Software package offers specialised roadfreight functionality

Roadfreight has long been considered the “Cinderella” module of most freight management systems, according to J-L Koekemoer, systems architect and developer at Ship-Shape Software. “But for us at Ship-Shape that is definitely not the case,” he told FTW. “With our specialised roadfreightoriented functionality such as estimates, consolidations, certificates of origin, preparing road consignment notes and manifests, managing roadgoing shipments has become an absolute pleasure for our clients.” The cross-border transport brigade also gets a good deal from the software system – with over-border delays a thing of the past for Ship- Shape users. “Direct electronic data interchange (EDI) submissions of over-border customs documentation means no more unnecessary delays at the border posts,” Koekemoer said, “with the added benefit of being able to track any shipment simply by entering a road manifest number or a client reference number.” Koekemoer and his software design team have also come up with some other tricks of the trade, which, he told FTW, are meant to make business life easier for his software users. “With powerful yet easy-touse filtering and reporting at your fingertips, finding the right information is an absolute breeze,” he said. “For instance, instead of having to draw and print a whole report first, you might be interested in quickly viewing all the roadfreight shipments that a particular exporter has shipped to Blantyre in Malawi for the past two months. By simply applying a filter to your shipment register, you have immediate access to the actual files, not just a printed document. “Which of these shipments have not yet been invoiced? No problem, simply add the ‘un-invoiced’ option to your filter and voila!” In Koekemoer’s book, it is hard to stay on top of new developments in the ever-changing world of technology without a trusted systems provider. “To fill such a role,” he said, “we are dedicated to our clients’ needs and spare no effort in resolving systemrelated issues. He is also a dedicated fan of the internet – a system that he describes as “a communications marvel”. “With the level of maturity the internet has reached in the past three or four years, coupled with more accessible broadband connections, support turn-around time has been drastically reduced,” he said. “We are now able to troubleshoot a remote site in real-time over the ‘net, as well as ensure that critical updates are distributed and applied instantaneously across our entire client-base.”