The opportunities to evolve Telematics Application for Freight Services (TAF TSI) will be further discovered. The European Commission has awarded a contract with this aim to Circle S.p.A and Hacon Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH.

Circle will partner up with Hacon Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH. They have been allocated 136 thousand Euros to study the opportunities to evolve TAF TSI, which is a specific technical standard for rail interoperability. So far, standardisation and exchanges between different rail infrastructure managers and railway undertakings only occured with very marginal involvement of terminals. Therefore, it is lacking the multimodal dimension, Circle explained.

Synergy

The aim of the study is to create synergy between the TAF TSI standards and various digitalisation initiatives in the freight sector. This is especially important considering future policy implications such as the new proposed regulation for the Electronic Transport Document, Circle pointed out.

In close connection with the stakeholders, Circle and Hacon will also provide recommendations for potential extensions of the TAF TSI standard. “For Circle this project represents another key part to support the European Commission in its digital policy development. We are taking advantage of the relevant IT know-how of our company, especially in digital logistics” , stated Alexio Picco, Circle’s Member of the Board and Director of the Connecting EU Business Unit.

The companies

Circle and Hacon are both specialised in process and management consulting services, and in providing innovative technological solutions for transport and logistics sector. This new assignment is in addition to other important contracts acquired by Circle at European level. For example, the company is involved in the International Fast Trade Lanes pilot projects between Italy and Turkey, and in Bulgaria. The general objective of this initiative is to enable wider use of digital technologies within the transport sector.

Meanwhile, Hacon has extensive experience when it comes to transport monitoring solutions. With its new ETA Management Platform for Railways and Combined Transport Operators that includes real-time information from various sources like terminals, operators will be provided with the necessary information to improve their services.