Between February and May 2020, on behalf of Continental, the infas Institute for Applied Social Science surveyed the first and second management levels of small, medium-sized and large companies in the German logistics and transport industry, including trucking companies and logistics & transport companies. The scope of the study was reduced due to the Covid-19 crisis. A total of 45 companies took part in the survey, the results of which can be taken as an indication of trends.
Investments must pay off quickly
The pressure to cut costs and increase efficiency also plays an important role when it comes to willingness to invest. Logistics providers need their investments to pay off quickly. More than three quarters of the companies surveyed stated that investments in fuel-saving driving have to pay for themselves within two years – and for companies with small numbers of vehicles this period is even shorter.
“Their requirements are challenging, which means that significant benefits are expected from new technologies,” says Gilles Mabire who heads Continental’s Commercial Vehicles and Services Business Unit. “Manufacturers and suppliers must therefore develop solutions that yield economic benefits within a short time.”
High security requirements for software, but little willingness to invest
The survey participants also emphasized their need for software that fulfils high security standards. “Increasing data traffic has opened up greater potential areas of attack for cybercriminals,” says Mabire. “The industry must offer solutions that are suitably sophisticated and practice-proven. But security costs money; it can’t be provided for free.” Only about half of the companies surveyed had already taken defensive measures for an attack on logistics or fleet management systems. Three quarters said they were not planning any major investments within the next six to twelve months. “Real willingness to invest is not keeping up with statements about the importance of this topic. One reason might be that no transport company has yet been the victim of a cyberattack. But the growing number of attempted attacks is a sign that the problem is becoming increasingly important.”