GT NEXUS SIGNS WITH MTS, LG ELECTRONICS FOR PRIVATE NETWORKS

GT NEXUS SIGNS WITH MTS, LG ELECTRONICS FOR PRIVATE NETWORKS    GT Nexus, the container shipping portal, has signed contracts with Seoul, Korea-based LG Electronics and the North American unit of Japanese trading giant Marubeni Group to provide private logistics networks.
   Alameda, Calif.-based GT Nexus' deal with Marubeni Transport Service Corp., the North American transportation and logistics management unit of Marubeni Group, will integrate all of MTS's ocean carriers into a single neutral platform for shipment management and customer information services. MTS will be able to consolidate and centralize shipment information from multiple carriers.
   MTS said its contract with GT Nexus is part of a larger strategic e-commerce initiate to improve its logistics processes with supply chain and transportation management technologies, said Satoshi Yamamoto, MTS president.
   Under GT Nexus' contract with LG Electronics, a $13-billion global electronics, information and communications company, the portal will build and operate a private logistics network, connecting LG Electronics' 69 worldwide subsidiaries with their global transportation providers. GT Nexus software, hosted on the network, will provide connectivity, integration, data standardization and management and global shipping information.
   Young Min You, vice president and chief information officer for LG Electronics, formerly GoldStar, said the company has deployed a Web-based order tracking system, which complements the GT Nexus technology.
   GT Nexus' new business follows the announcement in May of a contract with The Home Depot.