Reusable packaging gets smart

Recent research predicts a shift in the asset-tracking technology market, which has been a game-changer in logistics for its ability to provide visibility into transportation and freight movement. Vehicle-tracking devices have been the primary drivers of market growth, but analysts at global research firm Counterpoint Research are predicting a different scenario by 2032, when they say the majority of those gains will come from devices aimed at other applications—particularly those that provide a lens into a shipment’s entire supply chain journey, from origin through distribution to the retailer and everywhere in between.

The trend reflects growing demand to track and monitor just about everything that moves into, around, and out of a warehouse or distribution center—right down to the containers and packaging used to ship small orders in addition to bulk items. Reusable packaging, in particular, is predicted to be one of the newest drivers of this market shift.

“For years, the asset-tracking market has been largely driven by vehicle telematics, with fleet management and logistics accounting for the majority of deployments,” the Counterpoint researchers wrote in a July report. “However, the market is entering a new phase as enterprises shift their focus from tracking vehicles to tracking individual assets, industrial equipment, and inventory, along with newer categories such as reusable packaging and livestock. This transition is being driven by the need for real-time visibility that now extends beyond the vehicle to the assets it carries.”

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