THE FREIGHT industry has come a long way since the days of manual documentation, says Diane Badenhorst of Birkart Globistics.
Computers and other electronic devices have become an integral part of all the functions of the forwarders, she said.
With the rapid expansion of the internet and technological development, the idea of a virtual office is also a reality. This means that companies with offices all over the globe can now function as one large virtual office. Data collected as part of freight movements is available to all company employees of this virtual office. There will be no more duplication of data and this will ensure a high accuracy level, she said.
Cellular telephones, laptop computers and desktop computers keep employees in constant contact with their offices - virtual or actual - and also with their clients. Electronic mail has overtaken faxes as an important communication medium and is not a luxury anymore. E-mail can be received on your cellular telephones and PDS personal digital assistants when you are not in the office, which means no more excuses for not providing effective and efficient service, she said.
Tracking and tracing of shipments is also seen as a basic service and not a service that provides the company with a competitive advantage. Centralised computers and applications in the virtual office make the capturing of shipment data for tracking and tracing an automatic process without any user intervention.
Satellites orbiting the earth can keep a close watch on every movement of a vessel aircraft or even a single parcel as it moves, she added. The item to be tracked can be fitted with transponders and receivers that can broadcast their positions to the satellites. Action can be taken in time to prevent disaster and loss of shipments.
Science fiction is becoming a reality where connections to other computer systems will be instantaneous and humans will play a lesser role in the movement of freight, said Badenhorst.
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