Because our TRIS Cloud solution (in cooperation with our technology partner Oracle) is comparable to Fort Knox. It has to be if the CIA is one of your customers.

Tony Vertenten, Intris CTO: “Oracle simply cannot afford to be hacked. They’ve invested huge amounts in security and our customers can benefit from that.

The Oracle Cloud has it all: the servers, access to the internet, and all of the security. And everything is of a very high quality, the cream of the crop.

The physical security is also impressive: they have three separate data centers that are located at least 100 kilometers apart and are set up as bunkers. Moreover, every part of the machine exists in triplicate.

As far as access control is concerned, the highest level of security is the standard there. All entrances are isolated and closed and everything is very closely monitored.”

What if my competitor is inside that Cloud too? Can he/she access my data?

Tony Vertenten: “That’s impossible. Oracle encrypts everything as soon as it’s stored in the Cloud. The keys to decipher this are managed by Oracle itself and trust me, they have incredibly tight security.

Plus, Intris opted to provide every customer with a separate Cloud environment. One customer’s Cloud is completely separate from another customer’s Cloud. They each have their own virtual machine and database; nothing is shared.

Such a fortress must cost a fortune…

Tony Vertenten: “That’s correct, Oracle has invested a lot in this and still does: in hardware, in security, in knowledge and expertise, although our customers don’t have to pay for that.

An Oracle Cloud subscription is one of the cheaper ones of its kind. Especially considering what’s included.

People also often forget the extra costs of a server on premise. Not only is a machine like that outdated after 5 years, you also have the maintenance costs, the people who have to monitor it, and so on…

An Oracle Cloud ‘machine’ is constantly being renewed without any extra cost to the customer.”

SO

TRIS Cloud is synonymous with:

• Very secure
• Always up to date
• Excellent price/quality ratio

The post Are your files as safe as the CIA’s? appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

After all, this code forms the basis for the amounts of import duties, VAT, excise duties, countervailing duties, and anti-dumping.

A correct classification of goods might seem difficult, and yet it’s not.

Because fundamentally, there are no excuses for classifying goods incorrectly: the rules are clear and comprehensively defined with objective parameters.

So why do so many mistakes happen?

1. Maybe the description of the goods on the invoice was too concise and the declarant is not familiar with the goods
2. Maybe these are new materials that are not immediately recognizable on the list
3. Maybe the seller provided an incorrect commodity code

Artificial Intelligence can help!

A 100% automatic classification is impossible, but 90% of the work can be technologically supported.

The remaining 10% are difficult cases and results in a better use of skilled people.

Currently, AI can perform three checks that will greatly help you.

That is, provided you have the correct master data and a sample dataset with which you can train the system.

Check 1: sanity
-> detect nonexistent and/or incorrect codes

Check 2: inconsistency
-> find products with exactly the same description and a different code

Check 3: anomalies
-> compare product groups with commodity codes

And that’s not all: because the system is constantly learning, it will eventually be able to predict the commodity codes of new materials with a high degree of certainty.

The post 3 checks that keep your import duties, excise duties, and VAT under control appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

Are we now really headed for a hard Brexit, or can we share the optimism of Guy Verhofstadt who said this morning on Radio 1 that last night’s vote made it clear there is a large majority against crashing out?

The next 70 days will be crucial, beyond a doubt.

Perhaps we should prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

The EU Commission has published a detailed review of all the things that are liable to change.

For example, concerning trade, taxation and a customs union you will find information on customs and indirect taxation, import and export certificates, intellectual property, preferential rules of origin and VAT.

In our previous blog we described six measures that you can take in the short term, but other things demand more time.

Below are six other measures that are worth considering.

1. Permits

There are quite a lot of permits that will greatly simplify customs formalities. Do these all still apply to trade between the UK and EU?

