Consumers will soon be able to choose a delivery option in Paazl the checkout of online shops based on predicted CO2 emissions.
Software suppliers Paazl and BigMile are joining forces to provide CO2 calculations for shipping parcels to consumers. 'What we want to move towards is to be able to predict the CO2 of a shipment per carrier, so that consumers can factor this in when selecting a carrier for their shipments,' says Paazl's Erik Wencker.
Not all retailers and brands in e-commerce choose to set up their own international shipping service for their internet orders, as it is very costly and time-intensive to integrate and maintain multiple carriers in multiple countries. For this reason, Dutch SaaS company Paazl has developed software that allows online shops to ship orders, via both local and global carriers, to offer consumers different delivery options. Paazl now wants to add an extra dimension to that, by including sustainability as a factor in its delivery options.
Initially, Paazl focuses on making CO2 emissions visible in data dashboards of brands and internet retailers, then giving them the right tools to drive sustainability among consumers. Erik Wencker, Head of Product & Integration at Paazl, explains: 'When e-commerce companies know which delivery options are more sustainable than others, they can share this information with their customers in the checkout. The ultimate goal is to make consumers aware of the environmental impact of transporting their shipment and steer them towards sustainable shipping options.'
From post-calculation to predictive CO2 calculations
To make this possible, Paazl will also start using software from BigMile. Early in the second quarter of 2024, Paazl will integrate the BigMile Emission API, which will be used for CO2 calculations. 'For a multi-carrier check-out, you need a lot of data to calculate CO2 emissions per shipment. That already makes it very complex,' says Wencker. 'We will use transport data that we already get thanks to the link we have with carriers. In other words, we will look back on the journey of delivered parcels to determine what the CO2 of delivery was.'
In the next phase, Paazl wants to go a step further, by making available the expected CO2 emissions per service provider per shipment, so-called predictive CO2 calculations. 'Based on calculated data, we can make a prediction. We show these expected emissions in the checkout to consumers - i.e. before they make their choice - so that the transport option becomes an informed decision based on sustainability, in addition to delivery time and shipping costs,' says Wencker.
Cutting edge
Jan Pronk, managing director of BigMile says of the partnership: 'While retailers and logistics service providers are increasingly faced with legislation and reporting obligations regarding their emissions, consumers are keen to be able to make more sustainable choices when buying products as well as delivering them. In this cooperation with Paazl, we tread exactly on this cutting edge and can support both cases. The great thing is that not only does the impact of CO2 emissions in the supply chain become directly visible to consumers, but promises about sustainability of their product delivery are also substantiated with real figures. We are very happy that Paazl is taking it up in this way.'