End-to-end tracking solutions 'vital'

There is a growing trend for importers and exporters to ask their clearing and forwarding agents to manage their entire supply chain and it is therefore vital to ensure the company has electronic systems in place that allow complete end-to-end tracking solutions, according to Compu-Clearing. “Technological solutions are an integral part of the logistics supply chain process as they ensure efficiency and optimise the performance of the players throughout the chain,” says marketing executive, Jessica Schneiderman. She says the opportunities in the electronic marketplace today are endless and the company is continually innovating and expanding its product offering to keep pace with market demands. “Our partnership with CargoWise has already allowed us to expand into many more areas in the industry. We now have systems catering to container depots, local road freight, warehouse and ships’ agents,” she says. There are various ways in which technology can improve the supply chain, says Schneiderman. Scanner guns used in warehousing provide ease and efficiency as pickers and packers are able to work directly off these scanners, eliminating the need for workstations. GPS devices on vehicles enable easy tracking of goods as well as sign-on screen functionalities that automatically attach the proof of delivery into Compu- Clearing’s electronic document storage systems, offering a paperless environment with all documentation saved in one place. Interfaces between suppliers and buyers and enterprise resource planning solutions are able to provide the desired communications and real-time viewing required to manage the processes effectively. “Barcoded labels and radio frequency identification devices are also developments that have changed the face of the industry – and webbased portals provide clients with the ability to track their goods,” she added. Customs' modernisation also provides a lot of opportunities and Schneiderman says “massive changes” have already taken place, including the change from purpose codes to customs procedure codes as well as the introduction of the road manifest at land borders. “Customs modernisation allows for supporting documents to be submitted to them electronically, removing the need for manual submissions, which works in tandem with our document storage solutions to allow the direct submission of any stored documents,” she said. INSERT & CAPTION Client notification system updates customers on all the new customs procedures and rulings. – Jessica Schneiderman