Earlier this morning, Southwest Airlines Cargo announced its own branded asset tracking program - called Cargo Companion. The service provides 24x7 visibility regarding the location, shock, light, temperature, pressure, and humidity of cargo during transit. I had the opportunity to speak with Southwest’s director of sales and marketing, Wally Devereaux and the company’s sr. manager of specialty sales, Colin Rogers, to discuss the solution in further detail.   

Wally, can you tell me more about who uses the Cargo Companion?

“Cargo Companion is designed for perishable commodity shippers, and shippers of time-critical and high-value items. It’s available to all Southwest Airlines Cargo customers utilizing our Next Flight Guaranteed Service and we think it will be primarily used by customers shipping pharmaceutical and medical products, food products, or other high-value and time-sensitive items.” 

How does the service work?

“The way we’ve set it up, our customers arrange the service through the customer care center. They select a flight for as early as the following day. The tracking device is provisioned and over-nighted to the customer, who packs it with their shipment. They deliver their cargo to Southwest, as they normally would, the rest is simple: The device monitors the location, shock, light, temperature, pressure, and humidity of cargo during transit. It sends e-mail alerts to the customer when cargo crosses predefined checkpoints (such as origin airport, destination airport, and final destination).  And at any time, the customer can log on to SWAcargo.com to track the status of their shipment.” 

How do the notification alerts help customers?

“The idea is to provide peace of mind, by letting customers know that their shipment is being watched and tracked during transit. In the event of an unavoidable delay, the e-mail notifications give shippers more time to initiate contingency plans and arrange a replacement shipment, if necessary.”  

Colin - How is this different than other solutions on the market?

“Southwest is the first airline to offer asset tracking on a transactional basis. The devices meet all of the criteria established by the FAA. The range of metrics that can be tracked is second-to-none, and Southwest Airlines Cargo has spent more than a year testing this solution, to ensure that it meets our customers’ needs. Our goal is to make this easy for the customer. We’re the first airline to provide this on a transactional basis. The customer doesn’t have to worry about buying, or leasing the device. They don’t have to provision it, or maintain it: All they need to do is turn it on, and pack it with their shipment. We’ve also make it easy to return the device, as the reverse logistics are included in the cost of the service.” 

Is the tracking limited to just the time spent on the Southwest plane? 

“No - this is a door-to-door tracking solution. The technology works in the air, and on the ground, right up to the point where it is received by the consignee.”   

Wally - Why is Southwest Airlines Cargo offering this service today?

“Southwest is continuously looking for ways to improve customer experience. We’re seeing steady increases in demand for medical and pharmaceutical shipments, which require cold-chain procedures. Same Day, commercial air cargo is the fastest and most efficient means for shipping these types of products. Our business is not only growing, but it’s also evolving, and tracking technology is a natural next step in servicing our customers.”

How do customers purchase Cargo Companion?

“Customers with existing Southwest Airlines Cargo accounts can prearrange the service (for next day shipments) by calling the Cargo Customer Care Center at (800) 533-1222 between 6:00 AM-9:00 PM (central time) Monday-Friday, and 8:00 AM-5:00 PM Saturday-Sunday. The tracking device number is added to the customer’s air waybill, and the instructions for returning the device are included. Billing for the service is added to the customer’s existing account. To find out more, visit here.

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