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CLOSED FOR APPLICATIONS CL5-2021-D6-01-07: More efficient and effective multimodal freight transport nodes to increase flexibility, service visibility and reduce the average cost of freight transport

Topic outline

  • Brief information on the Funding Opportunity

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    Program: Horizon Europe | Cluster 5 “Climate, Energy and Mobility”.

    Geographical coverage: Horizon Europe programme regular coverage.

    Available contribution: The total indicative budget for the topic is 15M€, contribution between EUR 7.00 and 8,00 million per project.

    Type of Action:  Innovation Action.

    Deadline: October 19th, 2021

    TRL level: 7-8

    For more information on meanings of TRL, Type of Project and General Rules, please refer to the General Annexes of the Work Programme:  Link to the General Annexes of the Work Programme


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  • Expected Outcome

    Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

    • More efficient, effective and sustainable management of goods and freight flows in (air)ports and inland terminals, taking into account all costs (economic, social and environmental) of the proposed solutions/innovations, including externalities and possible rebound effects.
    • Expanded throughput of the nodes thanks to increased operational efficiency and optimised use of assets and infrastructures, without expanding the physical facilities.
    • Improved access to transhipment services at reduced costs.
    • More visible and standardised services provided within the multimodal freight transport nodes, seamlessly accessible by end users to maintain continuous door-to-door tracking of freight locations and boost shifting cargo to more efficient and sustainable transport modes.
    • Increased automation, digitalisation, standardisation and interoperability of processes, technologies and equipment, particularly intermodal transport units (ITUs) and cargo transport/transhipment procedures in multimodal freight transport nodes.
    • Better integration of the various freight transport nodes into overall logistic chains.

  • Scope

    To achieve competitive sustainability and higher levels of efficiency taking account of all costs and externalities and to maximise the utilisation of the multimodal freight transport nodes’ capacity, the proposals should research and demonstrate all of the following points:

    • Building on previous EU and other funded projects[1], and enabling compatibility with legacy systems, demonstrate and quantify the benefits of using different intermodal transport units (ITUs) and innovative automated loading systems to support multimodal logistics operations. Further develop standardisation strategies on intermodal transport units also focusing on different modes and logistics operators, cargo transport/transhipment procedures, technologies and interfaces to enable flexibility, efficiency and sustainability of the transport system.
    • In line with the strategy for EU international cooperation in research and innovation, international cooperation on standardisation of ITUs is encouraged.
    • Building on previous and on-going Horizon 2020 and CEF funded projects[2] and the Digital Transport and Logistics Forum’s findings[3], deploy and demonstrate advanced cooperative logistics IT solutions in actual operational environment (minimum at TRL 7) focusing on better integration of the nodes in overall supply chains and the accessibility and usability of node services in an automated/digital manner, with a user perspective approach. The deployed IT solutions should:
      • Provide full visibility of the standard services offered by the multimodal freight transport nodes, and by the companies operating in them, e.g. open and shared warehouses, terminal services, transhipment facilities, transport services from and to the terminals;
      • Providing better estimated and actual times of arrival and of departure through real time track and trace of the transport and goods, benefitting from standardised identification (e.g. RFID, new sensors) and improved positioning accuracy based on European GNSS;
      • Provide automated decision support system functionalities to optimise the supply chain overall performance and its resilience against disruptive events (including pandemics);
      • Ensure compatibility of deployed solutions with existing legacy systems;
      • Ensure the resilience of data and management systems to mitigate the consequence of accidental or malicious interventions;
      • Address data ownership, confidentiality, governance and access rights;
      • Facilitate greenhouse gas emissions reduction through, for example, smart scheduling and routing on expected arrivals times to nodes/terminals supporting slower approaching speeds.
    • Capitalising on previous Horizon 2020 projects[4], demonstrate the effectiveness of new business models and collaborative approaches - preferably supported by the IT infrastructure and solutions outlined above - able to support cooperative logistics operations with focus on the provision of open logistics nodal services. The business models should consider the legal constraints and include appropriate frameworks for contractual relations in collaborative environments. Based on the deployment of these new business models, identify concrete legal barriers and regulations at both European and national levels preventing their adoption and market uptake, and propose solutions and specific policy recommendations.
    • Ensure compatibility with existing and emerging EU logistics standards such as the European Maritime Single Window environment[5] for maritime transport and the platforms for Electronic Freight Transport information[6] and with the outcomes of initiatives such as the Digital Transport and Logistics Forum (DTLF).
    Cross-cutting Priorities:

    International Cooperation
    Social Innovation

    [1]Horizon 2020 funded projects such as MODULUSHCA (https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/314468), Clusters2.0 (http://www.clusters20.eu/), AEROFLEX (https://aeroflex-project.eu/), and Less than Wagon Load (http://lessthanwagonload.eu/).

    [2]Horizon 2020 funded projects such as AEOLIX (https://aeolix.eu/), SELIS (http://www.selisproject.eu/), COREALIS (https://www.corealis.eu/), 5G-LOGINNOV (https://5g-ppp.eu/5g-loginnov/), and Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) funded projects such as iTerminals 4.0 (https://iterminalsproject.eu/)

    [3]Enabling organisations to reap the benefits of data sharing in logistics and supply chain, https://www.dtlf.eu/sites/default/files/public/uploads/fields/page/field_file/executive_summary2_reading__0.pdf

    [4]Horizon 2020 funded projects such as ICONET https://www.iconetproject.eu/, and LOGISTAR https://logistar-project.eu/.

    [5]Regulation (EU) 2019/1239 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 establishing a European Maritime Single Window environment and repealing Directive 2010/65/EU.

    [6]Regulation (EU) 2020/1056 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 July 2020 on electronic freight transport information (Text with EEA relevance)