AI in Logistics: How Maciej is Redefining Efficiency at XTRAS
MACIEJ: Hi Klaudia, sure
I live with my family in a small, quiet town near Görlitz, where I also grew up. In my free time, I love spending time with my two kids, especially outdoors in the garden. My son and I sometimes tackle small DIY projects together – it’s a great way to stay active and balance out my workday.
KLAUDIA: That sounds really nice. Now, let’s talk about your work at XTRAS forward thinking. You’ve been with the company for a while. You started as a working student and now work as a software developer. You’re even combining one of your XTRAS projects with your Ph.D., right?
MACIEJ: Yes, that’s right. During my business informatics studies at Zittau/Görlitz University, a friend introduced me to XTRAS forward thinking, and I quickly applied as a working student. That was in 2014. During my master’s studies in Wrocław, I was brought on as a developer. Now, I can directly incorporate some of my tasks at XTRAS into my doctoral research.
For me, the blend of hands-on experience and academic research is especially exciting. I get to analyze the technological developments I implement at XTRAS in a scientific way, developing innovative approaches to process optimization that I can also describe from a theoretical standpoint.
KLAUDIA: It must be fascinating to see how theory and practice come together in your work. Do you typically start with a theoretical approach or base it on practical needs? And what’s the main focus of your Ph.D. project?
MACIEJ: My research focuses on optimizing supply chain management using artificial intelligence (AI), specifically for natural language processing. In logistics, where fast and interconnected communication is essential, AI offers tremendous opportunities. The goal is to make processes not only more efficient but also more transparent and error-free through intelligent software solutions. I aim to automate repetitive, time-consuming tasks, freeing people to focus on more creative and challenging work.
While theory often advocates for the integration of logistics and AI, my best insights often come from practical experience. When you analyze a company’s workflows closely, you quickly see where modern technology can provide optimization. A good example is a project with a transport company specializing in international freight forwarding. By combining our Freight Forwarding Software Xfreight with an order management system and AI, we were able to extract unstructured data from emails and process it in real-time. This significantly reduced processing time and made communication much more efficient.
KLAUDIA: It seems like you’ve done an excellent job of integrating AI into your project Are there any other areas where you’ve been able to achieve similar efficiency gains?
MACIEJ: I’m pleased that it comes across that way . My work at XTRAS isn’t limited to programming. I work closely with our clients, analyzing their business processes and actively proposing ways to optimize them. This direct collaboration with clients constantly opens up new possibilities for creative solutions.
Another example is optimizing master data management for customs declarations. We succeeded in importing relevant data directly from Excel spreadsheets, which significantly reduced manual effort and minimized errors. The entire process sped up fivefold, making a big difference for our clients’ daily operations.
KLAUDIA: This year, you had the chance to present your work at the renowned ECAI conference. How did you experience it, and what aspects of your research did you focus on?
MACIEJ: Presenting at ECAI was an exciting and very valuable experience. It was fantastic to showcase our work to such a knowledgeable audience. I especially enjoyed engaging with AI experts from different fields and seeing that our approaches resonate not only with our clients but also in the scientific community.
KLAUDIA: It seems like XTRAS has a unique strength that benefits clients immensely. What are your plans to expand these strengths, and what are your personal goals in the process?
MACIEJ: At XTRAS, our goal is to continue developing innovative, tailored solutions for our clients. We want to understand their business processes even better so we can digitalize them optimally. Personally, I want to deepen my expertise in business analysis and, of course, successfully complete my Ph.D. project.
KLAUDIA: Then I wish you all the best! Thanks for the conversation
MACIEJ: Thank you