"The bridge between logistics and mobility should be built more often"

The logistics sector faces major challenges, from resource scarcity to the necessity of sustainability. Marijn van Adrichem, sustainable logistics advisor at TNO, sees opportunities in collaboration and knowledge sharing. In this interview, he shares his vision on the role of Connekt and the importance of a stronger bridge between mobility and logistics.

Marijn van Adrichem has been working as a sustainable logistics advisor at Connekt member TNO for two years. When asked to describe Connekt in three words, he answers with connector, knowledge transfer, and inspiring. “Connekt brings different parties together. For example, there are parties that look at logistics more from a research perspective, but also parties that have more of a consultancy, business, or government perspective.”

The challenges currently facing the sector require a broad perspective. All different parties are needed to tackle them. “The government, for example, is responsible for infrastructure or laws and regulations. Ultimately, it is about the logistics parties that transport the goods, so you cannot do without the private sector. In addition, the research community is needed to look at logistics at a strategic level.”

Van Adrichem cites scarcity as one of the most important challenges for the logistics sector. "I am talking about scarcity in resources, infrastructure, and employees. But also, for example, grid congestion when we talk about sustainability. Can you obtain enough green energy to make your fleet sustainable?” Looking to the future, demand seems to be increasing, but resources seem to be decreasing. This means that in the future, you will have to do more with less. “That is a major challenge; how are we going to deal with that?”

Knowledge transfer

The second word Van Adrichem uses to describe Connekt is knowledge transfer. “Connekt ensures that the knowledge gained from various projects or research is also utilized, disseminated, and exchanged. “Otherwise, it remains just an interesting report. If no one does anything with it, it misses its mark.” According to Van Adrichem, the knowledge sessions organized by Connekt help to start the discussion with each other on how to deal with the challenges facing the sector.

“There are individual projects, but it is important to bring them together more in long-term programs. Otherwise, they remain stuck in silos.” Here too, Van Adrichem sees an important role for Connekt, in collaboration with the Top Sector Logistics. “To make it clear what we are actually working towards together.”

Van Adrichem found the session on resilience in IT and logistics particularly interesting, especially in view of the current geopolitical situation. “It was not entirely unfamiliar territory for me, but I found it interesting to talk about a resilient society in the Connekt context and what that means for logistics. It was truly one of those sessions that gets people thinking.”

Inspiring

Word number three was inspiring. According to Van Adrichem, this fits with the fresh character of Connekt. “I think internally we are convinced that the domains of mobility and logistics are very interesting. But to also convey that to others is, I think, a key role for Connekt.”

YNOT

In 2024, Van Adrichem participated in Connekt's YNOT program. YNOT stands for Young Network of Treasures and connects young professionals from different Connekt members. “Especially as a starter, it is nice to see what colleagues at other organizations are working on. You also build a network that way. Besides that, it is just great to be able to talk to other starters about ‘starter struggles’.” Van Adrichem really enjoyed the fact that the group met once a month. “You step out of your bubble of daily activities to look at things more broadly with a group of people. I found that very valuable.”

Building a bridge

Connekt is the network for mobility and logistics. According to Van Adrichem, the bridge between these two could be built even more. “Because mobility and logistics meet somewhere. There is a strong link between the two, which I think is sometimes not yet fully utilized. This applies equally to the research world.” He explains: “If you look at the urban environment, for example, mobility and logistics come together very clearly. In my opinion, you cannot see those two systems separately, although they are sometimes still approached quite separately.” As an example, he mentions the introduction of zero-emission city centers, but also the development of low-traffic neighborhoods. “That has implications for mobility, where you might need to set up shared mobility. But it also has implications for logistics. Because if you order a washing machine, how does it get to your house?” Van Adrichem thinks there may be solutions that can be applied to both the mobility and logistics fields. “I see potential to exploit that better. I think Connekt is also the right party to perhaps bring that together and drive it forward.”

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