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Electronic
Payment Facilities available to Port Users (March 31,
2003)
The end of each month is always a milestone
period for an average middle-class Filipino consumer
in Metro Manila like myself. This is not due to the
fact that it's payday but rather because it is payment
time. Credit card fees, loan payments, house rentals,
mobile phone charges - these are just some of the regular
financial obligations that must be paid.
Fortunately, there are
now a number of electronic payment services and facilities
that provide convenience, security and quick access
to consumers. If you receive your salary through an
ATM payroll account, the ATM networks of BancNet, Megalink
and ExpressNet provide services that allow you to pay
most - if not all - of your monthly bills for electricity,
telephone, water utility, and credit cards.
If one is lucky or hardworking
enough to have substantial money in the bank, there
are electronic services that enable you to pay bills
through automatic debit from your account by using phone
or Internet banking.
Benefits for the
Filipino consumer.
Banks and other financial institutions refer to these
electronic payment facilities as part of consumer or
merchant retail banking services. They provide three
main benefits. One is convenience - you can pay anytime
and anywhere, whether at home, office or shopping mall,
or wherever you have physical access to an ATM machine.
Another benefit is security - no need to carry that
much cash in your wallet. Finally, real-time transaction
- no need to wait for an official receipt since payment
is immediately credited to the party you are paying
to.
This is really good
news for the Filipino consumer - but how about the customs
broker, importer or exporter who has to pay duties and
taxes to the Bureau of Customs, wharfage fee to the
Philippine Ports Authority, as well as arrastre and/or
storage charges to ATI and ICTSI?
Electronic payment
facilities for port users.
The Philippine port community started to benefit from
electronic payment solutions during the mid-1990s. Let
us briefly summarize them in the sections below.
Payment of customs
duties and taxes.
As part of its computerization program, the Bureau of
Customs implemented a system for paying import duties
& taxes through authorized agent banks (AABs) which
was developed and implemented in partnership with the
Bankers Association of the Philippines. The payment
transaction details are electronically transmitted by
the AABs to BOC through a highly secure computer link.
Once the amount paid is automatically matched with the
assessed duties and taxes, BOC computer system generates
an electronic release instruction to both ATI and ICTSI
systems. At this point, cargo charges can be paid and
the shipment released to the importer or consignee.
What is perhaps the
first web-based payment facility for customs duties
and taxes is the 1Time secure payment system of United
Coconut Planters Bank. This is currently available to
clients of e-trade.net.ph.
In this aspect, I understand
that other leading banks are currently preparing to
offer similar services. The availability of these other
facilities will be a most welcome development.
Payment of cargo
charges at MICT and South Harbor.
Insofar as payment of wharfage, arrastre and storage
charges are concerned, there are currently two Internet-based
electronic payment facilities available to port users
at MICT. One is the ePayment facility of UnionBank which
was implemented in 2001 and the most recent is UCPB
1Time system. Both of these are accessible through ICTSI's
MICT iBox facility. Payment is actually done even before
the cargo owner physically goes to MICT to claim his
shipment for release.
Port users in South
Harbor who want to use electronic payment will be glad
to know that ATI has made available cargo charges payment
using BancNet facility. All that is required is for
the consignee or his authorized customs broker to swipe
his BancNet ATM card at the machine provided for this
purpose and located beside the ATI cashier, type the
correct ATM PIN number, and payment will automatically
be credited to his arrastre/wharfage or storage invoice.
Optimizing the benefits
of electronic payment.
At this point in time, I believe that many things can
be done to fully optimize the benefits of such facilities
for the entire Philippine port community.
One of these is for
other leading banks to offer similar services just like
what UCPB and UnionBank have pioneered. In terms of
payment volume transaction alone, there are very tangible
business justifications for other banks to come into
the picture.
Another is to review
existing business procedures related to clearance of
cargo within the port and identify areas of improvement
intended to further reduce time duration for import
cargo delivery. For instance, BAP and the AABs may want
to introduce improvements to shorten processing time
between actual receipt of payment and transmittal of
payment record to BOC computer system
Finally, I look forward
to the time when payment of customs duties & taxes,
wharfage, arrastre and storage charges will be done
through a single, common electronic facility. Will someone
please come forward and make this happen?
