For decades, unit load devices (ULDs) have been an unavoidable but often overlooked cost in air freight. Pallets and containers move goods around the world, but airlines often lose track of them, rent excess units, or pay to reposition empty equipment. In a sector under pressure from fuel costs, capital pressures and demand volatility, inefficiency becomes increasingly untenable.
The industry is finally starting to treat ULDs not as passive devices but as data-rich assets, says Bernhard Kindelbacher, CEO of ACL Airshop. “What we can do is ‘IoT-ise’ the platform – make sure it tells us where it is, and then use predictive analysis so the right platform is in the right place, in the right state,” he told Air Cargo Week. “Airlines and handling companies can use this information to make operations more efficient and faster, and ultimately serve customers better.”
From manual tracking to predictive management
Despite air cargo’s digital ambitions, much of ULD management remains manual. Airlines rely on spreadsheets, phone calls and fragmented ground records to figure out where their inventory is or isn’t. This delay costs money.
“One important topic is whether we have the data available in the right format,” Kindlebaker said. “We still use a lot of manual processes, but not enough real-time action. Sharing data across the chain increases efficiency in each process, while also providing transparency and insights to the next partner.”
The case for change is simple. An airline that makes the mistake of using ULD units must either lease additional units on short notice or purchase new ones. In either case, capital is unnecessarily tied up. Mismanagement can also lead to flight delays, creating risks for planes on the ground. By digitizing tracking, carriers gain the ability to return pallets more quickly, improve network planning, and reduce leasing costs and operational risks.
Examples from the field
ACL Airshop has worked with carriers facing precisely these challenges. “Usually when we work with airlines, we see that they have pallets lying around in multiple terminals and they don’t know exactly where they are,” Kindlebacker explained. “With our technology, we can identify the location, we can bring it home faster, and make the inventory visible. This reduces costs – you don’t have to rent additional pallets or buy new ones – and you also reduce aircraft accidents on the ground.”
The company has invested in IoT-enabled devices that transmit real-time location and status data. These tools, which contain predictive analytics, provide early warnings when a unit is likely to be needed elsewhere or is at risk of being stranded. The result is a shift from reactive ULD management to proactive planning.
A wider industry challenge
Kindelbacher places ULD management within broader struggles to digitalize air freight. While platforms and visibility tools have advanced in booking, pricing, and freight tracking, the ground layer still lags behind. “We still use a lot of manual processes,” he reiterated. “The improvement could be that we all share data with each other in the chain, using it to increase efficiency in our own operations, but also to give transparency and insights to the next partner.”
This collaboration remains difficult in a fragmented ecosystem where ground handlers, airlines, leasing companies, and repair providers all use different systems. But the pressure is mounting. Rising fuel costs, rising interest rates and the cost of capital are forcing airlines to cut back on all available savings outside operations.
“Innovation has to be practical,” Kindlebacker said. “It’s about solving real problems – misplaced ULDs, excessive rental costs, inefficiencies in repair. These are the things that impact airlines, and this is where digitization can have an immediate impact.”
The potential is great. The value of lost or lost ULDs is estimated at approximately $55 million (5 percent of the global fleet). However, multiples of this amount are spent searching, retrieving, finding, and searching for replacements; In some cases, the revenue shipment must be left behind.
Digitizing ULD management is not glamorous, but it is essential. Without accurate, real-time visibility into assets, the rest of the industry’s digital ambitions are at risk of failure.
“It’s about collaboration across the ecosystem,” he said. “If data is shared in the right way, everyone benefits – efficiency rises, costs fall, and customers get better service.”
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