Keep calm and digitalise
In conversation with Amar More, president and CEO of Kale Info Solutions. There’s not much time left. By 1 January 2024 every port has to implement the International Maritime Organization’s ’Maritime Single Window’ mandate. ITJ editor Andreas Haug recently talked to the head of an international logistics IT services provider.
The year’s drawing to a close, Amar More, but some ports still have a lot to do. What’s going on?
According to Kale’s readiness survey of 200 ports published in October, 30% aren’t ready to adopt the ‘Maritime Single Window’ mandate (MSW) as stipulated by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
Kale has developed such a platform for the various logistics services providers operating in a port. In November a whole country, namely Malaysia, introduced a national MSW based on Kale software. [See ITJ Daily of 24 November 2023.]
I think I can safely say that our ‘Codex’ system is one of the best port community systems (PCS) in the market. It was recognised as such when it won a ‘Trade Facilitation Innovation Award’ from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Unescap) in 2019.
What does your product have that makes such a difference?
Using our software reduces the time consignments have to spend with each of the players in and around a maritime port by as much as 75%.
As far as the cost savings aspect is concerned, let me give you an example. In India, exporters sometimes had to wait up to six months for their tax refunds. After the launch of our platform, these funds were available the very next day.
The MSW is a continuation of a PCS. What advice can you give ports that won’t become IMO-compliant by the deadline?
Keep calm and digitalise. Our platform is a ‘saas’. It doesn’t require a large investment and is financed on a fee basis.
Who are Kale’s solutions aimed at?
In addition to the maritime sector we have software for airfreight and for railfreight too, with the UK’s Freightliner amongst our customers.
How are you positioned?
We’re digitalising 106 airports in no less than 36 countries with our ‘Cargo Warehouse Management System’ or our ‘Cargo Community System’. The platform we’ve developed for airports really covers the supply chain end to end. Our comprehensive approach is unrivalled.
We’re lucky to chat face to face, with the world becoming ever more digital. How does this affect your activities?
We can’t complain. We were very busy in the pandemic; it really accelerated the digitalisation of airfreight. There are regions, especially in Asia, that are particularly advanced. The maritime transport authorities are more energetic. Maritime community systems have been around since the 1970s. I believe that the International Civil Aviation Organization (Icao) should establish a mandate similar to the IMO’s.