Germany-based cargo.one and IBS Software Ink Strategic Partnership

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Berlin-based cargo.one and IBS Software, the two technology leaders in aviation cargo, today officially announced their strategic partnership to facilitate digital transformation of airlines that would help them to ramp up their operations, boost sales online and effectively cushion the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic through this industry-first integration.

Viewed as a game-changer in aviation cargo industry, the partnership will allow all airline customers of IBS to seamlessly integrate with cargo.one and get access to its fast-growing user base through a cost-effective, data-driven and fully digital distribution channel.

The two companies have been working together to create custom integrations for leading airlines, including Etihad Cargo and Nippon Cargo Airlines, to successfully help them accelerate their digital distribution capabilities. During this year, the German company has already displayed hundreds of thousands of bookable offers for airlines using IBS iCargo, without the use of a standardized plug and play solution.

With the first plug and play booking for All Nippon Airways (ANA) last week, cargo.one has signalled the pioneering implementation of the new iCargo Sales platform, which represents an industry-first standard integration for airlines running IBS’s iCargo software. It also heralds the ‘walk the talk’ of digitalisation by the two companies by delivering real results for their airline partners and cargo.one’s extensively growing user base of freight forwarders.

As COVID-19 forces airlines and forwarder sales teams to adapt to a new normal, cargo.one has reported a record increase in usage and demand. The platform now serves over 1,500 freight forwarder branches, located across key European markets. This customer base represents a significant growth of 425 per cent compared to last year.

Moritz Claussen, Founder & Managing Director of cargo.one, said, “We see that COVID-19 has been a catalyst for digital transformation within the air cargo industry. This is reflected in the now over 1,500 forwarder branches using cargo.one on a daily basis.

“Furthermore, we see that distributing capacity online at live rates is an essential part of the recovery roadmap for many airlines. Together with IBS Software we have been building a proven plug and play solution that empowers all IBS airlines to seamlessly integrate with cargo.one and get access to our ever-growing user base. It will allow airlines to boost sales online and almost instantly relieve overloaded sales staff.”

The seamless access and proven integration technology via the IBS iCargo Sales platform will help more than 30 IBS airline customers to quickly use ‘out of the box’ services, without the need for major system changes. This will help airlines to develop digital distribution capabilities, which is a game-changer for the industry.

Ashok Rajan, SVP & Head of Cargo & Logistics, IBS Software, said, “We truly believe that leveraging online distribution is the way forward for airlines to emerge faster and stronger from the crisis and we are excited to enable these connections with innovation leader cargo.one and our state of the art technology.”

He added: “It is heartening to see how both companies have worked together in these challenging circumstances to deliver innovative capabilities that will help the industry. We have moved further in our broader goal of creating a ‘digital ecosystem’ by collaborating with complimenting services, to bring greater value to customers using iCargo. I am excited as we will see digitalization accelerating further over the next months through our joint efforts.”