Portrait: Magnus Berglund accelerates the projects

Magnus Berglund is Research Director for Transport Analysis and Logistics at VTI. What he enjoys most about his job is starting exciting research projects with his colleagues and other partners, and with all modes of transport. And things seem to be going well. He’s focusing on logistics and resilience in particular at the moment.

“Having nothing to do is dull. I enjoy working on new projects and relationships, but delivering the end-product is great as well. As a publication, maybe, but in fact something more like a public demonstration, presentation or something similar. But the best part is seeing new opportunities and starting new things,” he says.

He began his university studies with Industrial Engineering and Management at Linköping University, where he went on to specialise in logistics. There are lots of names for the same thing. Logistics is about material flows, managing and controlling them from a cargo owner’s perspective. The word logistik (logistics) was first used in Swedish sometime in the 1950s to 1960s, but before that it was usually referred to as materialadministration (materials flow management). Supply chain management, SCM, is a widely used term, too. There’s no good Swedish translation for this, although some people have tried in vain to establish the term flödesekonomi (flow economy).

“Both research and industry use the terms logistics and SCM in different ways, depending on background and strong trends,” says Magnus Berglund.

He continued his studies at the IMIE graduate school, a knowledge centre at Linköping University, an industry initiative aimed at integrating technology, management and economics, with emphasis on changes and integration within industrial value and value-added chains.

He completed his doctorate in 2000 with a thesis on the strategic positioning and value creation processes of logistics companies. Until recently, Magnus Berglund continued to hold a minor position at Linköping University, working as an adjunct lecturer in logistics; but he focused on other things after completing his doctorate.

He worked as a consultant in trade and industry for about 20 years, focusing on logistics issues. He ended up working on classic consultancy assignments in various industries, completing a lot of training at various levels, and working for both longer and shorter periods in different roles as an interim manager. Retail was what interested him the most, because material flows are an enormous part of the business, which makes them incredibly important and strategic.

He has a keen interest in companies and logistics, in particular with regard to how they develop and create value for their customers.

“A lot of other aspects have been added in recent years, too. Digitalisation, how companies are using it as a tool. Creating efficiency in transport using open data. A general interest in logistics itself, where transport definitely has a vital part to play. That said, challenges to be resolved or opportunities for improvement may be found in completely different parts of the organisation. We always need to consider the bigger systems and avoid focusing solely on transport. Optimising the flow of goods and passengers is the real objective.”

One area receiving a great deal of attention recently is resilience and preparedness, the ability to always be able to deal with disruptions – a pandemic, the war in Ukraine or other societal changes – as well as the ability to adapt to changes in the world, both locally and globally, he reckons.

“Logistics should be customisable. You can’t get locked into rigid structures; you always have to have opportunities to quickly adjust to a new reality. This is normal for a logistician on an operational level. But what we’re talking about right now is disruption on a societal level, which requires a lot more. You can’t be reactive, either. There has to be preparation. The problem is, we don’t know what the next major disruption is going to be.”

There are a lot of resilience projects in progress at VTI. One project involving Magnus Berglund is BULT, Beredskapshänsyn i utveckling och långsiktsplanering av transportsystem (Preparedness considerations in the development and long-term planning of transport systems), which is a five-year collaboration with Linköping University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and the Swedish Defence Research Agency.

The name of the SAEKERT (SAFE) project stands for Safe, Adaptable, Economic and Climate Neutral Energy Supply for Resilient Transport Systems. This is the first really enormous project involving VTI and ACE, the Arctic Center of Energy, and a new collaboration with Luleå University of Technology. A number of recharging projects are also underway.

Magnus Berglund enjoys being a manager and is very keen on driving the organisation forward with his research team. Transport Analysis and Logistics will soon have 40 staff, and is still growing. The unit has recruited a lot of new staff and has grown by 20 per cent per year in recent years.

“Transport Analysis and Logistics is a professional organisation with self-motivated staff. My role will be to help out and create opportunities to work proactively. We have a lot of doctoral students, eight at the moment and four more about to join us.”

The doctoral positions are collaborations with Linköping University, Chalmers University of Technology, Luleå and Lund University. Magnus Berglund is keen to continue working for socially beneficial activities. He’d like to work anywhere where there’s a need to take action, and to continue working as a manager.

When he has time off, he mostly enjoys spending time with his family. He has four children and five grandchildren – and will probably end up with a few more over time – and his parents are getting on a bit. His family is spread all over Sweden, so he does a fair bit of travelling.

Text: Gunilla Rech

Translation: CBG