Unisys Introduces Virtual Integrator Suite to Transform Air Freight Industry

Unisys, a leading IT solutions company, has unveiled the Virtual Integrator Suite, a groundbreaking set of services aimed at revolutionizing the way airlines and freight forwarders collaborate to meet the evolving demands of shippers. This innovative solution addresses the long-standing issues of fragmented and inconsistent air freight handling, which have resulted in subpar delivery performance despite efforts to improve quality and business processes. The Virtual Integrator Suite aims to standardize freight handling processes, create a unified operations rule book, and establish monitoring and control systems to ensure consistent and reliable product delivery.

Key Takeaways:

• The Virtual Integrator Suite is a set of services designed to help airlines and freight forwarders work together to meet the evolving demands of shippers.
• Unisys will audit freight handling processes, standardize them, create a basic operations rule book, and establish monitoring and control systems to enable consistent and reliable product delivery.
• The solution addresses the fundamental delivery problems of the traditional air freight industry, including fragmented and inconsistent handling processes.
• Key to the Unisys strategy are substantial investments to enhance its own USAS Cargo system, acquire a high-performance freight forwarder system, and build effective interfaces between the two systems.
• The Virtual Integrator Suite will alleviate or eliminate the distractions of managing information processing functions that provide no competitive advantages for forwarders and carriers.
• Unisys will assume responsibility for providing and maintaining the enabling information management functionality to support coordinated forwarder/carrier operations.
• The solution will charge fees for services on a per-transaction basis, allowing clients to move from a fixed information processing cost model to one that varies based on business volume.
• Gail Blauer Jones, vice president of Unisys Freight Management, Transportation Line of Business, noted that the Virtual Integrator Suite will provide clients with a high level of business functionality without any up-front capital investment, all on a variable cost basis.
• The Virtual Integrator Suite addresses key strategic challenges of the air freight industry, including growing business volumes and operating costs, squeezing profit margins for both forwarders and carriers.
• According to the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group's 1994 World Air Cargo Forecast, yield from business in the air freight industry has dropped by more than 50% in the past 20 years.

Statistics:

• The Virtual Integrator Suite will provide clients with a high level of business functionality without any up-front capital investment.
• Unisys will charge fees for services on a per-transaction basis, allowing clients to move from a fixed information processing cost model to one that varies based on business volume.
• Yield from business in the air freight industry has dropped by more than 50% in the past 20 years, according to the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group's 1994 World Air Cargo Forecast.
• Passenger yields are dropping by an average of 3% a year, making freight profits increasingly crucial for carriers.

Sources:

• Unisys Corp.
• Boeing Commercial Airplane Group, 1994 World Air Cargo Forecast.