The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) brings together the world’s largest container owners. DCSA members account for more than 70% of the world’s containerized shipping.
Created in 2019, the association aims to develop digitisation, standardisation and interoperability in the container sector through the establishment of common standards for interfaces and technical data.
On 28 January 2020, the Association published the first fruits of this work with a common set of processes, as well as data and interface standards named: DCSA Track & Trace (T&T).
Fluidify the monitoring of container transport
The Digital Container Shipping Association brings together the world’s largest container shipping companies around a promise to make container tracking more fluid by promoting data interoperability:
- MSC
- Maersk Line
- Hapag-Lloyd
- Ocean Network Express (One)
- Evergreen
- Yang Ming
- HMM
- CMA CGM
- Zim
The DCSA was born out of a clear observation: maritime transport still operates with an enormous amount of paper documents transiting between multiple parties: customs, government entities, banks, insurance companies, etc. The sector suffers from a lack of standards that prevent the exchange of information in digital form. The first obstacle to the digitisation of container tracking results from the heterogeneous data that is exchanged during the various stages of transport.
New standards for container transport available
The DCSA Track & Trace standards include an information module and an interface. The data model ensures that data definition, tracking and tracing are consistent for all users on any system. It is composed of four documents available on the DCSA website:
- Two models for building data with an information system
- A list of standardized data and messages
- An instruction manual
For shippers, these new standards will simplify the visibility of shipments with multiple carriers, allowing better planning and optimization of shipment handling activities. For shippers and freight forwarders, they will simplify the tracking of containerized shipments regardless of the marine carrier and information system used.
Why don’t you try custom shipping?
CERL is closely following these latest developments and we will not fail to keep you informed of the latest technological developments.
During the course of operations, CERL ensures a follow-up and total transparency of logistics operations thanks to our methods and tools for steering and coordination! Our teams can thus accompany you for your requests for transport by sea container with specific or non-specific goods. We also offer chartering solutions for complete ships that will meet your needs (lack of regular lines, port of origin or arrivals, bulky cargoes, etc.).
