THE DIGITAL Container Shipping Association said a majority of its member carriers have adopted its track and trace standards.

DCSA – a neutral non-profit group that aims to further container shipping technology standards – said the carriers are also providing customers with access to the standards-based API, or will soon be.

The carriers that have adopted the standards include MSC, ONE, CMA CGM, Yang Ming and Evergreen.

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

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

The DCSA track and trace standard comprises an information model and interface standards that can be freely downloaded from the DCSA website. API definitions are available on SwaggerHub.

The data model ensures track and trace data definitions are consistent for all users. 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 track and trace standards are aligned with the UN/CEFACT (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.

DCSA CEO Thomas Bagge said he was pleased that adoption is gaining traction among the carriers.

“But digital transformation of the container shipping industry, and the resulting improvements in efficiency and customer experience, simply can’t happen without even more widespread adoption of digital standards,” Mr Bagge said.

“DCSA’s focus for 2021 is to promote adoption among all stakeholders. Without adoption the industry will not benefit from the digital foundation that is being created.”

MSC

“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,” said André Simha, chairman of the DCSA Supervisory Board and global chief digital and information Officer of MSC. “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 and trace 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.”

ONE

“Our mission is to provide optimal solutions for our customers through innovation and collaboration,” said Yu Kurimoto, managing director, corporate and innovation for ONE. “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 and trace API based on DCSA standards that will improve cargo visibility for shippers.”

CMA CGM

“Providing innovative products that enable a seamless shipping experience is one of our core benefits to customers,” said Nicolas Sekkaki, executive vice-president IT, digital, SSC and transformation at CMA CGM. “The standards work being done in conjunction with DCSA 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.”

Yang Ming

“We are dedicated to digital transformation to provide quality services to our customers,” said Steven Tsao, chief information officer at Yang Ming. “There is great complexity in global logistics services due to regulations, business factors, network sizes, and information flow between parties. The timely exchange of data and the ability to respond to factors that arise during the transportation process are key to providing service reliability. Reliability requires visibility and high-quality data, which is why we are happy to be early adopters of the DCSA track and trace standard. With the track and trace standards-based API in place, shippers will have real-time information about container whereabouts and receive notification of delays. Equally as important, shippers who have implemented the track and trace API with us preserve their investment because they can easily connect with all carriers that have implemented the DCSA standards.”

Evergreen

“Striving to offer our customers productive and efficient service has always been core to our mission,” said Eric Wang, executive vice-president of international marketing division at Evergreen. “In the increasingly connected shipping supply chain, digital collaboration is important for giving customers the experiences they want. We are convinced that standardization is the prerequisite for all stakeholders to realize effective digitalization and interoperability, which are urgently needed, not only by us, but by the industry as a whole. Standardizing on the DCSA Track & Trace API will allow us to give customers fast and easy access to accurate, real-time information about their shipments which will be of great benefit not only to our customers, but to ourselves and every industry stakeholder.”