Damco, a global provider of innovative freight forwarding and supply chain management services, is to showcase its pioneering new Customs House Brokerage (CHB) app to the international media at a Microsoft event on Wednesday 26th of April. Currently, there is an opportunity to accelerate digital maturity in shipping. To help tackle this, Damco is working on a range of digital solutions to bring the industry into the modern age. One such example is the CHB app, where Damco has joined forces with Microsoft to create a solution which aims to smoothline the import process by helping customers manage the customs clearance process for different countries. By cutting through these complicated regulations, the app helps lead to less delays and therefore reduced costs for customers. Using data from carriers, government agencies and CHB operations, the app gives customers the ability to access and monitor customs clearance processes and manage by exception. It allows better compliance controls, less delays at the time of importation and the ability to monitor urgent shipments. Upstream data management provides customers with the ability to have less touch points and resolve issues early in the process. Downstream benefits include increased clearance performance, leading to less supply chain delays. Damco’s parent company Maersk will also be showcasing its own digital products, developed in collaboration with Microsoft, at the event. By using the wide array of data available, Maersk is working on creating a digital market place – an “appstore” – for digital products and services that enable cargo visibility and ease of business for its customers. Johanna Hainz, Global Head of Supply Chain Management at Damco International B.V., said: “This is a great opportunity for us, together with Maersk, to showcase our work in New York in front of the world’s media. Our CHB app is just one of the smart digital solutions we have developed to help transform and modernise the shipping industry, and we are proud to have worked with Microsoft on what we believe is the most innovative user interface in the market to date.” Hainz continued, “With over 25 years of providing innovative supply chain solutions for our clients, Damco is well placed to help modernise the shipping industry and be the mastermind of the development of digital supply chain solutions. We are at the forefront of coming up with innovative ideas to drive digital transformation.”