Airfreight tech company Wiremind says that Beta-testing of its Skypallet 2.0 space optimization and palletization tool is well underway and the significantly improved version is on tracking for launch this summer.
Skypallet 2.0 will bring a more intuitive interface, greater processing speeds, and workflow automation thanks to its integration with Wiremind’s cargo management system, Cargostack.
Wiremind says that Skypallet, launched in 2017, was the first commercial software to offer air cargo-specific 3D visualisation and optimization of pallet and container loads, addressing some of the industry’s most pressing pain points and giving commercial teams the operational know-how to quote shipments more efficiently.
For the new version, it has rewritten Skypallet’s code base in a new programming language which makes for faster calculation and more advanced palletization algorithms. Integration into Cargostack also allows deeper integration and significant workflow automation.
It also includes new data points that can be used by the palletization engine such as freight status or its build characteristics on an inbound leg to produce more granular results.
Wiremind chief executive Nathanaël de Tarade said: “Various improvements to Skypallet over the years means it is now used at multiple touchpoints and processes in the air cargo lifecycle by our customers. While Skypallet has already been integrated to customer systems through its API, it has remained a ‘stateless’ application relying on external systems to provide shipment and capacity inputs per calculation. By incorporating it into Cargostack as part of our version 2.0, we now have the architecture to retrieve and hold all the relevant inputs consumed by the palletization algorithm, through deep integration with a customer’s core reservation system.”
He added that this means that Skypallet can run autonomously in the background using the booking, flight and aircraft data to recommend outputs back to the airline system such as remaining available volume, suggest offloads and significantly automate the flight release process. Wiremind is also exploring new use cases with early adopter customers including a new module to manage end-to-end special load processes, in-warehouse use for build planning and execution, and aircraft weight and balance capabilities.
With the 2.0 improvements, Wirelmind says that Skypallet can be used throughout the entire cargo lifecycle from quotation to booking acceptance, capacity control, flight release, through to operations. It will be progressively rolled out to new and existing customers over the coming 12-18 months with a comprehensive change management plan.