Neutral, but fully committed

What ’WeDeclare’ does for (Swiss) customs clearance processes. The joint venture ’WeDeclare’, founded three years ago by the software developer Periplus together with the M + R Spedag Group, has seen rapid development in a short time, from the start-up stage to a firm with 60 employees. The managers expect further growth, partially also on account of Swiss foreign trade’s special situation. The ITJ went on a visit to get an impression.

Customs services are provided at practically every border in the world. The great exception is in the European Union, surrounding Switzerland, where internal borders fell in 1993. In order for Swiss exporters and importers to move their goods across national borders and into the EU as quickly and easily as possible, efficient customs clearance is required.

 

For this the M + R Spedag Group, which is based in Muttenz near Basel and whose activities date to 1928, has run a large department, “practically since forever”, as COO Benno Hägler told the ITJ during our recent visit to the company.

 

The customs division mainly took care of the forwarder’s own needs, but also handled business directly for external customers at home and abroad. Whilst some individual carriers were happy to use the services of the experienced company, other forwarders were more reluctant to make use of its services.

 

Digitalisation creates opportunities

 

In the course of the introduction of DaziT, M + R Spedag took a closer look at the process and analysed the possible uses of individual elements. “Once the various accompanying documents are digitalised,” says Hägler, who has worked in the industry since 1994, “we asked ourselves what else could be done with the information?”

 

One of the advantages of the freight forwarding business are its many repetitive tasks. These make it easier for machines to learn which individual details of a consignment’s documentation might be interesting, and then to classify them. ‘WeDeclare’ takes advantage of that.

 

The use of AI is the basic motivation of the joint venture with Periplus, whose CEO is Dominik Richner, the son of M + R CEO Daniel Richner.

 

A customer portal that goes a step further than others, and adds value, is at the heart of the offer of ‘WeDeclare’. Clients see their customs clearances digitally in front of them, with all of the documents that belong to each transaction, and have comprehensive archiving capabilities.

 

As a result of the positive feedback, ‘WeDeclare’ then invested further in developing the range of its services. In 2022 the decision was then taken to integrate ‘WeDeclare’ into the group from 2023 on, as a neutral customs specialist with more than 60 employees in 13 stations.

 

Classify first, then extract

 

With ‘WeDeclare’, AI does a lot of work for customs agents by not only classifying but also extracting data. Monitoring and approval are still carried out by a (human) specialist. It also opens up scope to process more complex processes, however – on site or digitally, for example in locations with less space.

 

The visually appealing and easy-to-use functions that ‘WeDeclare’ offers aren’t only aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises, but also address the special needs of large customers – be it on account of a large number of items in one shipment, the handling of returns or for compliance reasons. “Everyone’s welcome,” Richner says with a wink. “Our services are quite affordable too,” he adds.

 

Buried but necessary know-how

 

‘WeDeclare’ also appeals to customers outside Switzerland who exchange goods with the Alpine republic. Specific customs clearance expertise has become a bit forgotten in much of Europe, apart from at airports and seaports and along the EU’s external border.

 

Even in Switzerland itself, training youngsters to become customs declarants has become a rarity. But import and export clearance is always needed – more and more so, in fact. ‘WeDeclare’ takes complex work off importers’ and shippers’ hands in a simple way.

 

“It’s highly appreciated by users,” Richner said, adding that they’re “very impressed.” Customers’ requests can also be taken into account. Further development – in cooperation with the authorities – never ends. Each step reinforces the firm’s unique feature as a ‘digital customs services provider.’ 

 

 

 

Box

‘WeDeclare’ at a glance

• A neutral customs clearance specialist

• 13 offices in Switzerland, Germany, Austria and France

• More than 60 employees