The author has 20 years
experience in the development, project management and
implementation of IT projects in Philippine ports, transport
and logistics. He is presently an independent consultant
for IT projects and initiatives in Philippine ports
and transport industries. For comments or inquiries,
email him at leo@morada.name.
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Where
is my cargo? How Foreign Shipping Lines answer this
question? (March 17, 2003)
In the maiden issue
of this column last 03 March, I wrote about how web-based
cargo/container inquiry works and the kind of information
generally available from it. The features of ATI WebTrack
and ICTSI MICT iBox were cited as examples of how the
country's leading port operators currently implement
this kind of facility within their respective web sites.
Today, I will focus
on how foreign shipping lines implement this "track
& trace" functionality.
Basic & Straightforward
Cargo Tracking
It can be generally said that cargo tracking is always
an integral part of a shipping line's customer service.
This principle has, in fact, guided the technology strategy
on which the information content of inquiry functionalities
in some web sites are being designed and implemented.
I found numerous examples of very basic and straightforward
cargo tracing features without any frills and among
these are tracking features incorporated in the web
sites of Dongnama Lines and Yang Ming Transport Group.
The most common tracking criteria are container number,
bill of lading and booking number. However, there are
some restrictions on the extent of information that
clients can obtain when using this inquiry feature such
as only outbound cargo can be tracked and not all trade
routes are included.
"Track &
Trace" As Part of a Service "Brand"
A number of shipping lines currently implement web-based
"track & trace" as part of a distinct
"brand" of service offering. What they try
to communicate across to their client is the message
that such functionality is a new category of online
access to shipping line services.
In the China Ocean Shipping
web site, it is named simply as Cosco Online Services.
On the other hand, Maersk Sealand describes its web-based
Tracking Module as a facility that provides quick and
easy real-time online access (through the web or electronic
mail) to all container movements of cargo globally.
It allows advanced tracking (e.g., all cargo for a given
destination) in addition to tracking through one or
more specific identifiers (container number or bill
of lading). Another interesting feature is that the
customer can track both planned and actual schedule
of his shipment.
Hanjin Shipping implements
cargo tracking in its web site as part of what it distinctly
calls as HJS e-service that incorporates ship schedule,
booking, rate, shipping instruction, bill of lading
and arrival notice. Its "track & trace"
functionality consists of standard web-based tracking
(wherein the inquiry results are immediately displayed
on the computer screen), email tracking (inquiry results
are automatically transmitted to an email address specified
by the client), and mobile tracking (mobile results
are automatically transmitted to the clients personal
digital assistant or PDA).
A more enhanced implementation
of "track & trace" as part of a service
brand is found in the web site of Nippon Yusen Kaisha.
It is integrated into what it calls as e-Commerce Liner
Services that encompass vessel schedules, container
tracking, rate inquiry, booking, shipping instruction,
bill of lading processing, shipment summary, cargo tracing,
shipment detail, event notification, and exception reporting.
"Track & Trace" As Part of a Web Portal
American President Lines has gone a notch higher by
integrating tracking functionality as component of its
HomePort Web Portal that enables customers to view real-time
ship schedules, make bookings, submit & print bills
of lading, create custom reports and view account statements.
A highly interesting feature of its shipment tracking
module is that search parameter is not limited to the
common criteria of container number, bill of lading
and booking number. It allows customers to use a new
shipment tracking using references meaningful to the
business user such as purchase order and invoice number.
Event Notification
& Exception Reporting
At present, there is a very distinct trend to incorporate
event notification and exception reports (or alerts)
as part of the overall design for web-based "track
& trace" facilities. Both NYK and APL are already
implementing these.
Event notification involves
defining a list specific activities related to cargo
movements during which the customer is automatically
notified by the shipping line through email once that
activity is recorded to have occurred for his shipment.
