Lily Paws," a dedicated committee within Lily Transportation that focuses on improving the lives of shelter dogs nationwide.
  • Freight transportation conglomerate Averitt has continued its support of military service members by participating in the "10,000 for the Troops" card collection program organized by radio station New Country 96.3 KSCS in Dallas/Fort Worth. In 2024, Averitt associates collected and shipped more than 18,000 holiday cards to troops overseas. Contributions included cards from 17 different Averitt facilities, primarily in Texas, along with 4,000 cards from the company's corporate office in Cookeville, Tennessee.

Catch a thief, stop a vandal

Electric vehicle (EV) sales have seen slow and steady growth, as the vehicles continue to gain converts among consumers and delivery fleet operators alike. But a consistent frustration for drivers has been pulling up to a charging station only to find that the charger has been intentionally broken or disabled.

To address that threat, the EV charging solution provider ChargePoint has launched two products to combat charger vandalism.

Keep ReadingShow less
ATRI releases annual list of nation’s top truck bottlenecks

ATRI releases annual list of nation’s top truck bottlenecks

New Jersey is home to the most congested freight bottleneck in the country for the seventh straight year, according to research from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), released today.

ATRI’s annual list of the Top 100 Truck Bottlenecks aims to highlight the nation’s most congested highways and help local, state, and federal governments target funding to areas most in need of relief. The data show ways to reduce chokepoints, lower emissions, and drive economic growth, according to the researchers.

Keep ReadingShow less