GENEVA's Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) has become the first container line to adopt a standardised set of global facility codes aimed at cutting inefficiency in managing container shipments, reports IHS Media.
MSC's depots will now be identifiable with a standard nine-digit BIC Facility Code (BFC). That theoretically ends documentation and information inaccuracy around a shipment by harmonising the format of various facilities through which a container transits.
The codes were developed a year ago by the Bureau International des Containers (BIC), with assistance from the Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA), in an attempt to mirror the way worldwide airports have standardised three-digit International Air Transport Association (IATA) codes.
Such an approach relies on individual container lines to adopt the BIC format. MSC Global chief digital and information officer Andre Simha serves as DCSA's chairman and has long been a proponent of adopting such standards.
MSC said in a statement that "a standardised language brings simplicity, improves efficiency, and provides certainty for multimodal or multi-carrier transportation that allows for future growth opportunities. In day-to-day interactions, this will lead to smoother communication, increased data clarity and accuracy."
DCSA chief executive Thomas Bagge said in the statement that other DCSA participating carriers "are in the process of adopting the codes." Aside from MSC, other DCSA members are Maersk, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, Evergreen Line, HMM, Yang Ming, and Zim Integrated Shipping Services.
"The digital transformation of the container shipping industry is underway," Mr Bagge said in the statement.
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