The OLF-eCMR Toolbox in live operation at Rhenus

As a global logistics service provider, Rhenus offers services across the entire supply chain. The OLF-eCMR Toolbox is now in active use at Rhenus in selected countries and has been integrated into existing systems and processes.
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Motivation

Rhenus joined the OLF eCMR project to help replace fragmented, paper-based and mutually incompatible transport-document processes with an open, interoperable industry solution. The operational objectives are to reduce paper handling and administrative work, avoid printing, scanning, faxing, emailing and physical archiving, accelerate the availability and transmission of original transport documents, and improve data quality and transparency.

Strategically, Rhenus integrated the eCMR components directly into existing transport management systems rather than create another stand-alone process. The federated approach allows independent company instances to exchange eCMRs through a common data model and public APIs without relying on a central platform or broker. Participation in the OLF also enables requirements, feedback and development capacity to be shared across the community, supporting interoperability, digital sovereignty and the wider adoption of electronic transport documents.

DACHSER trucks

Current status and implementation experience

Step 1 – Cross-company pilot with real transports (completed pilot)

In October 2023, Rhenus, DACHSER and Fraunhofer IML operated an eCMR pilot with real transports in more than 20 European countries. The pilot provided practical input for the data model, security, roles and rights, electronic sealing and the exchange of eCMRs between independent instances.

Step 2 – Productive use within Rhenus (live deployment)

The OLF-eCMR Toolbox is operational in selected countries and connected to Rhenus transport management systems. Until end of October 2026, more than 5,000 electronic consignment notes had been processed. The solution is fully integrated into Rhenus transport management systems and linked to the Rhenus Track & Trace portal. The internal architecture also connects the eCMR application with document archiving, Active Directory, mail and SMS services.

Step 3 – Scaling and partner interoperability (in progress)

Rhenus is expanding the solution by onboarding additional transport management systems, carriers and regions, including work related to Spain’s digital transport-document requirements (DeCA). Within the first 3 weeks after DeCA’s start, Rhenus successfully processed 22,000 DeCAs, who’s datamodell relies on the OLF’s eCMR components. The solutions already successfully passed regulatory inspections in real-world operations. Cross-company exchange scenarios with senders, carriers/drivers and consignees are being developed and tested using a combination of instance-to-instance sharing and guest access.

“We decided to digitalise the CMR first because it is the backbone of every international road shipment. The joint project of creating an eCMR brings clear cost savings and removes a lot of manual status queries: communication becomes leaner, faster and more transparent. It allows for data to be immediately available upon delivery – for the sender and for us as the service provider too. The OLF-eCMR Toolbox is in its rollout phase and is now being used in daily operations. With the experience we have gained, Rhenus and our partners in the Open Logistics Foundation are already working on what comes next: ensuring the eCMR can serve as a foundation for developing additional electronic transport documents.”
Jonas Kassan

Head of Project Management Office Overland Transport, Rhenus Logistics

Overall assessment

  • Benefits: Less paper and physical archiving; reduced administrative work; immediate transmission and availability of original documents; faster data processing; improved data quality and transparency; simplified audits; and support for electronic signatures/seals.
  • Added value: Direct integration into existing TMS/ERP environments avoids media breaks and stand-alone portals. A shared data model and public APIs support interoperability between independent platforms. The open-source approach allows companies to use and adapt the available components while community feedback drives continuous improvement.
  • Lessons learned: Practical implementation requires more than software alone. Processes, organisational responsibilities, legal requirements, identity and access management, electronic sealing, archiving and interfaces to TMS/ERP systems must be addressed together. Real-transport pilots and partner testing are essential for refining the data model, APIs and sharing processes. Community-based development works best when requirements are made generic and reusable so that improvements can flow back to all participants.

Contact

Jonas Kassan
Head of Project Management Office Overland Transport
Rhenus Freight Road Sales & Management GmbH

Rhenus-Platz 1, 59439 Holzwickede, Germany

E-Mail: jonas.kassan@rhenus.com
Tel.: +49 151 10551129

Rhenus Group at a glance

  • Headquarters: Rhenus-Platz 1, 59439 Holzwickede, Germany
  • Industry role: Global logistics service provider (LSP)
  • Number of employees: 41.000 worldwide
  • OLF membership: Founding member of the Open Logistics Foundation since 2021