• temporary imports
• temporary storage space
• approved site
• transit accompanying document, authorised consignee
• transit accompanying document, authorised consignor
• bonded warehousing
• particular destinations
• outward processing
• inward processing

2. Anti-dumping measures

It is still open to question whether so-called third countries (South Korea, Japan, Mexico etc.) intend to sign trade agreements with the UK, or if they will recognise any preferential trade conditions between the UK and the EU. In both cases this will have implications for anti-dumping measures.

3. New customs procedures

The European and British customs procedures will no longer be identical. You should regularly consult the UK Customs & Excise website.

4. New rules on origins and tariffs

There will certainly be new product codes (tariff rules) and new rules concerning the origin of products.

For an explanation see: https://economie.fgov.be/nl/themas/ondernemingen/brexit/verkeer-van-goederen-en/brexit-oorsprongsregels

5. Declared value

As long as the UK was a member of the EU you didn’t have to worry about the declared value of the products. This is all set to change.

6. Getting your AEO certificate

At the moment there is no mutual recognition between the UK and the EU concerning AEO certification. In view of the time it takes to get this certification, you should start the process now.

By the way, did you know that Intris has AEO certification for communication with Customs & Excise?

The post Six Brexit measures you need in the long term appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

Or are you more of a planning-is-already-part-of-the-holiday type? Do you enjoy mapping out your route, comparing hotels and poring over timetables?

It’s a matter of personal preference, of course, but the prices of the two approaches are difficult to compare. At first sight the all-in option is more expensive, because you don’t count the hours of preparation in the second option.

But what also don’t get counted are the hitches that have to be solved along the way and so can’t really be considered as vacation time. Anyway, there is no such thing as the perfect formula for a successful vacation, because it’s such a personal thing.

Also, it’s temporary in nature: holiday hiccups are an annoyance, but with time they fade from memory. Well worth the risk.

But where you really mustn’t take risks is with your company’s IT environment. Risks such as system crashes, getting hacked, no longer being up to date …

To say nothing of the variable costs, the headaches and the lost personnel time that an “on premises” IT environment brings with it.

The alternative? The Cloud

Our customers who run their TRIS solution in the Cloud minimise their risks in many ways.

1. They don’t have to invest a big budget that weighs on their cashflow. Instead they pay a perfectly manageable monthly rate.
2. They don’t have to worry about hardware performance declining and the need for updates.
3. Their system is fully secure.
4. The application is configured via https, with the necessary certificates.

With our Cloud solution you play it safe

1. The systems are always up to date (which also minimises the chances of security leaks).
2. Remote working is always secure.
3. You have your own private server, so you don’t have to share your Cloud with anyone.

And if these reasons aren’t already enough, your possible downtime is reduced to a minimum. The updates are done after regular working hours and at the weekend, so they don’t get in the way of your day-to-day work.

And if there’s a power cut or your internet connection goes down, you can simply carry on working from a different location.

So, you’d rather play safe?

Perfect! We’ll get you up and running in the Cloud within three weeks!

The post How to play safe with your IT environment appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

The Internet of Things will offer interesting opportunities both for existing and for new technology companies. In the short term, at least. But hardware suppliers and installers of IoT systems will have to start looking out now for diversification, or for a radical switch in their activities.

Short term

Companies that offer complex system integration solutions are much sought after. Despite all the integration possibilities and interoperability of the systems, combining devices and software into an IoT environment is an extremely complex undertaking.

By offering integrated solutions, suppliers can accommodate their customers in the short term. In the longer term the research institute expects that there will be greater demand for all-in vertical solutions and large-scale horizontal platforms.

Four types of survivors

1. Developers of relevant IoT technology that have specialised in inexpensive components. Examples include sensors with low consumption that offer cheap connection possibilities, etc.

2. Owners of IoT data. For instance, manufacturers of industrial machines equipped with sensors. The hundreds of terabytes of streaming data that these generate will provide a transparent overview of possible anomalies, thus avoiding outages before they happen and permitting preventive maintenance.

3. Platform suppliers. Third parties will be able to develop apps for these platforms, with the platform supplier ensuring interoperability of the apps. Successful platforms will generate lucrative networks, since each new customer and each new application will offer added value for all parties.

