AES VESSEL TRANSPORTATION MODULE ROLL-OUT SET FOR JUNE 1

AES VESSEL TRANSPORTATION MODULE ROLL-OUT SET FOR JUNE 1    U.S. Customs will give ocean carriers nationwide the ability to transmit paperless outbound manifests through the government's Automated Export System on June 1.
   The agency began developing its AES vessel transportation module in 1999. A 'limited release' of the system was conducted last July at the Port of Charleston, S.C., but a glitch in the agency's computer system put the module's implementation on hold. The agency has since fixed the problems.
   To participate, carriers have to successfully complete the Vessel Transportation Certification Test in AES. Five carriers are ready to begin filing their outbound manifests through the module on June 1: P&O Nedlloyd, Hapag-Lloyd, OOCL, Lykes Lines and TMM.
   Here's how the module works: Carriers will file all known bookings for a manifest through the module 72 hours before vessel departure. After that time booking information will be sent as it is received. Also during this time, carriers must send a receipt of goods when the cargo hits the piers and a message when the vessel departs. The final vessel manifest is due to the agency 10 days after vessel departure.
   'We'll receive a much more complete and accurate manifest than we do under the (paper-based) four-day manifest filing requirement,' said Dean Groseclose, program officer for Customs outbound programs, to a group of carrier executives in Washington Thursday.
   Customs uses transportation data to know when goods are leaving the country. The module also saves Customs inspectors many hours of having to sift through paper export documents at carrier offices.
   The agency has trained its port inspectors about how the vessel transportation module works. Training sessions were recently held at Newark, N.J.; New Orleans; and San Francisco. 'We have our field (staff) all ready to go,' Groseclose said.
   By the end of the year, Customs hopes to have as many as 15 ocean carriers using the AES vessel transportation module.