According to a survey commissioned by London-based , almost half of UK businesses (49%), were not prepared to transition to remote working when the pandemic hit, and 39% were not even using technology that supported remote working when the lockdown was announced. Gearing up was an issue: 48% of firms have had to invest in new computer programs since the outbreak, 72% in new hardware.

At the same time, logistics leaders were blindsided by COVID-19, even though they are used to dealing with interruptions such as shipment delays or demand spikes. Disruptions caused by the pandemic have exposed many gaps in logistics operations; supply chain leaders are now scrambling to overhaul processes to manage upheavals.

But for intelligent companies, it was mostly business as usual, thanks to digitalization, which according to , is the use of digital technologies to change a business model and provide new revenue and value-producing opportunities.

Serving Customers

For example, COVID-19 has changed the way we shop for food. It is no surprise that grocery stores have done particularly well during the pandemic 鈥� everyone needs to eat and stock up on dry goods. What is surprising is the change in buying habits: people are spending less time in stores, there is less human contact, and stores have become more transactional. People are also more conscious about sustainability in the food chain.

Daniel Lundh, co-founder of , Sweden鈥檚 first fully digital unmanned grocery chain, has a tech tale to tell.

The company started as a chain of self-service stores in rural areas stocking about 500 items typically found in a grocery store. The business is based on innovative technology solutions like machine learning to drive replenishment. Store entry, goods scanning, and payment are all done using an app. Through the app, LIFVS has access to all customer data, enabling personalization and tailor-made communication. Only by tracking everything with data analytics can the company customize highly personalized journeys for every individual.

The entrepreneur, who sees his company as more of a tech startup than a grocery retailer, says LIFVS already had the right business model in place at the start of the pandemic. Then it was just a matter of opening a new store every second week to meet mounting demand. The trend is continuing.

Meeting Demand

How do companies ensure the right products make it to the shelves in the first place?

Companies like solve this challenge with an app. Fisherman on the North Sea are now able to cast their nets based upon what is currently in demand in far off markets like Japan. According to a published by The Nature Conservancy, supply chains involving seafood are uniquely complex, especially those that are based on wild-caught fish, which face higher uncertainty and risk than farm-raised chains due to ever-changing environmental and biological conditions.

That makes it hard to match supply to demand. To help optimize the process and improve regulatory compliance, Royal Greenland implemented . This cloud-based solution has helped advance the company鈥檚 forecasting and planning capabilities and improve data transparency by establishing a common, integrated platform for sales and operations.

The company is also digitalizing the process of bringing the fish into factories and implementing registration and quality control procedures with apps.

Delivering the Goods

Trucking is also benefiting from digitalization. When lockdowns forced office closures, digital trucking company was able to set up home offices for 3,000 support staff within weeks. This enabled the company to focus on what really mattered: delivering food and medical supplies across Europe as COVID-19 surged.

For Girteka, digital technology is the foundation for everything, from teaching people new skills to meeting customer expectations and becoming more sustainable. Having fully integrated and automated systems and processes has relieved the workforce of repetitive tasks and enabled them to take tighter control of operations. Instead of scaling back transformation efforts during the pandemic, Girteka went ahead with plans to digitize the entire business and grow.

Martynas Sarapinas, CIO and Executive Board member at Girteka Logistics, stated in an that becoming an intelligent enterprise requires an end-to-end digital solution. While the crisis is forcing businesses to reevaluate supply chains and business models, Sarapinas is secure in the knowledge that his company has the digital foundation to meet any customer expectations in the future.

Freight transport is yet another key link in the supply chain. To avoid potential delays, smart companies such as have modernized their systems reducing downtime from an average of 12,000 hours per year to less than 60. If trains do stop in their tracks, a satellite-based solution from Ovinto provides instantaneous alerts so corrective measures can be taken immediately.

These are just a few examples of how digitalization is enabling companies to react quickly to disruptions without breaking stride. No one knows what tomorrow will bring, but the evidence suggests that companies with digital processes are most likely to adapt and thrive.

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AfCFTA seeks to increase intra-African trade by cutting tariffs by 90% and could unlock significant growth opportunities.

