EXPORTERS, FORWARDERS REALIZE BENEFITS OF AES

EXPORTERS, FORWARDERS REALIZE BENEFITS OF AES    Besides the technical issues of setting up a new system, exporters and forwarders say they’re generally pleased with the operational benefits of processing their shipper’s export declarations in the Automated Export System.
   AES was developed in 1995 by U.S. Customs and the Census Bureau to collect export commodity and transportation data. At first, exporters and forwarders were reluctant to use AES because of technical concerns. Many large exporters also continued to submit their export data through Census’ Automated Export Reporting Program (AERP) until it was shut down on Dec. 31.
   The agencies have since developed AES into a system that’s easier to use for by the industry while still meeting the export data requirements of the government.
   “Given the choice, AERP would win,” said Glenda Bass, an export executive with Lockheed Martin Information Systems. “However, AES is still much better than paper.”
   Lockheed Martin Information Systems estimates that it annually saves about $180,000 in export data processing costs through AES.
   Forwarders say that they’re able to ramp up on AES fairly quickly. “We thoroughly understood the AES process before we started the programming,” said Pat Fosberry of forwarder John S. James Co.
   Forwarders have also realized the benefit of AES when attracting exporter clients. “It’s so great when we hear from new customers and they ask if we’re on AES,” said Tracy Rodriguez of Eagle Global, which started international forwarding operations two years ago. “We can say ‘yes.'”