PTV and IRU join forces

Karlsruhe/Geneva, 30.05.2016. A new strategic partnership between global road transport organisation IRU and German software developer PTV Group will develop new standards and services for route planning across Europe and beyond.

The partnership has kicked-off with new services being launched for freight operators in the Czech Republic and Romania, in cooperation with IRU member associations Cesmad Bohemia and UNTRR respectively.

New services will be successively rolled-out in markets in Europe and elsewhere, developing a consistent route planning standard, with comparable operational, cost calculation and billing elements, for transport operators, shippers and logistics planners.

Greater efficiency, lower costs, lower emissions

Based on the market-leading route planning software product PTV Map&Guide, the new services are fully tailored to local conditions and challenges and will be developed and globally promoted in cooperation with IRU members in each market.

The new services will also enable transport operators, large and small, to become more efficient through better operational route planning, to lower costs and to lower carbon emissions.

“A common route planning standard will bring huge benefits to the sector, for both operators and their clients”, says Zeljko Jeftic, IRU’s Head of Global Innovation. “And being able to offer PTV’s leading products through our members means that even the smallest operator will be able to lower costs and make freight transport across Europe greener”.

Frank Felten, Vice President of Product Management and Software Development at PTV, adds: “We gladly accepted the challenge to further roll out our existing route planning products geographically to help meet local market needs. IRU, with its network of member associations, has become a forward-looking and innovative partner with whom we can continue to grow our logistics portfolio internationally.”

Three partners – one common goal

PTV Group plans and optimises everything that moves people and goods worldwide and is in this project responsible for software development, hosting of the cloud-based solutions and customer invoicing with the function of a contractor.

IRU has a global network of more than 80 national transport associations, on every continent, and will develop agreements with interested associations to serve the thousands of transport operators in various countries who are their members.

TLN, the Dutch transport and logistics association, and also an IRU member, has been establishing the Benelux planner and standards in a long-standing partnership with PTV for more than 20 years. TLN is a proven successful example of this collaboration model, with over 4.000 users today.