When it comes to the cold chain, the space is rife with disruptive technological innovation. It makes sense really, especially when the transportation industry is growing at alarming rates thanks to services such as Amazon and the plethora of stores offering home delivery for chilled and frozen supermarket goods. Still, there is plenty of disruptive and innovative technology in the cold chain game, and here we’re going to touch on a few of the most popular.

RFID

RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) is one of the biggest revolutions to occur in the transportation industry in recent years. It remains one of the hottest pieces of tech in various industries now, speeding up the workflow of various types of company. Recently, RFID has expanded within the transportation industry, allowing companies to better monitor the humidity and temperature of their cargo. RFID also allows workers to perform transportation checks and assessments, gather data more easily, and ensure that US/Canada standards are complied with. The quick “scan and go” nature of RFID means that manual data entry is quickly becoming a thing of the past, reducing the likelihood of errors while simultaneously increasing the overall efficiency of systems.

AIDC

Having fun with these acronyms? AIDC, which stands for Automatic Identification and Data Capture, is another similar method which is revolutionizing the cold chain transportation industry. AIDC helps to speed up processes which were once handled manually, helping to reduce overall downtime and thereby improve speed and efficiency. By using AIDC, stakeholders can access the data they need quickly and securely, making for a faster and more seamlessly integrated workflow.AIDC is commonly administered via barcodes which workers can quickly scan and glean any necessary data from. With AIDC, workers can quickly identify the goods that are being transported, record and communicate storage information through automated devices or scanners, report the fulfillment data of orders, determine the volume/weight of refrigerated freight cargo loads, and better regulate the quality of cold chain goods.

AI and Automation

You’ve probably heard stories about Amazon’s SkyNet-esque warehouses which have robots flying around and collecting orders quickly than humans ever could. Although it is not quite as prevalent in the cold chain space just yet, AI and automation are certainly on their way, and you can bet your bottom dollar that they’re very disruptive! Self-driving trucks are continually being tested on US roads and highways, eliminating/reducing the need for paid human drivers, and automated warehouse picker-packers are making the humans working in warehouses just as redundant too. In addition to these more obvious examples of “robots taking over the world”, automation can also be found in the data management systems of carriers, helping them to exchange data with relevant parties in real time. For instance, many carriers now use ERP systems which allow them to exchange live temperature and ETA data with their customers in real time without the driver of the reefer truck having to send the data over manually.

If you want to remain competitive within the cold chain logistics space, you have no choice but to adopt these disruptive trends over time. If not, your competitors will slowly begin to become more productive and efficient, gaining a competitive edge which you cannot afford!