COPENHAGEN, Denmark and ARMONK,
New York, May 28, 2019
/PRNewswire/ -- Global container carriers CMA CGM and MSC
Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) today announced they will join
TradeLens (www.tradelens.com), a blockchain-enabled digital
shipping platform, jointly developed by A.P. Moller - Maersk
(MAERSKb.CO) and IBM (NYSE: IBM).
With CMA CGM, MSC, Maersk, and other carriers committed to the
platform, data for nearly half of the world's ocean container cargo
will be available on TradeLens. The addition of CMA CGM and MSC
will provide a significant boost to the TradeLens vision of greater
trust, transparency, and collaboration across supply chains to help
promote global trade. The companies will promote TradeLens and
create complementary services on top of the platform for their
customers and partners.
"Digitization is a cornerstone of the CMA CGM Group's strategy
to provide an end-to-end offer tailored to our customers' needs. We
believe that TradeLens, with its commitment to open standards and
open governance, is a key platform to help usher in this digital
transformation," said Rajesh
Krishnamurthy, Executive Vice President, IT &
Transformations, CMA CGM Group. "TradeLens' network is already
showing that participants from across the supply chain ecosystem
can derive significant value."
"Digital collaboration is a key to the evolution of the
container shipping industry. The TradeLens platform has enormous
potential to spur the industry to digitize the supply chain and
build collaboration around common standards," said André Simha,
Chief Digital & Information Officer, MSC. "We think that the
TradeLens Advisory Board, as well as standards bodies such as the
Digital Container Shipping Association, will help accelerate that
effort."
TradeLens enables participants to connect, share information and
collaborate across the shipping supply chain ecosystem. Members
gain a comprehensive view of their data and can digitally
collaborate as cargo moves around the world, helping create a
transparent, secured, immutable record of transactions.
The attributes of blockchain technology are ideally suited to
large networks of disparate partners. Blockchain establishes a
shared, immutable record of all the transactions that take place
within a network and enables permissioned parties access to trusted
data in real time.
With more than 100 participants on the platform today, TradeLens
is already processing over ten million discrete shipping events and
thousands of documents each week, providing shippers, carriers,
freight forwarders, customs officials, port authorities, inland
transportation providers, and others a common view of transactions,
which can build trust. A commitment to data ownership rights and
permissioned access to data helps ensure privacy and
confidentiality while enabling users to collaborate more
efficiently with real-time access to shipping data.
"The major advances IBM continues to make in blockchain
illustrate that the technology is fostering new business models and
playing an important role in how the world works" said Bridget van Kralingen, Senior Vice President,
Global Industries, Clients, Platforms & Blockchain, IBM. "More
than a hundred participants have put their trust in the TradeLens
network and are gaining greater transparency and simplicity in the
movement of goods. Together we are advancing a shared aim to
modernize the world's trading ecosystems."
CMA CGM and MSC to Play an Important Role in the TradeLens
Network
CMA CGM and MSC will operate a blockchain node,
participate in consensus to validate transactions, host data, and
assume the critical role of acting as Trust Anchors, or validators,
for the network. CMA CGM and MSC will be on the TradeLens Advisory
Board which will include members across the supply chain to advise
on standards for neutrality and openness.
Supporting the Entire Shipping Supply
Chain
"While carrier participation is critical, it is
important to note that the TradeLens platform relies on
participation from across the entire supply chain ecosystem," said
Vincent Clerc, Chief Commercial
Officer, A.P. Moller - Maersk.
"Increasing ease of doing business for our customers and providing
visibility across the container journey is at the center of the
Maersk strategy. And TradeLens is all about that in its aim to
transform the supply chain industry and provide value to all
players, from freight forwarders, to ports and terminal operators
and inland transportation providers, to customs and other
governmental agencies, and ultimately to the customers
themselves."
Beneficial cargo owners like Procter and Gamble will benefit
from the addition of more carriers onto the platform. "P&G
ships a significant volume of ocean containers every year. Whether
filled with our products or the materials used in production,
understanding the status of our containers helps us manage an
efficient supply chain. We are convinced that the industry will
benefit from the transparency and accuracy of blockchain solutions
and we are pleased to see MSC, CMA CGM, and Maersk all on the
TradeLens platform. We have been testing TradeLens for the P&G
business and see potential as the solution scales. We look
forward to industry-wide adoption to benefit all network members,"
said Michelle Eggers, Director
Global Logistics Purchases, P&G.
About CMA CGM
Led by Rodolphe Saadé, the CMA CGM Group
is a world leader in shipping and logistics.
Its 509 vessels serve more than 420 ports on five continents around
the world and carried nearly 21 million TEUs (twenty-foot
equivalent units) in 2018. With CEVA, a world leader in logistics
services, CMA CGM handled more than 500,000 tons of airfreight and
1.9 million tons of inland freight in 2018. CMA CGM is enjoying
sustained growth and is constantly innovating to offer customers
new maritime, inland and logistics solutions.
Present on every continent and in 160 countries through its network
of 755 offices and 750 warehouses, the Group employs 110,000 people
worldwide, of which 2,400 in Marseille where its head office is located.
www.cmacgm-group.com
About MSC
MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A. is a
global leader in transportation and logistics, privately owned and
founded in 1970 by Gianluigi Aponte.
As one of the world's leading container shipping lines, MSC
operates 480 offices across 155 countries worldwide with over
70,000 employees. With access to an integrated network of road,
rail and sea transport resources which stretches across the globe,
the company prides itself on delivering global service with local
knowledge. MSC's shipping line sails on more than 200 trade routes,
calling at over 500 ports.
www.msc.com
About TradeLens
The TradeLens platform has been
jointly developed by Maersk and IBM. TradeLens is an open and
neutral industry platform underpinned by blockchain technology,
supported by major players across the global shipping industry. The
platform promotes the efficient, transparent and secure exchange of
information in order to foster greater collaboration and trust
across the global supply chain.
www.tradelens.com
Contacts:
CMA CGM
media@cma-cgm.com
IBM
Holli Haswell
hhaswell@us.ibm.com
+1 720- 396-5485
Maersk
Mikkel Linnet
Mikkel.Elbek.Linnet@maersk.com
+45 3363 8515
MSC
media@msc.com
Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/893277/1.jpg
Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/95470/ibm_logo.jpg