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GSCW chat recap: Could smart containers revolutionize maritime security?

‘Extremely advanced battery technology’ gives smart containers competitive edge, Fletcher says

This fireside chat recap is from Day 7 of FreightWaves’ Global Supply Chain Week. Day 7 focuses on global maritime.

FIRESIDE CHAT TOPIC: The next revolution in containerization: How a smart container can improve maritime transportation

DETAILS: While the widespread adoption of e-commerce has changed our everyday lives in 2020, the oceangoing container hasn’t changed much since its introduction in the 1970s. That may be changing. Rebecca Fenneman, principal at Jeffrey/Fenneman Law + Strategy PLLC, chats with Charlie Fletcher about the development of a global secure container and its potential impacts on container shipping.

SPEAKER: Charlie Fletcher, president and CEO at Fletcher Consulting


BIO: Fletcher has more than 40 years of experience in transportation and supply chain optimization, corporate recovery, mergers and acquisition, information systems development, and command center management. Fletcher has military experience in transportation and logistics programs and worked for Boeing, Alion Science and Technology, McLane Advanced Technologies, the Wounded Warrior Project, and NATO before founding Fletcher Consulting.

KEY QUOTES FROM FLETCHER

“Although it was originally intended to be a way to improve security at the ports, … it [the smart container] has become a building block in the solution to a much broader integration of a single package that has both information and cargo security in one.”

“The fact that it has extremely advanced battery technology means that it can report at whatever interval and at longer intervals or longer periods of time for battery life than any standard or any container that’s on the market today.”

“We have an active dialogue with Customs and Border Protection to demonstrate how this container could be fast-tracked in a way that exceeds the fast-tracking that we see today through Customs and Border Protection.”

Click here for more FreightWaves articles by Alyssa Sporrer.

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Alyssa Sporrer

Alyssa is a staff writer at FreightWaves, covering sustainability news in the freight and supply chain industry, from low-carbon fuels to social sustainability, emissions & more. She graduated from Iowa State University with a double major in Marketing and Environmental Studies. She is passionate about all things environmental and enjoys outdoor activities such as skiing, ultimate frisbee, hiking, and soccer.