DB Schenker, Agility Logistics and Hellmann Worldwide Logistics have signed up to IATA’s new air cargo rates platform, IATA Net Rates.

IATA Net Rates aims to digitise the process of airlines and GSAs distributing rate sheets to forwarders using Excel spreadsheets and email, which the airline group said is “labor-intensive and doesn’t allow for frequent updates”.

Sven Heinemann, Head of Global Data & Contract Management Air/Ocean, DB Schenker, said: “The IATA  Net Rates Tool is an enabler to make our carrier rates fully automatic available in our Schenker’s internal rate management systems. This will reduce manual effort and increase volume and data quality tremendously. We need all major airlines to participate in the program to enable fully automated end-to-end connectivity”.

IATA Net Rates announced during the last World Cargo Symposium that Qatar Airways had joined the platform, as the official launch carrier, and is actively working with global and regional airlines to join the programme shortly.

Glyn Hughes, IATA Global Head of Cargo, added: “IATA is very pleased to be working with such an important and growing list of major freight forwarders.  Electronic tariff distribution is one important component of modernizing the entire distribution function.”

IATA Net Rates work closely with key industry groups, for the development of API standards and the integration of the solution with other IATA standards such as ONE Record and Cargo XML.

Shawn Lee, Director, Global Airfreight Product, Agility Logistics, said: “Agility expects that our carrier partners will also see the benefits in using IATA Net Rate and believes that this will be the industry-wide standard in the future. It gives us full visibility at the headquarter level, which facilitates our global procurement process.”

Adding the global networks of three major freight forwarders prove that the industry is eager to develop programs that will protect their interests and support the digital transformation.