The segment Air + Ocean of the Aschaffenburg based logistics specialist Logwin AG, formerly Birkart Globistics, is achieving consistent double-digit growth which it attributes to its streamlined structures and automation largely supplied by Traxon Europe. The two companies have been working together for the last ten years during which time the seamless flow of vital data to and from the airlines has substantially increased. Despite this expansion, Logwin's staff numbers and management structure have remained largely the same.

Andy Nutz, Logwin's Air + Ocean IT director explains how this success has been achieved. 'The interaction of our own internal traffic management system (TMS) with Traxon's neutral automated airfreight process enables communication with operators around the world, independent of their own individual systems' requirements. Working with Traxon Europe, Logwin is able to make electronic bookings and generate and transmit both Master and House Air Waybills. In exchange, Logwin receives current status reports from the carriers that ensure transparency of the process during tracking and tracing. This results in a fundamental decrease in the work load by having only one service provider interfacing with multiple airline systems. For us, Traxon Europe has become the electronic door opener for the global airfreight operators.'

In April 2008, in order to allow Traxon Europe to receive its shipment data, the Logwin management implemented Procars throughout all air and ocean stations. This shipping software ensures connection with Customs especially Atlas in Germany. Traxon Europe operates a help desk to provide support. In addition, Beverly Seebach, Area Manager Sales at Traxon Europe who has been working with Logwin for several years, is available for telephone advice.

IATA's Cargo 2000 project, aimed at promoting quality through paperless cargo processing, is the kind of initiative that Logwin has enthusiastically embraced. 'No Big Deal' is what Nutz says about the quality requirements of phases one and two. 'Although we have adopted paperless processing, which drives initiatives such as e-freight, we frequently find many well known airlines are still in the paper age with its accompanying expensive and time-consuming phone calls. The resulting amount of paper generated is estimated at 4,000 tons globally, enough to fill 39 B747 freighters, whilst switching to electronic solutions could result in a theoretical saving to the industry of around $1.2 billion per year.'

'Another factor in the air cargo chain' continues Nutz, 'is the number of links in the process such as ground and ramp handlers, all of which enter information manually. This costs time and money whilst increasing the possibilities for introducing errors and making tracking quite difficult. If we do not enter the shipment details into the system, the forwarder is 'flying blind', which is why investment in efficient IT systems is vital. In our opinion, no supply chain can function efficiently without Traxon Europe.'