Kaleris introduced ColdLink, a set of cold chain innovations designed to help shippers and third-party logistics providers safeguard temperature-sensitive inventory in the yard and in transit.
“For shippers and logistics providers, cold chain alerts must turn into immediate, orchestrated actions by the systems that actually move freight in the yard and during transport,” says Brian Taylor, VP of transportation solutions at Kaleris. “When priority, temperature, and fuel data converge, ColdLink makes the right move, right now, protecting inventory and delivering the consistency that builds long-term customer loyalty.”
Key takeaways:
· By creating an automatic feedback loop among yard, transportation and warehouse technology systems, ColdLink solutions are designed to reduce loss, accelerate throughput and strengthen regulatory readiness for grocery, food and beverage, and pharmaceutical supply chains.
· ColdLink includes the Kaleris transportation management system (TMS), Kaleris yard management system (YMS) and real-time Internet of Things (IoT) sensing to maintain the chain of custody as loads move through critical planning and execution handoffs.
· ColdLink flags priority cold loads, such as fresh produce, prepared foods, medications, and frozen items in transit and in the yard.
· By linking key points in the logistics process, the solution reduces waste and protects margin across the cold chain; increases on-shelf availability for time-sensitive products; strengthens compliance with documented, auditable chain-of-custody events; and optimizes labor by focusing drivers and dock teams on the most critical moves.
· Once a truck enters the gate, IoT sensors stream reefer temperature, fuel and operating status into a digital replica of the yard. If a high-priority load shows a temperature variance or low fuel, YMS parameters can override standard first-in/first-out (FIFO) sequencing and instead trigger a hot move to dock first. The resulting shift to first-expiring/first-out (FEFO) execution protects product quality and minimizes dwell-related spoilage. AI and machine learning then create the optimal routing plan for safe and efficient delivery.
· Additional ColdLink Innovations include
Pre-Cooling Planning: Smart logic factors in pre-cooling requirements when creating load plans, ensuring trailers are at the correct temperature before loading.
Commodity Separation: Enforces rules to separate incompatible commodities, such as ethylene-producing fruits vs. sensitive vegetables; frozen vs. fresh.
Inbound–Outbound Continuity: Links outbound store deliveries with inbound supplier pickups to reduce reefer deadhead and maintain temperature continuity.
