Shipper survey seeks C-TPAT improvements

Shipper survey seeks C-TPAT improvements    Shippers generally support the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism but complain that the voluntary supply chain security program lacks resources and training, and focuses too much on large retailers, according to a survey of shippers conducted by the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas.
   The survey is part of a broader study on international port and supply chain security prepared by the school for the Congressional Research Service.
   The school surveyed 44 companies that belong to the National Industrial Transportation League, 80 percent of which are C-TPAT members.
   The companies said the program is not adequately funded and that auditors that check their supply chain security practices need better skills to understand logistics processes. U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which manages the program, was faulted for being highly bureaucratic and slow to validate companies so they can receive program benefits.
   Under C-TPAT, importers who show that they and their suppliers have implemented good security controls can avoid most security inspections that can delay their shipments at the port of entry.
   CBP now has 125 validators and expects to reach its goal of 158 specialists within weeks after a stepped up hiring program, according to agency officials.
   Respondents also complained that C-TPAT is not flexible enough because security prescriptions are weighted toward large retailers who ship by containers, with less concern about how smaller shippers or those who ship bulk products can comply with the program’s requirements. The NIT League has raised these concerns on its own in the past.
   Some companies expressed the need to mandate some elements of C-TPAT and that it should be open to all international traders. Currently only a select few international manufacturers in North America have been invited to participate in the program.
   Port security legislation being considered by Congress includes provisions endorsing CBP’s C-TPAT work and provides some extra resources and instructions for improvements to the program.