What is maritime logistics and why is it considered a blind spot by most commodity producers?
Maritime logistics divisions have long struggled with email overload, outsized costs, and disjointed workflows. Now, new contract types, evolving regulations, and increased competition have only added to the seaborne supply chain’s complexity and opacity.
Technology offers a ready answer, but finding the right solution to manage global marine logistics can be a challenge. Generalist platforms fail to accommodate the complexities of maritime workflows while homegrown solutions fail to deliver the innovation needed to keep pace with today’s trade. By integrating advanced tools for cost management, workflow standardization, decision support, and market visibility, a specialized marine logistics platform can bring new transparency to maritime freight divisions, empowering tonnage charterers to optimize contracts and contain costs with new agility and insight.
Top challenges for maritime transport and logistics
Rising cost pressure
Controlling costs is a perennial concern for commodity producers worldwide, especially in times of heightened market volatility and rising expenses. Demurrage costs, a major component of marine supply chain expenditures, can be significantly affected by issues such as port congestion, weather-related disruptions, and other external factors outside the control of tonnage charterers.
Incomplete visibility and information
Marine logistics divisions often struggle with information gaps and delays due to the involvement of multiple stakeholders and stages in the workflow. This issue is compounded by disparate systems across the marine logistics workflow and among maritime carriers, which impede visibility, delay insight, and fail to provide marine logistics divisions with a single source of the truth.
Multifaceted nominations considerations
The nominations process in maritime freight is inherently complex, requiring consideration of vessel availability, suitability, and cost. The process’s complexity is further exacerbated by incomplete data on vessel particulars, lack of standardized procedures, and the need to accommodate various contract types and environmental regulations.
Evolving regulations and stakeholder expectations
Decarbonization-related regulations are impacting business operations, and stakeholder expectations for sustainability in the supply chain continue to intensify. For tonnage charterers, satisfying regulatory bodies and stakeholders demands a line of sight into emissions-related data, not just during vessel nominations, but throughout the cargo’s entire journey to its destination.
How Veson addresses modern maritime logistics challenges
The Veson IMOS Platform is a unified workspace that provides global commodity producers and marine logistics divisions new visibility, control, and insight into their marine freight activity. As part of the IMOS Platform’s end-to-end maritime logistics workflow, tonnage charterers receive a robust nominations workspace, dynamic berth scheduler, cost visibility, and emissions insight. Let’s take a closer look at how Veson enables tonnage charterers.
Dynamic P&L and demurrage workspace
Containing marine supply chain costs requires a comprehensive understanding of the organization’s financial position and the associated cost impact of voyage activities. With dynamic P&L visibility, tonnage charterers can analyze the many drivers of cost and continually seek opportunities for expense reduction and optimization. Additionally, IMOS delivers a dedicated workspace for claims and demurrage management, allowing maritime logistics divisions to automatically calculate laytime, predict demurrage, and manage claims with ease.
Standardized data and validated market intelligence
Standardized, accurate insights are imperative to achieving data-driven visibility across the marine supply chain. IMOS integrates internal and external data sources into one connected solution for deeper understanding, visibility, and analysis. Furthermore, IMOS’s extensive track record of system integrations and flexible integration approach enable the maritime logistics division to operate as a specialized yet tightly integrated link in the global supply chain.
Contextual nominations workflow
With numerous stakeholders involved, it is essential that the seaborne supply chain solution meets stakeholder requirements both individually and collectively. IMOS delivers specialized tools for every stage of the marine transport and logistics workflow—from production planning to nominations, berth scheduling, post-voyage financials and analysis, and more. IMOS also fosters connectivity and streamlines information exchange between tonnage charterers and their carriers.
Integrated emissions calculations for regulatory compliance
Predicting delays, containing costs, and selecting the best possible vessels require a robust understanding of the market and its continuous fluctuations. Veson delivers deep market insight that equips tonnage charterers with the visibility they need to make informed decisions. By predicting port congestion, analyzing turnaround times, and visualizing vessel positions, Veson enables producers to optimize their supply chain operations, ensuring timely deliveries and cost efficiency. This leads to better outcomes for downstream stakeholders, end customers, and the overall bottom line.
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Here’s what we’ll share:
BLOG
5 Maritime Logistics Challenges and How to Overcome Them
INFOGRAPHIC
A Specialized Solution for the Marine Modality
BRIEF
Calling All Marine Logistics Use Cases
WEBINAR
Strengthening the Maritime Supply Chain