ACU NOV-18 Final Draft

FEATURE
“Equation Critical caters to
customers who are shipping timesensitive
items, such as legal
documents, essential machinery
parts and aircraft on the ground
( A O G ) c o m p o n e n t s . C r i t i c a l
shipments come with a service-level
guarantee and Delta's Cargo Control
Center proactively monitors Critical
shipments throughout the journey,”
said Cole.
DASH Critical & Medical
Delta Cargo has been awarded
IATA's Center of Excellence for
Independent Validators (CEIV)
Pharma logistics Certification. Delta
is the first US Global passenger carrier
to receive this accolade and has now
joined the elite group of pharma
logistics providers to achieve CEIV
Pharma Certification, and it would be
through this service that Delta would
s h i p t e m p e r a t u r e s e n s i t i v e
shipments.
“Delta Cargo's Cargo Control
Center (CCC) opened in 2017 to
support daily cargo operations
across the globe. The Atlanta facility
provides comprehensive coverage of
all aspects of cargo transportation
and management, with the ability to
track air shipments, trucks, mail and
f r e i g h t – d o m e s t i c a l l y a n d
internationally”.
Delta Cargo introduced DASH
Critical & Medical in March 2017 and
it was the first fully GPS-enabled,
same-day product offered by a US
freight carrier for shipments within
the United States only. Equation
Critical is for international shipments
only but uses the similar distinctive
pink packaging.
Delta Cargo also offers the DASH
Critical & Medical for time sensitive
shipments in the US, where as
Equation Critical is for international
shipments – both have a GPS tracker.
“DASH Critical & Medical
provides real-time tracking
and monitoring of any
eligible shipment, and
customers can ship items
up until 45 minutes prior to
scheduled flight departure.
DASH Critical & Medical is
available from 15 locations
within the United States
namely Atlanta, Boston,
Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit,
LaGuardia (New York), Los
Angeles, Memphis,
Minneapolis, Orlando,
Rochester (New York), Salt
Lake City, San Francisco,
Savannah and Seattle with
service to 89 mainland US
destinations and Hawaii”.
E q u a t i o n C r i t i c a l w i l l b e
progressively rolled out in other
international markets across Delta's
extensive network , subject to
customer demand and regulatory
approvals.
The CarePod
Delta Cargo recently entered into a
long-term partnership with pet
transportation tech start-up CarePod.
The 'pod' product, designed to safely
transport live animals in the bellies of
aircraft, uses Internet of things (IoT)
technology to offer customers real
time updates on the status of their
pets and their GPS-location.
Moreover, Delta plans to use its
temperature-controlled holding
areas and overnight kenneling
services at various locations, adding
that its Cargo Control Center, gives
the airline constant visibility into all
shipments, including pets.
The industry is paying greater
attention to the safety of live-animal
cargo after last year – a bad year for
a i r t r a v e l i n g p e t s – w h e n t h e
Transportation Department tallied 24
fatalities, 15 injuries and one pet that
was reported lost.
Delta Cargo also said that it would
launch a new pet transportation
strategy in conjunction with its
partnership with CarePod. The
company said it will also expand its
ULD Bluetooth tracking capability to
businesses based off-airport from
early next year.
The US freight carrier began
offering real-time Bluetooth-based
tracking of its ULDs from select onairport
warehouses earlier this year,
b u t t h e e x p a n s i o n t o c a r g o
customers' own facilities represents a
significant extension to the service.
Customers will be able to track their
shipment from their own warehouses
to a consignment's final destination.
“The extension of the tracking
technology directly to our customers'
facilities will ensure visibility for the
whole freight journey, creating a
best-in-class shipping experience,”
adds Cole. “ This is a genuine
innovation, and we are on track to
launch in January 2019, with full
visibility later that year, once the
customer installations are complete.”
They will be able to track their
shipment on the website, while
r e c e i v i n g c u s t o m i z e d ' p u s h '
notifications.
Of particular value to the carrier,
real-time ULD tracking will allow
Delta's Cargo Control Center to more
accurately monitor and reroute
shipments that are delayed due to
irregular operations, such as bad
weather.