A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk), one of the world’s largest logistics companies, today announced a boost to its cloud-first technology approach by expanding the company’s use of Microsoft Azure as its cloud platform.
Azure provides Maersk access to a resilient and performing portfolio of cloud services, enabling its business to innovate and deliver scalable, reliable, and secure products with improved time to market. The cloud backbone enables Maersk to build scalable platforms to cater for organic and inorganic growth, supporting the Maersk transformation strategy. Further, the use of machine learning and data analytics will enable Maersk to gain greater insights and support new ways of working.
With the expansion of its relationship with Microsoft, Maersk is looking to accelerate its transformation and to further digitize logistics.
The collaboration between Maersk and Microsoft has already brought innovative digital solutions to the market, such as Remote Container Management (RCM), which allows Maersk to monitor temperature and humidity data from hundreds of thousands of refrigerated shipping containers in real time to ensure that food and other perishables arrive in perfect condition.
Another project, Connected Vessel, aims at optimizing fuel consumption by monitoring performance data from Maersk’s container vessels to create a shared view with experts onshore who can provide advice to Captains, helping lower bunker costs and reducing emissions.
Both projects are great examples of the benefit of how digitization is bringing real value for Maersk’s customers and their businesses, as well as the commitment to decarbonize logistics.
As part of Microsoft’s commitment to actively use and scale low-carbon solutions for global supply chain activities, Maersk is a key partner for Microsoft in air freight, ocean freight and domestic services, providing logistics services to Microsoft. The companies also recently extended their Airfreight collaboration where Maersk intends to utilize their own controlled freighter network to support Microsoft’s Global supply chain.
Furthermore, the companies intend to work together to strengthen their global strategic relationship across three core pillars: IT/technology, ocean & logistics and decarburization. The main objectives of this work are to identify and explore co-innovation opportunities and to drive digital innovation and decarburization in logistics. Maersk aims to develop state-of-the-art solutions to accelerate and modernize collaboration and processes and to further enable modern work experiences to create value for its customers and employees.
