COSCO to use CargoSmart visibility, analytics tools

The Chinese container line has a history of using CargoSmart’s operational tools, but this new engagement will focus on customer-facing tools and network optimization.    The global shipment management software provider CargoSmart said Tuesday that COSCO Container Lines has begun to implement the company’s browser-based customer service and ocean carrier analytics solutions.
   The customer-facing solutions give COSCO documentation and visibility tools for its customers to manage their shipments online, while the carrier operations solutions help the company to optimize their vessel operations using predictive analytics from CargoSmart’s global vessel and route data to improve planning, marine operations, and cost savings.
   COSCO will be using CargoSmart’s private label solution for ocean carriers for its public website. The enhanced website will give COSCO’s customers an integrated process flow for online booking requests and shipping instructions, cargo tracking, exception management, reports, document sharing, and customer support chat.
   COSCO is also subscribing to carrier operations solutions that use CargoSmart’s Global Vessel Voyage Monitoring Center (GVVMC). CargoSmart monitors sea traffic metrics, covering 90 perent of the world’s ocean container traffic.
   The company previously used CargoSmart’s Integrated Regional Information System-2 (IRIS-2) as its operational backbone system.
   It’s not immediately clear how a potential merger between COSCO and fellow state-owned ocean carrier China Shipping would impact COSCO’s use of CargoSmart’s systems. The two lines indicated in December that they would be focused on systems and business process integration in early 2016.