Thanks to burgeoning logistics developments on top of continuing advances in refrigeration technology, consumers today can have perishable goods such as fresh produce that are temperature sensitive delivered from the store or processing plant to their home. Especially during the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, cold chain logistics played an important role in ensuring vaccine quality was preserved during transportation and thereby safeguarding people's health. According to the Cold Chain Logistics Market Reports published by Precedence Research, the global cold chain logistics market size is expected to reach US$ 470 billion by 2027 but about 15% of the goods are damaged mainly due to poor temperature control. In view of this, many developers are working on cold chain temperature monitoring solutions in an effort to increase the reliability and stability of cold chain logistics. Their endeavors are driving rapid growth in this market segment. The global cold chain temperature monitoring market size already topped US$28.9 billion in 2023.
According to Gocochain co-founder and CEO David Chien, cold chain logistics has a long history. Traditionally, after temperature-sensitive cargo arrives at the destination, workers collect the temperature recorders from the crates and then insert them into computers to read the data for subsequent analysis and sorting. With the cumbersome approach, it will usually be days until the temperature changes of the cargo during transportation are available, making temperature monitoring just a formality. With Gocochain's latest cold chain data logging solution, users can access cargo temperature data via an app on their mobile phones. Significantly reducing the effort to download and sort data, Gocochain's solution marks a new milestone for cold chain logistics.
Replacing manual processes with automation, Gocochain helps users stay on top of cargo temperature changes
Established in 2023, Gocochain aims to resolve pain points in traditional cold chain temperature monitoring. Its all-in-one cold chain temperature monitoring solution includes a slim easy-to-use temperature data logger — CoTag, a mobile app, and a cloud dashboard for real-time temperature data monitoring to ensure cargo quality during transportation. CoTag features one-touch activation, automatic settings, and diverse applications. Not only can users configure multiple CoTag devices with a single click, but they can also track cargo temperature changes from the origin to the destination. Gocochain offers single-use and multi-use CoTag devices for users in different industries to choose based on their application scenario.
Chien said in brief Gocochain's solution turns the traditional cold chain temperature monitoring job into an automated process. After CoTag devices are activated and placed in the crates, workers at the destination only need to read the data on their mobile app to see the temperature changes during transportation. The data are also uploaded to the cloud dashboard to allow real-time access by central office managers. In the case of any temperature abnormality, they can make an instant decision to recall the products and also make improvements to the delivery process to prevent reoccurrences. Gocochain's unique solution has been adopted by Taiwan-based suppliers such as Fang Jing Marketing Cooperative.
According to Gocochain, its all-in-one cold chain temperature monitoring solution utilizes multiple services provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS). These include AWS IoT Core, which enables reliable and secure connections to billions of IoT devices; AWS Lambda, a serverless compute service; and Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3), an object storage service offering industry-leading scalability, data availability, security, and performance. Leveraging these AWS services enables Gocochain to provide the stability, reliability, and instantaneity of its services.
Participation in Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS Joint Innovation Center (JIC) program helps Gocochain expand into Southeast Asia
Gocochain chose to develop its all-in-one cold chain logistics solution leveraging AWS services right from the beginning of its business. On top of that, it plans to utilize generative AI to develop a chatbot in multiple languages for its users. Not only will the chatbot service provide users better search suggestions but it will also help Gocochain expand its footprint in the global marketplace.
Chien remarked that Gocochain's overseas expansion efforts will focus on Southeast Asia for the time being. It has entered into partnership deals with foreign distributors to jointly target the cold chain temperature monitoring market in the region. Apart from this, Gocochain is set to launch an upgraded version of its real-time monitoring solution at year-end 2024. With this upgrade, when CoTag devices pass nodes on transportation routes or in transportation vehicles where dedicated gateways are installed, they will upload data logs to the cloud dashboard to allow managers to constantly stay aware of cargo temperature changes as a way to ensure cargo quality.
Gocochain's cloud dashboard enables users to instantly visualize temperature data.
Photo: Gocochain