Utrecht, 26 October 2023 - The trade fair ICT&Logistics and the association Logistic Management (vLm) are joining forces for the first Logistic Debate to be held on 8 November at Royal Jaarbeurs. "ICT is indispensable as logistics processes become increasingly complex and intertwined. ICT&Logistics is therefore part of the logistics profession and thus provides an excellent platform to debate with each other," says vLm chairman Roland Bulder. The Logistics Debate, which takes place twice a year, provides a platform for stakeholders from various organisations to jointly discuss the challenges and opportunities in the logistics world.
A more challenging playing field for the logistics sector
The Dutch logistics sector faces major challenges. Roland Bulder: “There are so many developments currently taking place in logistics, ranging from the debate on the urbanisation of the landscape to the rise of artificial intelligence and the labour shortage. It is important that we engage in a discussion together on three key themes: maintaining our position among the world’s leading logistics nations, e-commerce and human capital. Whilst we won’t solve all the problems during The Logistics Debate, we can certainly inspire one another and share new insights.”
The Netherlands retains its position among the world’s top logistics nations
After five years, the Netherlands is back in the top 5 of the Logistics Performance Index, which assesses countries on their logistics performance. At the same time, there is growing public resistance to the increasing number of XXL distribution centres and their impact on the local environment and landscape. ‘The Logistics Debate’ kicks off with a discussion on the Netherlands’ position as a logistics hub. Machiel Bode from ING, Cees Pille from TLN, Christa Baas from the Province of Overijssel and Oliver Rebollo from the software platform Trans.eu will join forces to seek an answer to the question of how the logistics sector can ensure that the Netherlands remains among the world’s best.
ING's Machiel Bode underlines the importance of this topic: "Society's support for logistics seems to be under pressure, especially when it comes to the so-called dumbing down of the landscape and the supposedly low contribution of transit to the economy. But the logistics sector's claim on the surface area of the Netherlands is only limited to 0.13 per cent. The contribution of transit to the economy is downplayed, while researchers at the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB) were recently surprised to learn that transit appears to be the engine behind Dutch exports. Policies and choices should be based on the overall picture."
More debate: e-commerce and human capital
The second theme concerns the importance of technology for efficient logistics operations in the e-commerce sector. The model of fast delivery times, free delivery and free returns is under pressure. At the same time, stock levels are rising, putting pressure on margins. Jan Kraaijeveld of Slimstock, Roland Slegers of Deliverymatch and Joke Vink-Goudriaan of Homefashion Group – the company behind Leen Bakker and Kwantum – will be debating this issue.
The latest debate is about human capital in logistics. New technologies in digitalisation, automation and robotisation are leading to radical changes in the logistics profession. To keep operations running, the sector needs people with different skills. Yolande de Heus joins the conversation on behalf of the Top Sector Logistics with Girbien de Bruin of Tempoteam and Mark Tamis of the Defence Logistics Knowledge Centre.
Breaking out of existing ways of thinking
The Logistics Debate will take place on Wednesday 8 November from 2.00 pm to 4.00 pm in the Logistics Arena, the main stage at ICT&Logistics. The debate will be chaired by moderator Diana Vink, who in her day job is an interim project manager and coaching expert at LOGIMPRO. “I’m hoping for a lively debate with plenty of positive energy and engaging interaction, not only between the panellists but also with the audience. A debate that offers people different perspectives on current issues and encourages them to reflect on the impact of these issues on their own business or their own career. If the audience continues to discuss the topics afterwards, leaves with new insights and thinks ‘I’d like to be there again next time’, then as far as I’m concerned the debate will have been a success,” says Vink.
Further information
Would you like to find out more about The Logistics Debate? Take a look at the programme.
Visitors to ICT&Logistics 2023 can register for free here.
You can see the entire programme, themes, all activities and daily updates at: ict-en-logistiek .nl and via updates on LinkedIn or Twitter.
Note to editors
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