Air cargo sector looks to iCargo system

iCargo, the next generation airline cargo management system, being readied by Technopark-based IBS Software Services' CGI (Core Group Initiative), is being foreseen by major players in the air cargo arena as a product that would revolutionise operations in the segment.

Members of the CGI came together in Thiruvananthapuram to hold deliberations to perfect the iCargo system.

There was a compelling business need for building a system that would support the new generation freight business using new generation technologies, and the iCargo system was highly relevant in this context, the members of the CGI forum felt.

The air cargo industry currently runs on legacy systems that are not suited for today's world of commerce, according to V K Mathews, chairman and managing director of IBS Group. The product would be a viable alternative for the current legacy systems, he added.

The iCargo system has pooled in the brilliance and innovative ideas from major players like Air New Zealand Cargo, Gulf Air, South African Airways cargo, Qantas Freight, Nippon Air Cargo and Australian air Express, who are also the members of the forum.

The deliberations at the meet are expected to influence and validate the processes and functional architecture of iCargo to address the current and future requirements of the airline industry.

According to the IBS chief, the iCargo system would be released in the market in stages. This means new functionalities would be added in every stage so that the system would evolve as a full-fledged cargo and logistics management system to support the entire logistics supply chain from shipper to consignee.

Speakers at the meet included Gareth Lewis, technical officer, World Customs Organisation, Koos Du Plessis, senior information manager, South African Airways, Alison Banova, manager, Australian air Express, Shinji Umehara, general manager (business strategy) Nippon Cargo Airlines, and Hugh Pride, COO (New Zealand and Australia), IBS.

A team of 150 personnel is currently involved in the development of iCargo. The members of the forum who are involved in the iCargo initiative also have the option to become customers of the system, Mathews added.