D-flo claims new disruption tracker marks ‘revolutionary’ moment for travel

D-flo, the travel communications specialist, has created a tool to help travel agents and tour operators keep track of potential disruption as soon as it develops.

The tool, called TravelComms Disruption Intelligence, will monitor global events including airport closures, extreme weather, industrial action, terrorist attacks and technical outages.

D-flo chief executive Colin Brimson said: “This puts the travel company on the front foot. They will know about any event before the customer tells them about it.”

He added: “This is the most revolutionary thing to happen to travel for a long time.”

The tool will take information from customer reservation systems and operational platforms to identify events that are relevant, highlight destinations affected and recognise impacted travellers. It will also outline operational implications and suggest action to take.

Key sources it will use includes advice issued by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and its international counterparts.

To save travel agents from having to constantly monitor the tool’s dashboard, they will be able to set up an alerts system so they receive key updates by text or email.

“This gives a travel company instant intelligence on anything they have an exposure to,” said Brimson. 

He added: “Any travel company should be adopting this product. There is nothing like it right now.

“If they really have a duty of care for their customers, they should be asking, ‘How much is this [product]?’ and, ‘How quickly can I set it up?’

“If they have a duty of care they should invest in this to make sure their customers are safe and secure.”

Outlining the level of interest so far, he said: “Some very big tour operators have adopted this and there are others who are looking at it.”

The tool, which was launched on July 1, will be further developed over the coming months, Brimson said.

“TravelComms Disruption Intelligence has been designed as a continually evolving platform, with an ambitious roadmap that will introduce new intelligence capabilities, broader operational visibility and even greater support for travel brands navigating an increasingly complex world,” he added.