AsiaPorts and LogisticsTech

PSA makes bold vessel arrival claims with latest investment

PSA unboXed, the start-up investor subsidiary of terminal operator PSA International, has invested in and partnered with global real-time supply chain visibility provider Roambee to co-create a verifiable item-level, multimodal full container load (FCL)/less than container load (LCL) visibility solution and ocean milestone standard backed by first-hand sensor and port operations intelligence.

The approach is different from today’s purely crowdsourced carrier, electronic logging devices (ELD), and shipping line automatic identification system (AIS) visibility aggregation as it fuses the physical and digital aspects of ocean cargo from end to end, including first mile, at port, on vessel, and last mile.

PSA claimed today its partnership with Silicon Valley-based Roambee has the potential to result in 70% better ETA predictions, 90%+ cold chain compliance, as well as orchestrating timely intervention on exceptions in multimodal transport.

“Similar to the International Air Transport Association (IATA)’s Cargo IQ for air cargo, Roambee, combined with PSA’s worldwide port operations intelligence and ocean freight expertise, will be able to co-create a visibility-driven milestone standard for ocean cargo in addition to delivering real-time, item-level location and condition for logistics automation,” PSA stated in a release.

Speaking about this strategic investment, Sanjay Sharma, CEO of Roambee, said, “The ocean visibility space’s recent consolidations have still left the core aspect of verifiable visibility unaddressed. Overall, carrier data integrations focus on orders and not whether the actual FCL or LCL affirmatively completed a milestone or experienced physical excursions. With PSA’s support, Roambee will fulfill this crucial need with its immersive location-aware platform, purpose-built sensor technology, and first-hand knowledge of container movement within port operations.”

Elton Fong, vice president of PSA unboXed, said, “PSA’s ambition is to visualise end to end cargo flows to improve our supply chain orchestration capabilities. Roambee’s real-time visibility combined with our CALISTA digital platform will enable verifiable, data-driven orchestration of the physical, regulatory, and financial flows for cargo owners.”

With pre-trained AI & ML-powered models that Roambee acquired through its Arnekt AI acquisition, shippers can access accurate signals to verify a variety of variables about their shipment. These include whether an FCL/LCL made it on a vessel, if the temperature/humidity is congenial, if it was loaded onto the right vessel, if the container is secure, or if it is definitively in a customs clearance queue.

Sam Chambers

Starting out with the Informa Group in 2000 in Hong Kong, Sam Chambers became editor of Maritime Asia magazine as well as East Asia Editor for the world’s oldest newspaper, Lloyd’s List. In 2005 he pursued a freelance career and wrote for a variety of titles including taking on the role of Asia Editor at Seatrade magazine and China correspondent for Supply Chain Asia. His work has also appeared in The Economist, The New York Times, The Sunday Times and The International Herald Tribune.
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