Cargo clearing software supplier Easy Clear predicts an even steeper spike in interest in software solutions as existing and prospective clients increasingly cotton on to the advantages of “having a logistics office in your pocket”, says the company’s general manager, Michael Henning. Since going autonomous and paperless with a new webbased application roughly a year ago, about a third of its clients have migrated to the new platform, he adds. “It makes perfect sense, as long as you have a smart phone or device that can connect to the internet.” In a recent instance, Henning recalls, an Easy Clear client managed to finalise a manifest submission from a tropical island beach in the Indian Ocean, easily filling in for a clearing clerk who couldn’t make it to the office back home. “It was really quite easy and enabled her to carry on with her holiday.” Because of the success the company has had with its digital clearing platform software, much of its attention is focused on the International Federation of Freight Forwarders’ Associations (Fiata) conference currently under way in Cape Town. Apart from being the gathering of freight forwarders on the annual cargo calendar, Henning also sees it as proof of the exponential acceleration with which 4th industrial revolution (4IR) changes are taking industry by the scruff of its neck and hurtling it towards transformation. In comparison, last year’s SA Association of Freight Forwarders’ (Saaff) conference, was characterised by industry’s indecision about 4IR and, in some respects, resistance to digital change that many feared could cause chaos if online migration wasn’t properly implemented. About a year on, and with the Fiata Conference around the corner, “digital platforms have become the focus of customs clearing around the world”. With industry having witnessed the speed and seamlessness of online clearing, Henning believes there is no more doubt that shippers are ready for it. “They want to be able to connect from anywhere with autonomous block-chain solutions that give them a secure, digital advantage over competitors.” As for immediate challenges in line with the direction innovation has taken, Henning sees headway made in the field of the online inspection process and reports in real time as the next frontier for companies seeking clever technologies. As such Easy Clear is collaborating with 3rd party digital freight surveyors, Global DFS, to revolutionise customs inspection platforms
Digital platforms have become the focus of customs clearing around the world. – Michael Henning
