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Issue 3 2020 - Freight Business Journal
///FREIGHT SOFTWARE GUIDE
CDS, EU Exit and coronavirus It’s been an exceptionally busy time for the freight software industry, says Steve Bartlett, chairman of the Association of Freight Software Suppliers (AFSS) – and COVID-19 is adding a further twist.
In our introduction to last year’s FBJ Soſt ware Guide, we said that preparation for the new HMRC Customs Declaration System (CDS) and EU Exit had created the busiest year for soſt ware houses and systems providers. It feels like déjà vu, because for this year (and next) these issues continue to keep us running at full capacity. And that was before the global Coronavirus pandemic - but more on that later.
CDS For the last 18 months, most
AFSS members have been totally occupied in developing and testing their
products in preparation
for the introduction of CDS. This has required signifi cant time and eff ort in making the changes needed to their soſt ware in order to comply with the Union Customs Code (UCC), its new data sets and messages as supported by the CDS system. The CDS programme has
itself had many challenges. The frequent interruptions of EU Exit and Day 1 No Deal diverted HMRC and soſt ware developers’ resources into managing the potential systems changes required. With the fully functional CDS product available for testing in March this year, the deadline was to migrate all traders to CDS and close down the existing CHIEF system by the end of September 2020.
This was of great concern to
AFSS members and community service providers (CSPs), in terms of the time available to fully test all functionality of CDS, have soſt ware ready, and migrate hundreds of traders in six months. Acting on our concerns raised last July, credit is given to Kevin Franklin, director of HMRC Customs Transformation, for taking immediate positive action fi rst, by inviting AFSS to join the CDS Programme Board to boost trade representation and secondly, by personally chairing an ongoing Programme Board subgroup so that we now have a jointly agreed, achievable plan for the migration to CDS. The addition of BIFA representation to this
subgroup was of huge importance as the impact on the freight forwarding community, in terms of process, downstream soſt ware changes and training was factored into the jointly agreed plan. Recently,
HMRC has told
soſt ware developers that it has decided to keep CHIEF open beyond December 2020. This means that it will dually run CHIEF and CDS for longer, until all traders are migrated from CHIEF. But this doesn’t mean we will
take our foot off the pedal. Soſt ware developers must continue to work at pace to ensure their soſt ware is ready for their customers to migrate to CDS at the earliest opportunity.
EU Exit
There is no doubt that work on CDS could be severely impacted by EU Exit. The UK is in the transition phase with a hard deadline at the end of this year. As negotiations with the EU continue, the impact of system and process changes continue to emerge and are yet to be fully understood. Soſt ware developers have fi nite resources and may well need to divert attention to EU Exit once again. Coupled with this, the huge surge in expected declaration volumes means that government departments are looking at more effi cient ways of consuming data. DEFRA for example has
engaged AFSS in a project to submit data directly via soſt ware developers’ own soſt ware, rather than the current standalone user
interfaces. Traders who
may not have needed to make a customs entries before have been contacting AFSS in increasing numbers, seeking advice and soſt ware. Indeed, this opportunity has been recognised by a number of EU-based soſt ware houses, keen to provide customs entry soſt ware to clients, especially linking into CDS. AFSS welcomed two new non-UK based members this year. But it’s not all CDS and EU Exit.
AFSS members with EU customers will continue to support current EU systems. Though our affi liation
with EurTradeNet, we are kept up to date with upcoming changes. The Import Control System (ICS), for example, will become ICS2 and AFSS was able to provide members with the latest technical documentation. AFSS has also continued
to work closely within the airfreight industry
to explore
the opportunities available from the IATA ‘One Record’ initiative, replacing the current IATA Cargo XML and Cargo IMP schemes supported
by many soſt ware
houses. The ‘One Record’ system should bring the method of data distribution into the 21st Century and avoid some of those diffi culties that have prevented the electronic air waybill from achieving its full potential. AFSS is supporting the UK pilot scheme at Heathrow and has always believed it important that the UK has an opportunity to evaluate and implement ‘One Record’ at the earliest opportunity.