NYK e-Commerce Liner Services lists down the following
as example of event notification criteria:
- empty container positioned to
shipper
- gate-in for export
- load to vessel
- discharge from vessel
- arrival at container yard for
delivery
- gate-out for delivery
Exception reporting
or alert enables the shipping line to automatically
notify the client through email if his shipment is early
or late based on exceptions pre-defined by the client
himself. There are basically three steps that the customer
must undertake:
1) select the exception
alerts (e.g., APL HomePort Web Portal lists some of
these as cargo origin, load port, discharge port and
cargo destination
2) define exception
criteria
- if shipment is 2 days LATE mark
as exception
- if shipment is 2 days EARLY mark
as exception
3) specify schedule
of automated email (day and time)
How About Short
Messaging Service (SMS) or Text Messaging?
Come to think of it, I am quite perplexed why there
is no publicized implementation in Philippine ports
and shipping of "track & trace" and event
notification using SMS or text messaging as of the moment.
I am certain that with substantial technology resources
at their disposal, both ATI and ICTSI would have already
successfully completed technical tests or even developed
prototypes for this kind of solution. There were even
reports last year about plans to have customs import
clearance notification transmitted to customs brokers
and cargo arrival status for EPZA locators relayed to
designated company officers using text messaging. For
now, let us give more time for the proponents of this
solution to analyze their implementation strategies
and determine the real business value this will provide
to their customers.
Overall Benefits
to the Business User
It is very important to remember at all times that web-based
(and SMS-based) "track & trace", event
notification and exception alerts constitute a new medium
of transacting business with shipping lines.
These technology solutions
are here for business users to utilize in accordance
with their own individual needs and requirements. The
web site features I mentioned above are only a small
sample of what are currently available on the web. Whether
you are an entrepreneur about to start an import/export
business or a large trading firm with a vast network
of contacts locally and abroad, there is no longer a
physical barrier that will constrain you from knowing
"where is your cargo" - anytime.
The author has 20 years
experience in the development, project management and
implementation of IT projects in Philippine ports, transport
and logistics. He is presently an independent consultant
for IT projects and initiatives in Philippine ports
and transport industries. For comments or inquiries,
email him at leo@morada.name.
Back to
Top
Where
is my cargo? (March 3, 2003)
DURING the early days
of South Harbor and the Manila International Container
Terminal, it was not unusual to see customs brokers
and importer representatives right inside the container
yard trying to look for the precise location of their
containers. This hapless situation was always the result
of inaccurate yard location data, a risk inherent in
manual-based recording systems used during those times.
Today, the technology
solutions used by port operators in graphics-based container
yard planning and instantaneous recording of container
movements through radio data terminals are of such sophistication
that container location and status are accurately determined
on a real-time basis throughout the entire duration
of stay-time within the port.
The country's leading
port operators in South Harbor and MICT have in fact
already made available through the Internet their respective
online inquiry facilities thereby enabling port users
to locate and track their shipments electronically.
These systems are called WebTrack (Asian Terminals Incorporated)
and MICT iBox (International Container Terminal Services
Incorporated).
Understanding The
Concept of Web-Based Container Inquiry Facility
Before I describe the overall features of WebTrack and
MICT iBox, let me discuss from a layman's perspective
the conceptual design behind such electronic inquiry
facility and the innovative value-added functionalities
integrated in them.
a) Track & Trace
This web-based facility is generally anchored on a core
component called "track & trace", a term
widely used in shipping and logistics services. "Track"
pertains to the current movement and location recorded
for a container. "Trace" refers to the preceding
movements recorded for the container since it first
entered the port during its current stay-time duration.
As an example, a typical
"track & trace" computer system response
to a container number search will provide the following
information:
container number: AAAA1234567
container size: 40-foot
status: full container load - import
current location: container yard position XXX222
seal number: 12345
vessel/voyage number: Shipname voyage 24N
vessel discharge: 26 Feb 2003 5:45 PM
port of origin: HongKong
For an import container,
the full range of activities recorded in a standard
terminal management system which may be inquired upon
by port users encompasses name of vessel carrier, date/time
of discharge from vessel, stack position within the
yard, customs release status, date/time loaded onto
truck, name of trucking company, and date/time of gate
exit. In the case of an export container, key activities
include date/time of gate entry, stack position within
the yard, date/time loaded onto vessel, and name of
vessel carrier.
b) Beyond "Track
& Trace"
Recent advances in technology, increased focus on customer
satisfaction and business demands for cost efficiencies
in shipping and transport have provided the impetus
for current web-based container inquiry facilities to
extend beyond the confines of "track & trace"
and integrate value-added components into the overall
system design.
