Research and innovation in supply chain & logistics in the ship equipment supply, product and services sector has stagnated in the last quarter.
The most recent figures show that the number of supply chain and logistics related patent applications in the industry stood at 48 in the three months ending May – the same as 48 over the same period in 2021.
Figures for patent grants related to supply chain and logistics followed a different pattern to filings – shrinking from 28 in the three months ending May 2021 to 17 in the same period in 2022.
The figures are compiled by GlobalData, who track patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Using textual analysis, as well as official patent classifications, these patents are grouped into key thematic areas, and linked to key companies across various industries.
Supply chain and logistics is one of the key areas tracked by GlobalData. It has been identified as being a key disruptive force facing companies in the coming years, and is one of the areas that companies investing resources in now are expected to reap rewards from.
The figures also provide an insight into the largest innovators in the sector.
FedEx Corp was the top supply chain and logistics innovator in the ship equipment supply, product and services sector in the latest quarter. The company, which has its headquarters in the United States, filed 19 supply chain and logistics related patents in the three months ending May. That was up from 10 over the same period in 2021.
It was followed by the United States based United Parcel Service with 14 supply chain and logistics patent applications, South Korea based Samsung Heavy Industries (seven applications), and the United States based Uber Technologies (five applications).
FedEx has recently ramped up R&D in supply chain and logistics. It saw growth of 47.4% in related patent applications in the three months ending May compared to the same period in 2021 - the highest percentage growth out of all companies tracked with more than 10 quarterly patents in the ship equipment supply, product and services sector.
