MSC container shipping company and INTTRA announced a new partnership which will introduce a customer-friendly solution to new container weight safety regulations. Under the agreement, MSC will use INTTRA’s eVGM software as a channel for receiving verified gross mass (VGM) submissions from shippers.
As of July 1st, under the International Maritime Organization’s Safety of Life at Sea amendment (SOLAS VGM), no container will be cleared to be loaded onto a ship until the shipper or its designee provides a verified weight to the carrier.
In addition, MSC has joined INTTRA’s eVGM Initiative – a non-commercial group of over a dozen leading carriers, freight forwarders, and terminals. INTTRA launched the Initiative to express a preference for digital transmission of VGM and establish common technology and business process standards for it across the industry.
INTTRA says that its eVGM software which is available in two versions – for Carriers and Shippers – offers the benefits of a standardized approach, a high level of flexibility and reporting capabilities. It helps to achieve SOLAS VGM compliance in time for implementation of the amendment and reduce disruption to existing business processes. It can also facilitate transmission of VGMs from carriers to terminals – another step required before a container can be loaded – and provide the necessary audit reporting.
Source: INTTRA
