Implementation of platooning concept from business perspective.

Abstract: Platooning is a way of how different transport companies could reduce fuel consumption and increase efficiency and safety. Concept implies that group of vehicles is driving in a convoy or string on the highway with close distance at particular speed with a help of driving assistance technologies, such as adaptive cruise control or cooperative cruise control. Several projects describe how platooning can be used from technical perspective and are less focused on how platooning could be implemented from business perspective, as well as who would be making decisions for creating platoons. Even though some projects have mentioned this step, there is still lack of information and detailed business model. This thesis gives a review of what kind of studies are done in this field and how platooning is defined by variety of researches. The aim of this paper is to propose different approach towards platooning implementation from business perspective. This paper implies that freight forwarding companies or 3PL service providers are the ones, who should organize several trucks in platoon. Study is done with theoretical and practical approach, where theoretical approach includes several project review as well as academic literature review and practical approach is done by designing experiment and conducting interviews with industry representatives.