Axel spent 8 years managing transport operations for a 9-figure European manufacturer, then 4 years as Commercial Director at a global forwarder. He now shares insights from both shipper and carrier sides, and enjoys the occasional piña colada.
The numbers are already in. No further adjustments are expected in Q4 2025, though major changes are anticipated for 2026. Europe's driver shortage is projected to triple by 2026 if no action is taken, while road freight rates continue to rise and are now outpacing inflation, with toll
By September 2025, European shippers face a reality check. The Commission plans to adopt the remaining eFTI implementing specifications. These will provide detailed functional and technical requirements for the IT systems and services to be used by businesses (eFTI platforms and eFTI service providers) and the rules for their certification.
The 92.7% modal share held by road and maritime transport in 2023, with rail at just 5.5%, reveals the scale of challenge European shippers face. Your TMS wasn't built for this shift. EU's Fit for 55 targets and the expanding ETS to road transport
European manufacturers facing €20M+ annual transport budgets know the drill: every board meeting brings the same question about AI-powered TMS investments. You've heard the promises. AI systems now achieve 98% forecasting accuracy and reduce supply chain errors by 20-50%. The European artificial intelligence market alone reached €53.03
That German automotive parts manufacturer with €800,000 in sunk costs thought they'd done their homework. They chose a North American-focused platform six months before discovering their primary carriers couldn't integrate without costly custom development. Now they're facing a complete re-implementation because they treated
Your monthly transport coordinator spends 15 hours per week manually cross-referencing carrier rates, tracking shipments in spreadsheets, and chasing delivery confirmations. With a fully-loaded cost of €75,000 annually, that's €22,000 in opportunity cost while competitors with automated systems process the same workload in 3 hours. Fresh
Your European transport operations run on disconnected systems. ERP for ordering, WMS for warehousing, separate carrier portals for booking, and manual processes scattered across departments. Data quality issues between your TMS and existing systems can undermine the entire process. After speaking with hundreds of European manufacturers over the past year,
Here's the carbon pricing reality hitting European shippers right now: the EU ETS will be introduced gradually, starting at 40% of emissions in 2024, rising to 70% in 2025 and then 100% from 2026 onwards. While you're still calculating what this means for your freight spend,
The shortage feels different this time. According to IRU's 2024 driver shortage survey, there are 426,000 unfilled truck driver positions across Europe, nearly doubling from 233,000 in 2023. Unlike previous capacity crunches that eventually resolved, this one has demographic reality baked in: Over the next five
European shippers managing €10 million+ annual transport spend are facing an unprecedented cost squeeze in 2025. The EU ETS now requires shipping firms to surrender 70% of 2025 emissions (up from 40%), with compliance costs rising significantly. Maersk expects emission surcharges in 2025 to be nearly double that of 2024.
That German automotive parts manufacturer I mentioned in the opening? They discovered six months in, with €800,000 already spent, that their new system couldn't handle their complex carrier network across 12 countries. They chose a North American-focused platform before discovering their primary carriers couldn't integrate
A German automotive parts manufacturer just learned what a €800,000 TMS implementation mistake looks like. They chose a North American-focused platform six months before discovering their primary carriers couldn't integrate without costly custom development. Now they're facing a complete re-implementation as several EU Member States