Business | Shipping
Dubai e-freight initiative takes off for paper-free delivery
Dubai became the first city in the Middle East to launch the IATA e-freight initiative Thursday, and only the 14th e-freight location worldwide to deliver cargo paper-free.
- Staff Report
- Published: 23:20 November 7, 2008
Dubai: Dubai became the first city in the Middle East to launch the IATA e-freight initiative Thursday, and only the 14th e-freight location worldwide to deliver cargo paper-free.
The ground-breaking IATA e-freight initiative went "live" Thursday, and is now operational on routes between Dubai and Singapore, Hong Kong and London.
Led by Emirates airline and Dubai Customs, the Dubai IATA e-freight implementation team started work last June and delivered IATA e-freight on schedule, in a co-ordinated exercise which also involved Dnata, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, British Airways, Schenker, DHL Global Forwarding, Kuehne and Nagel, Modern Freight Company, Freightworks, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
IATA e-freight is one of five "Simplifying the Business" projects led by IATA to improve service and cut costs.
It puts in place business, technical and legal frameworks to enable airlines, freight forwarders, customs administrations, ground handling agents and governments to seamlessly exchange electronic information and e-documents instead of paper.
IATA e-freight eliminates the need to send 13 paper documents with air cargo shipments.
"The launch of IATA e-freight in Dubai takes us into a new, more efficient era for air cargo. Emirates has been one of the key supporters of this initiative, as we see clear benefits in having paper-free operations ... IATA e-freight is a revolution for a $55-billion (Dh202 billion) business that generates 12 per cent of airline revenues," said Ram Menen, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice-President of Cargo.
"Over the past 10 years Dubai Customs has been at the forefront of Dubai Government departments improving the trade supply process; working with other government departments and the private sector to facilitate faster processing of legitimate trade movement in Dubai," said Mohammad Mattar Al Merri, Executive Director for Cargo Operations of Dubai Customs.
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