The Challenges and Opportunities Ahead for ONE Record in Air Cargo

导言

The air cargo industry is currently navigating through a transformative phase with the introduction of ONE Record, a unified data standard aimed at modernizing communication within the sector. Although the aspiration behind this initiative is crystal clear, the pace of its adoption presents a more convoluted picture.

The Slow Adoption of ONE Record

Originally unveiled by IATA nearly five years ago, ONE Record aims to take air cargo to new heights by breaking free from outdated communication practices. However, recent insights shared during an industry webinar indicate that the uptake has been disappointingly slow.

While a significant number—over half—of the webinar participants reported their organizations were investigating potential use cases, only a mere 8 percent had made any concrete moves toward implementation. This figure has even dipped compared to a year ago, which raises questions about the sector’s priorities.

Despite these discouraging statistics, experts on the panel—including key figures from IATA and major industry players—expressed a cautious optimism about the potential benefits if stakeholders can align their business goals with this new standard.

Creating Business Value

According to Nicholas Xenocostas from CHAMP, success hinges on stakeholders shifting their mindset towards understanding the business value ONE Record could generate. By identifying use cases that can justify budget allocations and reduce internal resistance, companies can begin to embrace this crucial change.

“If people can start thinking about the use case and the business value it creates, that’s an excellent starting point,” he mentioned.

Identifying Barriers

Even with potential benefits, organizations face significant challenges. Most notably, many stakeholders reportedly lack clarity on how to kick-start their journey towards adopting ONE Record. As Brendan Sullivan from IATA noted, the air cargo industry has a historical reputation for its slow adoption of innovation, a quality that remains entrenched.

Respondents in the recent survey cited numerous obstacles plaguing their organizations. Surprisingly, budget constraints were not the prime concern; instead, a substantial 27% noted a lack of knowledge, followed closely by 26% identifying internal resistance to change as major hurdles.

Finding Focus

One success story comes from Saudia Cargo, which has concentrated its efforts on a single use case: the shipment pre-advice via FWB messages from airlines to ground handlers. This narrow focus led to practical wins, demonstrating how smaller initiatives can pave the way for wider adoption of ONE Record.

Ardel Hipos from Saudia Cargo stated, “This use case brings significant benefits: better preparation, faster handling, and smarter resource planning.” With these tangible advantages in hand, the groundwork for broader implementation is solidifying.

Innovative Approaches to Adoption

Recognizing the friction in adoption, CHAMP has initiated the “1Neo-Connect” project, designed to ease users into ONE Record through a phased three-step approach. Starting with a sandbox environment allows stakeholders to explore the protocol without risk.

“It’s essentially a play area where you can explore how the protocol works without risk,” commented Nicholas Scheiber, Business Analyst at CHAMP.

This incremental strategy emphasizes that ONE Record is not merely a tech upgrade but a means of fundamentally redesigning overall processes within the industry.

The Importance of a Single Source of Truth

ONE Record aims to revolutionize the way data is exchanged, evolving from simple message exchanges to creating a single source of truth. As Xenocostas pointed out, “It changes how we handle exceptions, how we coordinate, how we serve customers.” This capability will become increasingly essential, particularly for industries reliant on high-data volumes, such as e-commerce.

“There’s no way we can support modern e-commerce demands with legacy protocols,” he added, underscoring the urgency of moving away from outdated systems.

Timeline for Change

ONE Record is poised for a critical transition. Starting January 2026, it will be designated as the preferred standard for data exchange among airlines. Although this mandates compliance, it doesn’t necessarily guarantee that every industry player will swiftly adopt the new standard.