4. Suppliers of end-to-end solutions. According to McKinsey, these suppliers have the greatest advantages since the Internet of Things demands a high degree of customised work. This ensures that companies that can offer complex solutions (hardware, software, installation and services) will have the edge. These suppliers of end-to-end solutions will be able to position themselves in the field of components, software or integration systems.

New business models

The IoT will also bring new business models for companies that use the Internet of Things: new pricing models and service-based business models.

• New pricing models: customer-specific, dynamic pricing models based on specific customer preferences. These models can offer advantages both for the user and for the supplier. Examples include car insurance companies that tailor policies to the insuree’s actual driving behaviour, generated by the vehicle’s data sensors.
• Service-based business models: instead of capital-intensive investments, the supplier operates a pay-per-use model: energy per hour instead of a gas turbine, transport services instead of cars, printed pages instead of laser printers. These “as a service” models offer the advantage for the customer of not having to invest in upgrades or maintenance.

The post Which software companies will survive the IoT era? appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

This will include among other things drawing up and submitting declarations for each import and export movement, paying and accounting for dues and other amounts, and submitting certificates of origin.

Export declarations

The General Administration of Customs & Excise has calculated that after 29 March 2019 the number of export declarations will rise by 47% (and import declarations by 14%). This will bring a whole lot of changes, especially for companies that until now only do intra-community trade (i.e. within the EU).

As soon as Brexit becomes a fact it will no longer be sufficient just to submit an invoice for consignments being sent to the UK. Instead, these goods will have to be declared by means of Paperless Customs & Excise (PLCE), an electronic export declaration that has to be submitted before the goods are allowed to leave the European customs area.

VAT

Even after Brexit it will not be necessary to charge VAT on sales of goods sent to the UK. However, in order to claim the exemption you must demonstrate formally that the goods have crossed the EU outer border. One of the most essential documents for this is copy 3 of the customs declaration.

This can be obtained from the exit customs office which confirms that your goods have actually been exported. This office will send you an electronic message so that you can print out copy 3 of the declaration.

Excise

Brexit will also bring additional procedures for the export of excise goods such as alcohol and tobacco.

As soon as the UK is no longer an EU member state, sending excise goods from Belgium to the UK will be considered as exports to a third country and no longer a movement under the terms of the excise suspension arrangement. And on top of the EMCS formalities for control of excise movements, an export declaration will have to be submitted in the PLCE system.

Conversely, after Brexit, movements of excise goods from the UK to Belgium will be considered as imports, for which the prescribed procedures must be followed. In this case also, transfer under the excise exemption arrangement can only be done as of the moment of importing to Belgium, and the EMCS rules will apply.

Certificates of origin

As part of the trade agreement, both the UK and the EU may or may not decide to draw up a protocol for certificates of origin. Whether or not you will be obliged to demonstrate the origin of your goods will depend on the terms of the protocol.

For instance, if the UK imposes import quotas or embargoes then you will have to submit non-preferential certificates of origin. These certificates are issued by the Chamber of Commerce.

On the other hand if there is a free trade agreement with more favourable import tariffs for goods of European origin then you will have to demonstrate the source of the goods using preferential certificates of origin. These are either issued by customs, or you will have to draw them up yourself.

Exclusive customs consultant

Intris has an exclusive customs consultant for its customs customers. Michel Van Giel, Honorary Regional Director of Customs & Excise, will examine the possible implications along with you and find the most advantageous formula to comply with customs regulations for trade with the UK after Brexit.

The post Brexit will lead to 47% rise in export declarations appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

That’s how much added value the Internet of Things can potentially generate from 2025 onwards. Per year.

At least according to the McKinsey Institute.

11% of world GDP

9.3 billion is a maximum figure. McKinsey actually calculated a range from 3.2 to 9.3 billion euros. The difference between the two figures is 66%, but it’s still a staggeringly large amount. According to the World Bank, global GDP should amount to 83.98 billion euros by 2025. So the IoT could account for 11% of that GDP.

