Air Cargo Industry Aims to Improve Quality of its Supply Chain
The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) recently announced that it has developed a new online Cargo Service Quality (CSQ) tool to help improve visibility and facilitate global standards across the air cargo supply chain.
The group says this is also a step towards providing shippers with the ability to view the quality of service delivered by players in air cargo supply chain.
“In my interactions with shippers it has been reaffirmed that the lack of visibility and absence of uniform global standards results in air freight business deals being limited by cost considerations, lack of product improvements, and perceived lack of value for money,” said TIACA Board Chairman Sanjiv Edward.
The initiative, launched at TIACA’s 2017 Executive Summit in Miami, comes after a year of research undertaken by a team of TIACA Board members led by Chairman Sanjiv Edward, Head of Cargo Business, Delhi International Airport, and Cheemeng Wong, Senior Vice President, Cargo Services, SATS Ltd.
“The Cargo Service Quality initiative is a logical step for an association like TIACA, that integrates all the players of the air cargo supply chain,” said Vladimir Zubkov, Secretary General, TIACA.
Participants will be able to fill out an online Cargo Quality Assessment Form either every quarter, or every six months, and will have access to a customized Quality Dashboard. Key benefits of taking part include gap analyses in order to identify strength and improvement areas, and best practice sharing.
The pilot phase of the program includes assessment tools for airports and cargo terminal operators, and the CSQ will eventually be available to measure other segments of the air cargo supply chain.
The program has received backing from players at leading airports including Hong Kong International Airport, Singapore Changi Airport, New Delhi Airport, Brussels Airport, and Beijing Capital Airport.
“This initiative will play a key role in standardizing cargo quality assessment globally, establishing new benchmark parameters, identifying strength and improvement areas, optimizing investments, and sharing best practice in the industry,” said Cheemeng Wong, Senior Vice President, Cargo Services, SATS Ltd.
