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Rail, parcels and ports win Freight Innovation funding

[ December 9, 2025   //   ]

The Government is to pay out funding of up to £130,000 to nine small and medium-sized firms to solve challenges in the freight and logistics industry, a total of nearly £1.1m under the latest round of the Freight Innovation Fund.

The fund aims to tackle some of the most pressing challenges in the freight sector, ranging from decarbonisation and wastage to efficiency and upskilling of staff.

The funding will allow businesses to start trialling technology.

Alongside the Freight Innovation Fund, the government is providing additional funding for transport and freight through the Transport Research and Innovation Grants (TRIG) – supporting the development of new technologies to meet challenges within the wider transport sector.

Companies receiving funding include Anteam, which has developed an online platform to match underutilised or empty transport space with real-time logistics demand. A trial aims to use AI for enabling real-time logistics capacity sharing across freight companies, in partnership with Welch Group and Baxter Freight.

Berkeley Coachworks has developed lightweight trailers, developed using advanced composite materials and motorsport-inspired aerodynamic design to cut carbon in the manufacturing process and on the road.

GoLink Advisory Group is trialling a new high-speed rail freight operation designed specifically for the courier, express, parcel sector, in partnership with DPD. The service will combine fast, brand new modern electric locomotives (Class 93) with electric HGVs to create a low-carbon transport solution for long-distance linehaul networks. It aims to combined fast rail services with real-time tracking and reliable ‘to the minute’ arrivals to delivery companies a genuine alternative to road and air freight that is greener and more efficient.

The trial will demonstrate that time-critical volume can move quickly and reliably by rail, while connecting smoothly into existing road-based networks. We will test end-to-end journey times, the trans-shipment process between electric vehicles and rail wagons and the digital platform that allows customers to track end-to-end multi-modal network operations in real time.

Optimal Cities provides a user-friendly digital platform that empowers ports, cities and logistics operators to make data-driven decisions for better health, safety and sustainability in partnership with Wincanton, Portsmouth International Port and Port of Tyne.

It generates actionable geospatial intelligence from satellites and sensors to provide a clear mapping dashboard showing where risks are highest.

Enhanced safe-routing and situational awareness tools help ensure safer movement of people, vehicles and cargo during daily operations or emergencies.

Rhevia is building a movement intelligence platform that provides ports and operators with a live, predictive picture of how trailers, vehicles and people flow through their environments. Using advanced radar technology, Rhevia detects movement in 3 dimensions while preserving privacy, delivering a data layer for safe and efficient operations.

Rhevia will work with Portsmouth International Port and DFDS to create an end-to-end digital freight picture across two ports. By combining radar insights with operational data, the project will map entire trailer journeys from gate entry and yard dwell to tug movements, vessel loading and discharge.

For example, the system will help optimise tug operations, ensure priority cargo is always loaded and give ports a live overview of capacity and flow.

SLANT Sustainable Technologies is trialling an electric trailer system that helps couriers carry more cargo, more easily, without using motor vehicles. The system is adaptable to most bike trailers and uses an integrated motor to assist with heavy loads, making deliveries faster, safer and more sustainable.

Unlike other electric solutions, our product is modular, meaning it can be fitted to existing trailers and designed for small courier companies who need affordability and flexibility.

SpatialCortex Technology aims to protecting staff from musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) injury risks to ensure long-term health and safety. It is trialling MOVA, a wearable sensor and AI-driven safety solution that monitors posture, movement and strain in real time, helping identify and reduce MSD and ergonomic risks.

Supply Chain Analysis is trialling an AI-powered planning and scheduling tool with DFDS to improve the movement and handling of trailers in ferry operations. The system uses real-time and historical data to forecast trailer dwell times, destinations and handling needs before they arrive or depart.

This enables smarter scheduling for vessel loading, yard space allocation and truck appointments, helping reduce congestion, waiting times and unnecessary trailer movements.

It combines predictive analytics with live optimisation in a single platform and, unlike traditional static planning systems, adapts dynamically to operational changes, ensuring resources are used efficiently while improving service reliability.

The trial aims to test the tool’s effectiveness in improving trailer scheduling and yard coordination.

The Zizo Confluence platform, working with Welch Group and Portsmouth International Port, combines patented technology platform with GenAI to deliver data analysis on massive datasets, while ensuring trusted outcomes and granular data. This data can be used to drive improvements in decarbonisation, operational efficiency or to develop new products and/or services.

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