On the morning of 13 February 2025, the first edition of the Contship Logistics Forum 2025 took place in Milan, providing an opportunity for the terminal operator to unveil the seventh edition of the research study "Corridors and Logistical Efficiency of Territories," conducted in collaboration with Srm, the research centre associated with the Intesa Sanpaolo Group. The study involved 400 manufacturing companies based in Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, and Veneto, three regions that together account for 41% of the national GDP and half of Italy's import-export trade. For the first time, the survey also included 100 shipping companies, aiming to provide a complementary perspective on the key topics analysed.
The first topic focuses on new technologies, with particular attention to digitalisation and, naturally, artificial intelligence. The research reveals that only 19% of the manufacturing companies surveyed are already implementing artificial intelligence (8%) or are exploring its potential use (11%). The proportion of companies recognising artificial intelligence as a tool for cost improvement reaches 35%, while 34% foresee benefits in terms of product quality.
Despite this openness, the most widely applied digital technology remains blockchain (used by 30% of respondents), followed by robotics/automation (18%), computer vision (17%), and big data (17%). A notable gap exists between manufacturers and logistics operators: only 3% of the latter express an intention to invest in artificial intelligence in the short term, although a significant 27% are already experimenting with automation.
Researchers examined intermodality in the context of environmental sustainability. The strong preference for road transport remains unsurprising: on average, between 2019 and 2024, only 12% of manufacturing companies opted for the combined road-rail solution for export routes connecting factories to ports, while this share slightly increased to 17% for imports. The main reasons for sticking with road transport are lower costs (59%), greater flexibility in delivery times (21%), and reliability/safety (20%).
Despite these figures, respondents consider intermodality strategic for achieving the decarbonisation targets set at the European level, with 66% believing it could have an impact (29% consider it significant). However, adopting more structured sustainability policies remains a priority for only a minority of manufacturing companies (33%). Logistics operators, on the other hand, show a greater commitment to the issue, with 44% implementing sustainability plans compared to 33% of manufacturers.
A crucial topic for logistics is ex works, a model where the buyer, rather than the seller, manages the organisation and associated costs of transportation. In recent years, 58% of the manufacturing companies surveyed have predominantly used this model. The key factors driving its adoption include simplicity (46%), a lack of expertise in logistics management (22%), and requests from foreign customers (19%). Nevertheless, 67% of respondents are open to considering alternative solutions, provided they receive specialised consultancy or can clearly measure the benefits (for instance, through a cost-benefit analysis). A significant concern is delivery oversight: 65% of companies acknowledge that ex works can lead to a loss of visibility and control over supply flows.
A highly relevant issue addressed in the research is supply chain disruption caused by environmental, geopolitical, or operational factors. The findings indicate that recent crises have not uniformly affected all surveyed companies. In fact, 47% reported experiencing no negative impact from such disruptions. Among those most affected, the most common response (24% of respondents) was to reorganise or adapt supply flows and operations. Additionally, 14% diversified or expanded their supplier network, another 14% strengthened relationships with logistics partners and suppliers, while only 6% opted for nearshoring strategies to bring production closer.
Focusing more closely on transport, researchers analysed the main import and export flows. For imports, Asia dominates (particularly the Far East, accounting for 52%), with China chosen by 49% of companies. The most frequently used port is Ravenna (53%), followed by Genoa (29%), Venice (21%), and La Spezia (21%). Regarding intermodality, the combined road-rail method was used for 17% of imports between 2019 and 2024. In exports, Genoa leads among Italian ports, preferred by 47% of companies, averaging 70% over the 2019-2024 period. La Spezia (29%) and Ravenna (28%) have also seen growth. The main export destinations are Europe (43%, with the United Kingdom at 21%) and North America (33%, particularly the United States).
Finally, the research examined the outsourcing of logistics, which appears to be a well-established practice. For exports, 96% of companies rely on external providers, while for imports, the figure slightly decreases to 94%. However, in 77% of export cases (81% for imports), companies maintain internal control over key decisions to avoid losing strategic oversight. On the logistics operators' side, the majority (81%) focus primarily on operational aspects, while only 19% assist clients in defining logistics strategies. Regarding process digitalisation and data exchange, 34% consider themselves fully or predominantly digitalised, whereas 35% admit they are still in the early stages.
