Global container carriers CMA CGM and MSC MediterraneanShipping Company (MSC) have announced on Tuesday that they will be joiningTradeLens, a digital shipping platform that uses blockchain to record all shippingdata, enabling a more efficient and secure exchange of information and providinggreater transparency across the supply chain.
In addition to being able to contribute and view data on theplatform, CMA CGM and MSC will operate a blockchain node, participate inconsensus to validate transactions, host data, and assume the role ofvalidators for the network. The two companies will also be on the TradeLensAdvisory Board which will advise on standards for neutrality and openness.
Through an agreement, they have committed to bringingTradeLens directly to their own customers and partners and build newcomplementary services on top of the platform.
“Digital collaboration is a key to the evolution of thecontainer shipping industry,” said Andre Simha, chief digital and informationofficer at MSC. “The TradeLens platform has enormous potential to spur theindustry to digitize the supply chain and build collaboration around commonstandards.”
Launched last year by Danish shipping conglomerate Maersk andIBM, TradeLens is a digital platform that provides businesses and authoritiesalong the supply chain, including shippers, freight forwarders, inlandtransportation, ports and terminals, ocean carriers, and customs, with a single,secure source of shipping information.
Participants in the network can track, store and sharesupply chain data, including shipping milestones, cargo details, tradedocuments, the structured data embedded in trade documents, customs filings,Internet-of-Things (IoT) data from sensor readings, and more.
The ecosystem includes an application and services layer whichprovides an open marketplace that allows both TradeLens and third-parties topublish services atop of the platform.
With CMA CGM and MSC joining in, TradeLens says data fornearly half of the world’s ocean container cargo, which accounts for 90% ofgoods in global trade, will be available on the platform. TradeLens claims morethan 100 members of the shipping supply have signed on to join theblockchain-based platform since its inception, and says that over ten milliondiscrete shipping events and thousands of documents are being processed throughthe network each week.
Procter & Gamble (P&G), one of the world’s topimporters of raw materials, is amongst the cargo owners on the TradeLens network.
“P&G ships a significant volume of ocean containersevery year. Whether filled with our products or the materials used in production,understanding the status of our containers helps us manage an efficient supplychain,” said Michelle Eggers, director global logistics purchases at P&G.
“We are convinced that the industry will benefit from the transparency and accuracy of blockchain solutions and we are pleased to see MSC, CMA CGM, and Maersk all on the TradeLens platform. We have been testing TradeLens for the P&G business and see potential as the solution scales.”
Other participants in the networks include customs agencies includingthe US Customs and Border Protection, Canada Border Services Agency and theCustoms Administration of the Netherlands.
RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR
LVMH, Microsoft and ConsenSys Announce Blockchain Consortium AURA
Over 100 Organizations Team Up With WEF To Accelerate Blockchain Adoption For Supply Chains