Nowadays, the latest
implementations already incorporate electronic bill
presentment and electronic payment of terminal and cargo
charges.
Electronic bill presentment
is a functionality wherein the port user who inquires
on a specific container is now also able to view - through
the same web interface - an electronic copy of the invoice
for terminal and cargo charges to be paid for his shipment.
The system is always designed in such a manner that
the port user is not compelled to immediately proceed
with actual payment. If he decides to pay, the system
will automatically redirect him to an electronic payment
site (normally a third-party bank web site) where he
can make payment in various modes (credit card or automatic
debit from his bank account). Payment confirmation is
subsequently displayed on screen to inform the port
user that the applicable amount was debited from his
bank account.
ATI WebTrack System
WebTrack is the first operational component of ATI's
e-Commerce initiative and was launched in August 2000.
It provides real-time information on vessel schedules
in South Harbor and a vast range of container and non-container
cargo movement activities. There are separate inquiry
menus for shipping lines and agents, importers/exporters,
cargo consolidators, freight forwarders and customs
brokers.
For containerized cargo,
information available include road receival & delivery,
ship discharge and loading, container stuffing &
stripping, container yard inventory, import and export
list, and container dwell time. For non-containerized
cargo, they include cargo status, cargo discharge list,
truck monitoring and daily cargo delivery.
The latest functionalities
include electronic bill presentment and electronic payment
for vessel charges but these are made available only
for shipping lines and agents as of now. WebTrack is
linked with the ePayment facility of UnionBank.
Registration as WebTrack
user is free. Interested parties should contact Ms.
Jel Yulo at email address jyulo@asianterminals.com.ph.
ICTSI MICT iBox
iBox was implemented in November 2001. Its core functionalities
include CY import charges payment, CY export charges
payment, vessel schedule inquiry, container inventory
listing, container information, and truck visit information.
A standard container inquiry provides information on
container size, ISO code, reefer indicator, seal number,
damage code, container type, carrier vessel, transporter
company, and container moves listing.
Electronic bill presentment
and electronic payment of cargo charges were recently
incorporated. iBox is linked to the ePayment facilities
of UnionBank and United Coconut Planters Bank.
User registration is
free. Interested parties should contact Ms Chato Balais
(cbalais@ictsi.com), Mr Christoper Magat (cmagat@ictsi.com)
or Ms Juvy Taasan (jtaasan@ictsi.com).
Are These Web-Based
Inquiry Facilities Proving Their Worth?
Definitely yes.
I know of several shipping
lines and agents in South Harbor which rely fully on
ATI WebTrack for daily tracking of all their container
movements - discharge/load, in-yard locations, and gate
in/out. At MICT, there is now a considerable number
of port users which use both container inquiry and ePayment
facilities of UnionBank and UCPB.
Altogether, increasing
the level of awareness and actual utilization of these
web-based facilities need to be further worked on by
both port operators. At the same time, availability
of faster but cheaper Internet access from the numerous
Internet service providers (Pacific Internet, Mozcom,
Globe DSL, PLDT DSL just to name a few) will further
help facilitate wider port user acceptance.
What To Expect Next?
If you think everything ends with ePayment, you are
mistaken. The existing conceptual design of web-based
container inquiry facilities are now incorporating the
capability for SMS or text-messaging. In other words,
you can now inquire on a container through your mobile
phone by sending a text message. The response you get
is also a text message pertaining to the container's
location and status.
What makes it even more
interesting is the technology trend for "track
& trace" to likewise incorporate "event
notification". These are the so-called premium
services that now constitute the competitive edge for
web-based online facilities in ports, shipping and transport.
I will write about SMS
and "event notification" during the subsequent
issues of this column.
The author has 20 years
experience in the development, project management and
implementation of IT projects in Philippine ports, transport
and logistics. He is presently an independent consultant
for IT projects and initiatives in Philippine ports
and transport industries. For comments or inquiries,
email him at leo@morada.name.
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