Major carriers adopt DCSA Track and Trace Standards

The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) has announced that a majority of its member carriers have adopted DCSA Track & Trace (T&T) standards and are currently or will soon be providing customers with access to the standards-based API.

The DCSA T&T API provides a streamlined way for shippers to receive real-time, cross-carrier data regarding the whereabouts of their containers.

Widespread adoption of DCSA standards will advance the industry in terms of visibility and real-time responsiveness, resulting in greater reliability and a better customer experience.

These definitions are based on the Industry Blueprint, published by DCSA and its carrier members in 2019, which established a consistent vocabulary and proposed a common set of industry processes.

The T&T standards are aligned with the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business standards to provide a global industry framework that preserves existing investments and streamlines communication among all supply chain participants.

André Simha, Chairman of the DCSA Supervisory Board and Global Chief Digital & Information Officer of MSC said, “MSC has long recognised the importance of digitisation across the shipping industry and has been one of the pioneers behind digital change, with the aim to improve efficiency and transparency across the supply chain and deliver a greater customer experience.

“While a variety of digital innovations exist in the maritime industry, MSC believes that new solutions will only be fit for purpose if they can be operated across multiple carriers, service providers and geographies.

“Collaboration is essential in this regard, so we can establish the same technology standards throughout the industry. The ‘Track & Trace’ (T&T) standards establish a consistent method for exchanging data between carriers and customers.

“We’re proud to be one of the first to implement these new standards with our customers, thus shaping the technological future of the shipping industry.”

Yu Kurimoto, Managing Director, Corporate and Innovation for One Ocean Express (ONE), also commented, “Our mission is to provide optimal solutions for our customers through innovation and collaboration.

“Today, optimization in the way we envision requires digitalization. Done properly, digitalization will provide a foundation for integrating all aspects of global trade, uniting geographies and connecting stakeholders in a way that will not only enable ONE to deliver on its vision, but for container shipping to be seen as a leading light of industry.

“DCSA is enabling digitalization to be done properly, and we are proud to be among the first to offer a Track & Trace API based on DCSA standards that will improve cargo visibility for shippers.”

Nicolas Sekkaki, Executive Vice President IT, Digital, SSC & Transformation from CMA CGM, said the standards will enable a level of seamlessness that has been difficult to achieve to this point due to a lack of interoperability across the industry.

“Digital standards will not only enable this interoperability, they will make it easier for carriers to achieve customer excellence and operational efficiency. But adopting standards and collaborating across the industry requires more than standards alone, it requires a cultural change in the industry which will hopefully start now.

“We are not only proud to be a founding member of this standardization initiative, we are excited about the benefits our DCSA standards-based Track & Trace API will provide for our customers.”

https://www.porttechnology.org/news/major-carriers-adopt-dcsa-track-and-trace-standards/