- Objective: To enhance container supply chain security
- Approach: Employ new security techniques to minimise risk in commercial shipments
- Results: Best practices to be recommended for implementation within supply chain systems
Background
Operation Safe Commerce (OSC) is a collaborative effort between the US Government, private business and the maritime industry, to develop and share best practices for the safe and expeditious movement of containerized cargo.
New technologies and initiatives are being implemented in selected global supply chains. These are aimed at improving security during the process of stuffing and deconsolidating containers, physically securing and monitoring containers for transportation, and exchanging timely and reliable communication.
Phase II of OSC consisted of 18 projects designed to improve container supply chain security. More specifically, the project identified and implemented commercially viable business processes, technologies and initiatives to protect commercial shipments from threats of terrorist attack, weapons of mass destruction, smuggling and contraband, while minimizing the economic impact on the transportation system. This project analyzed existing practices and tested security techniques in an operational intermodal transport environment.
Inspections, data collection and transmission activities were performed as follows:
- New security techniques for inspecting goods at point of origin;
- Independent verification of the integrity and electronic tracking of the container and data throughout the supply chain;
- Transmission of secure electronic data to a data clearing house.
Cotecna takes a strategic role in OSC once again
Cotecna participated in seven of the 18 selected pilot projects of Phase II and has recently been invited to participate in OSC Phase III.
References
United States Department of Homeland Security
Transport Security Administration
Customs Border Protection
Port of Seattle / Tacoma
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Port of Los Angeles / Long Beach