The COVID-19 pandemic
One cannot underestimate the eff ect of the current COVID-19 crisis. Almost all AFSS members’ offi ces are closed, with nearly all staff working from home, grappling with the challenges of managing meetings via tele- or video-conferencing. Fortunately, for AFSS members
working remotely is common practice and they have been able to adjust quickly, including some moving their entire service desk operation to be home based, so have been able to maintain their service levels to customers. Some have joked that being involved in IT and soſt ware, they have been self- isolating for years. For members with web-based solutions it will mean that their customers should be able to adjust quickly to a home working solution. Whilst the crisis has put some projects on hold, new ones have emerged in areas such as transport and last mile delivery business needs. How members’ customer bases
are being aff ected and are dealing with this is still unclear. Although most are key players in the UK’s
supply chains, many of their own customers must be struggling hugely and we can only assume that the impact will be very signifi cant for many of them. What is also unclear is the
impact on the CDS programme and EU Exit. We will continue to work closely with HMRC to fully understand and communicate any changes as a result of this.
AFSS membership
The Association of Freight Soſt ware Suppliers has welcomed two new companies within the last 12 months, bringing the total to 32. Interest in membership continues to grow as the benefi ts of being part of the Association increase year on year. Members benefi t from representation at senior Government and HMRC level, are given the opportunity by HMRC to contribute and help shape future processes and systems, as well as attend AFSS run networking events with other members. With so many changes
to regulations now having impact on soſt ware and system
Exis Technologies, headquartered in Darlington, UK, has been the leading global supplier of Hazcheck IT compliance systems for the management of dangerous goods (DG) in sea transport for over 30 years. We are the soſt ware division of the National Cargo Bureau, New York. Together our not for profi t mission is the Safety of Life and Cargo at Sea.
www.existec.com Hazcheck Systems are declared dangerous goods solutions
for every link in the sea transport chain from shippers, logistics companies, freight forwarders and ports through to ferry operators (including 90% of the UK’s ROR ferry operators) and container lines (9 of the top 10). The systems are based on the IMDG Code and help customers to
ship their DG quickly and effi ciently, automatically checking stowage, segregation and packaging requirements (without the need for the IMDG Code books). Exis also supplies sophisticated validation ‘Toolkits’ to integrate with existing computer-based systems. The toolkits can also be supplied as a web service to integrate with ERP systems for example, SAP and Oracle EBS. Additional transport regulations (ADR, RID, 49 CFR and TDG) when shipping under IMDG Code rules are available.
www.hazcheck.com In 2012 Exis developed a hazardous goods incidents database,
CINSnet, with several of the top 20 lines. Since then we have also developed: • Hazcheck Detect is a new cargo screening solution, to be offi cially
launched later in 2020, which scans all booking details for keywords, validates against rules and highlights suspicious bookings to identify misdeclared and undeclared dangerous goods (DG) and compliance cargo.
https://hazcheck.existec.com/hazcheck-systems/hazcheck-
detect.aspx • The Hazcheck Restrictions Portal was developed with several
major container line customers to help shippers share information about port DG prohibitions and restrictions. Container lines, ports and terminals are encouraged to upload their DG handling policies and restrictions into the portal free of charge to help shippers, forwarders and others involved in the movement of goods. https://hazcheck.
existec.com/hazcheck-systems/
hazcheck-restrictions.aspx • Hazcheck Inspections is a web-based database and access
portal for inspection companies to plan and enter details of cargo inspections completed on behalf of container or vessel operators.
https://hazcheck.existec.com/hazcheck-systems/hazcheck-
inspections.aspx E-learning courses for the transport industry, supported by
industry partners including TT Club, ICHCA and ITCO • IMDG Code e-learning Amendment 39-18 is an online training
solution, developed in collaboration with the International Maritime Organization, for all shore based staff involved in the handling and transport of DG by sea
www.imdge-learning.com • CTUpack e-learning is a range of courses for the safe handling
and packing of CTUs.
www.ctupack.com • Tank Container e-learning offers guidance on the safe
operation of tank containers
www.tankcontainer-elearning.com. OFFERS – 10% discount on all IMDG Code and CTUpack e-learning
developers, it is important that the views and opinions of the industry can be conveyed to those legislating the changes. Traders also benefi t by using an AFSS member as this gives assurance that the member is reliable and follows a published code of conduct. Contact details for AFSS and
member companies including links to websites can be found at
www.afss.org.uk
courses until 30 June 2020 to help people to train while working from home. Up to four free courses available to ITCO members. Contact
sales@existec.com for more details. Exis supplies free tools, including Hazcheck DGL Lite, a mobile app for those that need quick and easy access to the IMDG Code information contained in the Dangerous Goods List. It is available for iPhone and Android devices.
http://hazcheck.existec.com/hazcheck- systems/
hazcheck-dgl-lite-mobile-app.aspx
Tel: +44 (0) 1325 466672 Email:
info@existec.com Web:
www.existec.com
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