• CHAMP Cargosystems’ digitalisation of air cargo operations—300 million electronic messages and 250 million API calls in 2024—reduces paper use, physical touchpoints, and vehicle idling, improving efficiency and carbon footprint.
• Digital records support regulatory compliance, including EU CSRD reporting, providing verifiable, auditable data for emissions tracking and sustainable supply chain accountability.
• AI-powered route optimisation, predictive resource planning, and energy-efficient infrastructure deliver measurable fuel and energy savings (9–12 percent per route; 15–20 percent ULD efficiency improvements).
• On-ground innovations, including mobile warehouse apps, IoT-enabled ULD monitoring, and AI-assisted reverse logistics, reduce idle time, spoilage, and unnecessary container movements by up to 15 percent.

Long before air cargo companies talk about Sustainable Aviation Fuel or electric ground fleets, the emissions savings start with something less visible: data. In the past year, CHAMP Cargosystems’ paperless tools have underpinned hundreds of millions of electronic transactions, a shift that is quietly reshaping the industry’s carbon profile.

According to Marjorie Guerrero, Executive Assistant to the CEO and ESG Coordinator at CHAMP, the company processed around 300 million electronic messages and facilitated 250 million API calls in 2024. “Each of these digital interactions represents a potential reduction in paper consumption, printing, physical document transport, and associated resource use,” she said.

This is not just about saving trees. Reduced physical touchpoints mean more efficient ground handling, lower vehicle idling, and faster document availability, enabling load optimisation and better fuel efficiency. As Marjorie puts it: “Digitalisation is the first critical step towards broader sustainability optimisations.”

For many operators, regulatory pressure is forcing digitalisation out of the IT department and into the boardroom. The EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is a prime example, setting strict demands for verifiable emissions data.

“Digital cargo records are essential here because they offer a verifiable, auditable, and readily accessible data source,” Marjorie explained. “The need for precise data to calculate carbon footprints, track chain of custody for sustainable goods, and demonstrate due diligence is pushing the entire industry to move beyond paper.”

CHAMP’s platforms are designed to embed these capabilities from the outset. Core infrastructure has shifted to 100 percent hydro-powered renewable energy, certified in Luxembourg, allowing customers to reduce their reported Scope 3 emissions from software use. Tools like Traxon Quality and CHAMP MarketAnalytics are now integrating certified CO₂ accounting models, enabling airlines to monitor emissions per shipment and stay ahead of disclosure requirements.

This compliance-driven connectivity is also being reinforced at an industry level. CHAMP co-launched TIACA’s Air Cargo Sustainability Award in 2019 and this year received the new TIACA BlueSky Certification after a full ESG assessment.

Fuel-saving engine

If digitalisation is the foundation, CHAMP’s AI programme is the machinery built on top. The company’s development teams are experimenting with route optimisation algorithms inspired by the same class of AI that powered Google’s AlphaGo. Early trials indicate potential fuel savings of 9–12 percent per route, significantly above the 3–5 percent gains reported in some existing airline programmes.

Other applications target less visible but equally impactful inefficiencies: Smart Process Automation via CHAMP A2Z Scan, which uses AI and OCR to cut manual data entry by 85 percent and reduce processing errors by 3 percent.

Predictive Resource Planning through the Control Tower initiative, which forecasts demand and dynamically repositions ULDs — potentially improving load efficiency by 15–20 percent.

Energy-Efficient AI Infrastructure, with lightweight, CPU-first models consuming up to 40 percent less energy than GPU-heavy alternatives.

On the ground, CHAMP’s mobile warehouse apps are removing unnecessary vehicle trips between operational areas and offices. Future upgrades — such as integrating in-motion weighing and dimensioning — aim to reduce certain tasks from five minutes to seven seconds, shrinking turnarounds and idling times.

Sustainability in the supply chain’s DNA

For Marjorie, the bigger sustainability win comes from knitting the industry’s disparate players together. “Enhanced visibility and coordination unlock opportunities to reduce carbon emissions – for example, by optimising flight paths, improving cargo load efficiency to reduce unnecessary journeys, or minimising vehicle idling times on the ground,” she said.

This philosophy underpins CHAMP’s work on ONE Record adoption, where its 1Neo-Connect platform replaces legacy formats with an API-driven data model, cutting paperwork by 90 percent. IoT pilots are embedding sensors into ULDs to monitor temperature, humidity, and location, helping reduce spoilage in high-value shipments like pharmaceuticals — and avoiding up to 7 percent of costly emergency replacements.

The company is also exploring AI-assisted reverse logistics to reduce cross-border waste by reusing empty containers, with a projected 10–15 percent cut in unnecessary movements.

Air cargo’s decarbonisation narrative often leans on visible changes like SAF use or new aircraft technology. But CHAMP’s work shows that the real leverage point might be invisible: the data layers that allow operators to measure, prove, and continuously optimise emissions performance.