SECURING PORTS: TECHNOLOGY MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE

A new project sponsored by the US Federal Government’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) could make a big difference across sea ports, dry ports and
manufacturing Free Trade Zones, plus across different geographies, traversing from landlocked locations to ports, in East Africa and in Asia.

The aim is simply to expedite customs clearance and enhance trade facilitation. Sounds simple in theory, but in reality, these things never are. The objective is part of an initiative focused on the “Internet of Things” (IoT).

These types of emerging technologies involve connecting smart devices and systems – in diverse sectors such as transportation, energy, manufacturing, and healthcare – in
fundamentally new ways.

IOT technologies are enabling ports, cities and shippers to improve services, promote economic growth, and enhance the quality of life. As many of today’s IOT initiatives and
deployments are isolated and customised projects, NIST launched the Global City Teams Challenge (GCTC) to encourage collaboration and the development of standards.

GCTC’s long-term goal is “to establish and demonstrate replicable, scalable, and sustainable models for incubation and deployment of interoperable, standard-based solutions using advanced technologies such as IOT and demonstrate their measurable benefits in communities and cities.” NIST is working closely with many companies and governments, including with U.S. Federal Government’s Department of Homeland Security, and their Science and Technology Directorate.

The new solution which is being developed in this GCTC project is integrated – working across technology stacks, including end-devices, platforms and analytics. The initiative involves a wide variety of participants – port security officials, field enforcement officials working at ports and borders, customs officials, software application developers, telecom
service providers, shippers and consignees.

The project aims to take on one big challenge, namely the system of manual checks and clearances of cargoes at multiple check-points. These methods are time-consuming
and laborious. They are error-prone due to multiple hand-offs and result in uncertainty in goods delivery schedules. They also cause congestion, impeding overall traffic flow and helping pollution to increase.

The key focus is on a primary solution of an electronic cargo tacking system. In that new system, the stakeholders have visibility of the status and location of cargo. Furthermore, they can be notified of exceptions for immediate action by field enforcement.

With a Customs-accredited tracking device, the cargo can flexibly move to its declared destination via an optimal route, and in a secure manner.

In order for the implementation of this solution to succeed, there are some major requirements. Firstly, there must be a customs mandate on electronic cargo tracking and accreditation of tracking devices and solutions, including integration with customs systems.

Customs enforcement must be able to undergo a “process re-engineering”, which is another way of saying an “organization restructuring”. This entails buy-in from such key stakeholders as transport firms and logistics companies, shippers, etc. Accredited vendors must be ready and willing to set up device depots and monitoring control centres.

The project’s Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and measurement methods include a reduction in the number of days for cargo customs clearance, of between 50% to 80%. This would represent a major improvement in the efficiency of cargo customs clearance measuring somewhere between two-fold and five-fold. Reductions are also measured in transhipment time between bonded areas, from the original days and hours, to less than half an hour.

Efficiency improvements and cycle-time reductions are computed based on data from two sources:

– Current baseline statistics as per customs, shippers or their proxies – such as logistics providers.
– Post-implementation lead times from electronic cargo tracking system.

The project’s racking device complies with international standards for ruggedness – and in particular with ISO17712 for high security seal, IP65.

The solution (covering middleware, user interface and enddevice) was originally deployed in Kenya and has since been replicated in Indonesia, Thailand and Tanzania. It is being scaled further in the Philippines, Vietnam, Panama and Brazil. This electronic cargo tracking system has been in use since 2012 in Asia and East Africa.

Some of these deployments have been in use for more than five years, which many consider to be a testament to their sustainability. The project’s security module is embedded in the device’s firmware. The device’s middleware verifies the authenticity of devices reporting to it.

Proprietary and open encryption standards/algorithms (such as AES256) are applied in the module and the middleware. At the application layer, devices which have not been associated to legitimate trips are ignored.

The trade facilitation impacts of this solution are numerous. Consignees can receive goods on a timely basis. This means fewer idling production lines, higher velocity of sales, greater predictability, which in turn leads to higher productivity and better use of resources. In brief, ports and cities can run more efficiently.

By effectively preventing tax leakage, customs officials can maximise tax revenue without increasing staff. The solution offers visibility and assurance to private sector shippers and consignees, which means they can achieve the outcomes they desire for time critical sensitive and perishable goods.