As a sector, logistics is at the heart of the success of UK plc, with more than seven million people involved in the industry and associated business areas. With customer demand driving the adoption of new technologies at a faster pace than in many other areas of the economy, FTA, the business which speaks for the logistics industry, is seeking innovative speakers and the best new thinking in the sector for its Future Logistics Conference 2020.

The Conference, to be staged as part of the first Innovation and Technology in Transport (ITT) exhibition at the Farnborough International Exhibition Centre on 13 and 14 May 2020, will bring together the leading minds in the industry to debate issues which will affect the future success of the logistics industry. And, as Elizabeth de Jong, UK Policy Director for FTA, explains, the search is on for speakers who can inspire new thinking and help to drive such an important sector forward:

“Logistics underpins our economy and our society,” she explains, “but our industry will need to change more rapidly and in ways that we don’t yet fully understand if it is to turn the challenges it faces into opportunities such as delivering big changes in its environmental performance, adapting to new patterns of trading and production after Brexit and overcoming shortages of skilled workers. The industry of tomorrow will look and behave very differently from logistics today, and we are seeking inspirational speakers for our conference to spark debates, provoke thought and encourage the sector to innovate to ensure it can continue to deliver.”

Speakers are being invited to submit outlines of potential papers for the two-day conference, which is to be structured under four core themes Future Cities, Future Vehicles, Future Communications and Future Data, chosen to reflect that the future requires the joining up of transport, energy, technology, data, planning and policy.

And while the two-day conference will accommodate as many presentations as possible, as Ms de Jong continues, it is vital that the speakers bring something different to the event:

“We are looking for speakers who challenge accepted norms, and go beyond today’s logistics industry,” she continues. “The event is about visionary ideas which can be practically applied to help our industry to be robust and not only survive external pressures but flourish and grow. We are not seeking sales pitches, rather the brightest and best ideas and case studies so that our speaker programme will challenge accepted thinking to the benefit of the industry as a whole.”

Those interested in submitting papers for consideration for inclusion in Future Logistics Conference at ITT Hub 2020 are asked to submit an outline of no more than 250 words, summarising the proposed content for consideration, together with the suggested speaker’s biography, to jcabal@fta.co.uk.

“ITT Hub will be one of the must-attend events of the logistics calendar,” Ms de Jong concludes, “where all those involved in transport and logistics can experience the latest technologies and debate the big issues which will affect logistics of the future. We are excited about assembling an industry-leading programme of speakers.”