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A new IT project designed to streamline the shortsea logistics chain has won almost Euro 2 million in funding from the EU’s Marco Polo programme, with project leaders saying they are now ‘firmly underway’.
The Shortsea XML project aims to develop a series of standardised forms to reduce the financial and administrative overhead of distributing core information. The forms will cover the mainstay processes of scheduling, booking, operations and invoicing, and it is hoped that standards will also make statutory reporting to shore authorities much easier.
“Shortsea XML comprises 28 participants from seven European countries, including SMDG, Softship, Port of Rotterdam, Kingfisher, Samskip, Norwegian Coastal Directorate and the European Transport Logistics Institute. The project is being run on an operational basis by NorStella.
“There has long been an issue with the transfer of information within a shortsea-based logistics chain,” said Arild Haraldsen, managing director of NorStella.
“Many parties are exchanging the same information many times, but often in different formats. Data is re-sent and re-typed wasting valuable resources, increasing errors and adding to the financial overhead.”
“Shortsea XML is taking modern, but freely available technology to create a series of standard forms containing all relevant information to operate a door-to-door service. These forms can be exchanged seamlessly between parties and data can be input direct to internal systems.”
“Mr Haraldsen also said that a specialist translation hub will be made available to help those companies whose internal systems demand a slightly different format to take advantage of the system.
Funding from the EU covers 50 per cent of the total project costs, the remainder being contributed by the project participants. At the end of the two-year project period it is hoped that a set of standardised forms will have been created and implemented in a range of shortsea-based logistics chains and the project will have been widely promoted throughout Europe.
Standard formats for each form will be made available without charge and discussions are underway to ensure the standard is maintained once the project is completed.
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