Roger Gibson, Vice President Cargo of United Airlines, has been elected as the new Chairman of Cargo 2000, the IATA special interest group of 26 airline and freight forwarders members implementing a new quality management system for the air cargo industry.He was elected by Cargo 2000's newly appointed Board following its annual general meeting in Paris.

Cargo 2000, an IATA Interest Group, brings together major airlines and freight forwarders with the unique goal of implementing a new quality management system for the worldwide air cargo industry. Their objective is simple: to implement processes, backed by quality standards, that are measurable and supported by data, thereby improving the efficiency of air cargo, enhancing customer service levels and reducing operational costs.

Based on detailed customer research and with the assistance of leading IT companies, the group has re-engineered the transportation process from shipper to consignee through a "Master Operating Plan". This Master Operating Plan is at the heart of an industry-wide process control and reporting system which in turn drives the corrective action systems.

The key to the Master Operating Plan is the creation of a unique "route map" for individual shipments, which is then monitored and measured throughout the life of that shipment.

Implementation of the project is divided into three phases:

Phase 1

provides for post shipment audit of the airport-to-airport movement at a master air waybill level. Once a booking is made,a plan is automatically created with a series of checkpoints against which the movement is managed and measured. This enables the system to alert the Cargo 2000 member to any exceptions to the plan, allowing the relevant airline or forwarder to pro-ac tively respond to fulfill customer expectations.

Phase 2

provides for interactive monitoring of the door-to-door movement at a house waybill level, while

Phase 3

provides for real-time management of the transportation channel at individual piece level.

Cargo 2000's members are now progressing with the implementation of phase two, which addresses door-to-door deliveries at House waybill level.

Membership of the group is open to all airlines and freight forwarders who are able to meet the requirements for implementation of the system within the defined phases and timescales.

A one-year Associate Membership is also available for those who would like to evaluate their capability to become a full member with the assistance of the group's technical and auditing teams.

For additional info: Ron Cesana, Project Director - E-Mail: cesanar@iata.org

Registration Form for Site Access: http://www.iata.org/cargo/wg/cargo2000/RegistrationForm.asp