KDS is set to demonstrate software which will integrate green policy into corporate self bookings. The travel and expense management systems provider says the technology will enable carbon emissions to be calculated and managed for each business trip.
It plans to show off the technology at the Business Travel Show in London from February 13–15. The company expects to be able to expected to produce a commercially available product by the second half of this year.
Paris-based KDS is currently conducting a joint survey with ACTE (the Association of Corporate Travel Executives) to assess corporate thinking and practice on environmental travel issues. The findings will also be announced at the Show, but CEO Yves Weisselberger gave a foretaste, noting they would indicate "That companies are trying to grapple with the environmental impact of their travel. However, they currently lack the tools to help them do this effectively".
The company's "proof of concept" is based on its Corporate Version 6 system. It incorporates a calculator from the Carbon Neutral Company, which will give travellers a measure of the emissions their planned journey will create, "providing a firmer basis for their decision making". It will also allow them to access any offsetting arrangements their employers' made have set up with third parties "at the click of a mouse".
KDS says that because Version 6 is designed to be programmed with customers' unique travel policies, the intended new green system will enable environmentally based policies to be automatically enforced. It also notes that the expense management element of the system will also help companies to balance environmental considerations against cost.
Mr Weisselberger said: "There is much debate about the best way to manage emissions, but there is an emerging consensus that it must involve both reductions and some degree of offsetting."
* see BTE's recruitment site www.businesstraveljobs.com