Francis Njiraini, Technical Director of聽Seidor聽East Africa聽points out that the transport industry is recognised as one of the core enablers of development according to the World Bank and plays a key role in Africa, where development is crucial to address unemployment and poverty.

According to Njiraini, it is no surprise that transport costs affect the price of consumer goods, which can be significantly reduced by companies that opt to use modern transportation management systems.

鈥淚鈥檓 based in East Africa, where the majority of聽transportation still happens by road. Goods need to move over large areas and it is important to know where everything is, at any given time, which is where technology-driven solutions, as well as new technology, can help solve challenges鈥�.

Njiraini says that while the transport industry in Africa is expanding and offers opportunities for new entrants, these companies usually start off with a few trucks, Excel documents and fragmented accounting systems. Planning for future growth is essential, as when these companies suddenly have one-hundred vehicles, they realise that they need better systems to manage their transportation such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Solutions.

Njiraini explains some of the benefits of ERP Solutions, 鈥淕PS that integrates with聽麻豆原创 Business One聽HANA can, for example, identify delays to alert other users of road problems and delays at weighbridges and border controls or due to accidents. It can also identify specific problematic routes that should be avoided or improved. The performance of trucks especially the profitability of each truck, against established benchmarks can also be measured with a transportation management system to ensure that problems are identified, investigated and resolved. These systems can also measure fuel consumption against manufacturer standards and actual figures over time.鈥�

Transportation management solutions are also essential when transporting valuable or flammable goods, such as oil and gas which need to be monitored carefully for safety and tax compliance reasons. Other challenges transportation companies need to overcome are customer demands and delays at borders and weighbridges, as well as lacking infrastructure such as broken bridges or poor road conditions that also cause delays and maintenance problems.

Explains Njiraini, 鈥淢ost of these upcoming transport companies do not have systems to track items such as mileage, fuel, other trip expenses, maintenance costs and tyre use, which could help them to identify problems before they happen. We have also found that only established companies with 500 trucks or more offer training to team members, such as advanced driving skills. Smaller operators do not, which means that they do not have all the necessary safety measures in place, putting them at risk.鈥�

Not only large companies benefit from advanced technology. Small to medium-sized businesses (those with 100-500 trucks) can also benefit from and afford transport management solution, such as 麻豆原创 Business One HANA.

鈥溌槎乖� Business One HANA can be implemented at the level required by the business size and added to as the business grows. When comparing the cost of the investment in technology with that of buying a truck or tanker, it is important to remember that the value in efficiency and intelligence will show returns over time. At Seidor we have seen a return on investment within the first year that equals the cost of the solution in saving on maintenance costs because all expenses are tracked in an integrated system with best-practice business rules applied,鈥� says Njiraini.

鈥淪mall business owners are often wary of technology because they fear it may be hard to use, but 麻豆原创 Business One HANA is easy to understand and use. 麻豆原创 has made a major investment in research and development to make our solutions user-friendly. Dashboards allow managers to easily see what is going on in the business and in workshops scanners are easy to use to record accurate data, such as parts issued,鈥� adds Njiraini

The people who are responsible for the solutions are also important. Njiraini stresses that it is not always about systems or solutions, but also about people with the expertise, understanding and experience of working in the industry and who have the ability to assist growing transportation and logistics businesses with the implementation of a solution that suits their company.

鈥淲ith 17 years of on the ground experience in East Africa, Seidor East Africa, has the largest group of 麻豆原创-certified people operating in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Mauritius. We are therefore perfectly positioned to assist transportation companies in the region.鈥�

Njiraini is positive about the opportunity investment in technology, combined with infrastructure changes, can have on East Africa specifically. 鈥淎s transportation directly affects the cost of end-user products, transportation management solutions improvements that will help to save money can also benefit the general public. More regions can also be opened up for inter-trade with the right infrastructure to improve lives.鈥�

This article first appeared on .

The post Technology and Infrastructure Investment to Drive Africa鈥檚 Expanding Transport Industry appeared first on 麻豆原创 Africa News Center.