Container shipping gets digital

The Digital Container Shipping Association, a Dutch non-profit comprising nine big carriers including Maersk, MSC, Hapag-Lloyd and Yang Ming, has an agreement to standardize electronic bills of lading (eBL).

This initiative to implement a standardised electronic Bill of Lading will be a real help to manage transport and cross-border trade information. It is another example on how the industry is transforming and Global Trade 2.0 is energing.

Bills of lading are an important piece of the puzzle conferring title, confirmation of receipt, and terms & conditions for the cargo of a container ship. Unfortunately, only 1.2% of these documents were electronic in 2021.

“This is an important step in the journey towards creating a digital standard of one of the most cost heavy and troublesome components in the shipping industry. A fully digitised bill of lading enables a more seamless customer experience across the supply chain and in turn it will help democratise trade and reduce time and costs for all involved parties. The need for digitisation in logistics is urgent, and the industry needs to speed up the process.”

Vincent Clerc, CEO A.P. Moller – Maersk:

The process wasn’t exactly easy, and the pace somewhat stately (the goal is 100% compliance by 2030), but the message for supply chain leaders trying to solve problems like Scope 3 carbon accounting with industry cooperation is clear: go for it.

Source: Forbes