Not without certain fears, artificial intelligence is spreading in different areas of society. But in logistics, that sector that ensures that all products arrive from production centers to stores or homes, the use of this new technology is already a reality. In fact, it is beginning to revolutionize this key economic activity. This is how it is perceived at the International Logistics Fair (SIL), which under the organization of the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB) kicked off its 25th anniversary edition this Wednesday.
“In the last two years there has been a significant increase in demand for artificial intelligence solutions. It is revolutionizing the market”, says Julio Borrell, director of operations at Andsoft, a firm with clients in 18 countries and its own presence in five. “The impact is real now, it is not the future. And the forecast is that it will go further," adds Pilu Morante, product director of the same firm. Borrell explains that the main areas of application of artificial intelligence are in warehouse management, transportation and data analysis. “It allows us to go further” than usual, Morante describes.
After two decades of experience in the logistics sector, Cristina Martín decided to launch into new technologies five years ago. She founded Usyncro, a start-up that is supported by the CZFB incubator. Martín and her team devised a digital platform that simplifies all the bureaucratic operations in logistics transit, which are not few.
Among other technologies, Usyncro also employs artificial intelligence. With it they manage to solve problems such as "detecting anomalies" in documentation or automating customs classification. “Artificial intelligence is not incipient. It is already used, although sometimes we don't realize it”, considers Martín.
Ángel Batalla founded Last Mile Team, also with the help of the CZFB incubator. In this case, artificial intelligence is used to improve last-mile shipments, the last step before reaching customers. Among other things, they manage to calculate the environmental impact of the different transport alternatives before using them.
But not only artificial intelligence lives logistics. During the inauguration of a special edition, the Minister of Transport, Raquel Sánchez, defended intermodality as the key to achieving reliable and efficient freight transport.
The special delegate of the State in the CZFB, Pere Navarro, pointed out that "in its 25 years, the fair has been a space where professionals meet to share knowledge, explore trends and establish business relationships". Until Friday, the Montjuïc fairgrounds expect more than 12,000 visitors.
