Join the time slot management pilot testing phase.
Call for participants
The API is ready. Now we’re looking for industry participants to put it to the test.
Open to
Carriers · Shippers · Warehouses · TMS/TSM/WMS providers · LSPs · other relevant organisations
Participation
Your organisation can test the API in practice to provide feedback and contribute to the development of an open industry standard.
Application period
Open until 30 November 2026
What happens next
OLF will work with interested organisations to identify suitable pilot constellations and use cases.
Where things stand
Why is Time Slot Management still a challenge?
Every day, warehouses, yards, distribution centres and transport operators coordinate thousands of loading and unloading appointments.
But the systems involved often don’t communicate seamlessly. Proprietary interfaces, disconnected systems and manual processes can make it difficult to exchange time slot information across organisational boundaries.
This creates a familiar tension:
Facilities need predictability to plan labour, dock capacity and throughput.
Carriers and logistics providers need flexibility to respond to traffic, delays and changing transport conditions.
What if the systems involved could exchange time slot information through a common, open standard?
That’s the question the Time Slot Management API, developed by Working Group Track & Trace, is designed to address.
Introducing OLF’s Time Slot Management API
The Open Logistics Foundation is developing a vendor-neutral, open source API standard for exchanging time slot information between logistics systems.
The API is designed to enable communication between:
Transport Management Systems (TMS) ↔ Time Slot Management Systems (TSM) ↔ Warehouse Management Systems (WMS)
and other relevant systems involved in planning, booking and managing loading and unloading appointments.
Instead of relying on proprietary point-to-point integrations, organisations can work from a common technical foundation for interoperable time slot management.
Example Use Case
TMS ↔ TSM Integration
• Automated slot adjustments when delays occur
• More reliable planning
• Less manual communication
• Reduced waiting times at logistics facilities
Example Use Case
TMS ↔ TSM ↔ WMS Integration
• Synchronised transportation and warehouse planning
• Dynamic adjustment of warehouse and dock schedules
• Greater visibility across the process chain
• Better use of labor and infrastructure resources
By joining the pilot, your organisation can:
Prepare for more interoperable logistics
Gain early experience with a single, standardised API that connects systems and partners, reducing the need for individual APIs
Influence a solution that works for you
Bring your operational needs and requirements directly into the development of an open API for time slot management
Test the API in your own solutions
Explore how the API could fit your existing processes and identify opportunities and challenges for your organisation
Collaborate with industry peers
Work directly and connect with other organisations participating in the pilot and those in the OLF Working Group Track & Trace.
Ready to test the open standard in a real-world scenario?
Join us in testing the Time Slot Management API
What could a pilot use case look like?
Participants bring their practical experience and a relevant use case, then work with one or more industry partners to test the API in a real-world scenario – providing feedback along the way.
Interested? Get in touch and let us know:
- Company name
- Contact details
- Your potential role in the use case
The call for participants is open until 30 November 2026.
Get in touch.
Nathalie Böhning
Innovation and Project Manager
+49 (0) 152 02347913