CILT(UK) Benelux Group host CO3 in Breda, Netherlands
How to improve logistic cost, service and sustainability through horizontal collaboration and bundling of good flows?
On the 28 February the CILT(UK) Benelux Group hosted the CO3 consortium at the offices of Dinalog (Dutch Institute of Advanced Logistics) in Breda (NL). The objective of this event was to inform and promote the concept of horizontal collaboration in logistics and the bundling of good flows. Both shippers and logistic service providers were part of the target audience.
Following brief welcomes from Tim Bett, chairman of the Benelux Group and Remco Overwater, MD of Dinalog, Dirk t’Hooft introduced the CO3-project. Collaboration Concepts for Co-modality (CO³) a European Union funded project that was set up to promote co-modality and horizontal collaboration in the logistics. The CO3-consortium is a group with 18 partners that work on different aspect of horizontal collaboration compromising legal aspects, the development of new business models, cost and gain sharing and setting up real-life test cases.
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Tri-Vizor, a Belgian partner in the CO3 consortium active in working out real-life test cases, represented by Sven Verstrepen gave an interesting presentation about the CO3 methodology for working out horizontal collaborations, the role of the trustee in the partnerships and illustrated the concept with some examples of real-life test cases that are already executed within the C03 project. At the end of the presentation a brand new test-case for the near future was announced: “collaborative retail distribution” by Pepsico and Nestlé.
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Next, Frans Cruijsen from Argusi focussed on best practices for cost and gain sharing. This topic is often a contentious one in horizontal collaborative partnerships and the opinions can vary largely. From all methods for gain sharing, the so-called Shapley-value was identified as the best-practice and very clearly explained as the best method to create stability in this type of partnership.
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Andrew Palmer from Heriot-Watt University (UK) followed with the presentation of some results from a survey that studied the drivers, stumbling blocks and success factors in horizontal collaboration. Trust and transparency were identified in this research to be the most important factors to reach a successful partnership. He then gave a clear explanation on their work in the area of the development of new business models for horizontal collaboration.
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To make the event interactive, after the presentations from the consortium members, the audience was divided in small groups for a break-out session leaded by one of the speakers. The aim of these break-out sessions was to explore the knowledge, doubts, openness, expectation and experience of the audience in the area of horizontal collaborative partnerships in logistics. The sessions were experienced as very educative and fascinating by the participants, who enjoyed a debating some of the underlying fundamentals of horizontal collaboration.
After the break-out sessions, the participants regrouped and the group leaders summarised the most important attention points. The conclusion was drawn that horizontal collaboration is gaining momentum in industry, which is demonstrated by more and more practical, real-life applications of the concept.
Finally, the evening closed with some networking over drinks, where the participants had a lot of interesting discussions and even the first steps in new partnerships could be developed.
By all accounts the event was a success, bringing together around 50 enthusiastic shippers, logistic service providers and other stakeholders together from very different industries to talk and learn about horizontal collaboration. We were delighted that Donna Cresswell, COO CILT(UK) was able to join the event and that we had the opportunity to introduce the CILT(UK) to potential members who had travelled from all parts of Belgium and the Netherlands to attend.
Text & Video: Steven Vercammen, Christophe Slegers of be.logistiek