Industry stands to gain the most from this. By “industry” the McKinsey Institute means standardised production environments and places with repetitive work routines. In other words not just factories but also data centres, hospitals, farms and anything else.

This sector could generate annual added value of 1 to 3.1 billion euros by 2025.

Industry 4.0

It’s a much-used term nowadays, but what does it actually mean?
Industry 3.0 covered all forms of automation and standardisation. Industry 4.0 refers to IoT machines that are connected to each other and managed by IoT sensors. Think remote monitoring, tracking and control.
This technology will generate profit especially for industrial environments on the workfloor and in maintenance of equipment.

Optimising operations

McKinsey has calculated that this will yield cost savings of 5 to 12.5% and added value of 0.5 to 1.5 billion euros. By using sensors it is possible to raise the performance of machines, fine-tune workflows and make better use of infrastructure.

Some examples. General Motors uses sensors to monitor the humidity in the car plant and so optimise the painting process. If the conditions in the painting cabin are less than optimal, the component can be sent to another part of the plant that does meet the right conditions so that it does not have to be sprayed a second time.

In agriculture IoT sensors continuously measure soil conditions, weather conditions and plant growth, permitting more accurate forecasts and better management decisions.

In hospitals improved patient tracking and monitoring in combination with mobile equipment should raise performance by 250 nursing hours per year, for 50 million nurses worldwide.

Predictive maintenance

In the IoT age, machines and equipment will no longer be maintained on a “repair & replace” basis; thanks to sensors, equipment managers will instead operate by “predict & prevent.” In other words, sensors will continuously monitor the machines and so prevent breakdowns. Furthermore the sensor data can be used to predict when and where maintenance is required.

The McKinsey Institute has calculated that this will lead to 50% less downtime and 3 to 5% more production time. This in turn means that factories will be able to save 527 billion euros annually, hospitals 58 billion. Worldwide.

But ….

These figures can only be attained if all the IoT systems can talk to one another, as interoperability accounts for 40 to 60% of the added value. Also, more intensive use needs to be made of the existing data: at the moment there is still a lot of low-hanging fruit to be gathered.

This means that manufacturing plants, hospitals, data centres and agro-businesses will have to upgrade and/or replace their equipment so that it can be interconnected. In addition there are various other investments that are necessary in order to generate profit from IoT, including:

• systems for data analysis,
• basic technology such as sensors and micro-electromechanical systems (MEMs),
• cloud data storage and computer systems.

The post Why industry stands to gain most from the Internet of Things appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

Alibaba makes contracts with Maersk, Kuehne+Nagel, UPS and others.

Coolblue manages its own product distribution.

Many forwarders and logistics service providers are uneasy as a result. Will the internet giants invest more and more in physical goods handling? Will existing logistics companies get swallowed up by them, or simply disappear?

Read the remedies put forward by Christian Leysen (executive chairman Ahlers), Jan Cools (CEO Be-Mobile) and Wilfried Grommen (CTO Hewlett Packard Enterprise), three top players in the logistics world.

From logistics operator to data analyst

Christian Leysen expects that his company will lose 30 to 40% of its traditional business to these internet giants.
In response Ahlers has for some years now been targeting new, international opportunities by focusing on its customers’ data. The new added value comes from smart combination of the different data to yield big gains in efficiency, both for the customer and for the supplier.

His remedy: be more active internationally, offer new added value and make smart use of the existing data.

Become a large logistics consortium

By analogy with the big alliances between shipping companies, Wilfried Grommen pleads for the logistics sector to set up its own large consortium, with the various members together offering end-to-end solutions.

Data are important, and the Internet of Things is a future reality, but don’t ignore the efficiencies that are already there to be exploited, he says.

His remedy: no reason to panic, the added value offered by logistics operators is what makes the difference and indeed can become even more efficient.

The future lies with niche markets

The internet giants go for the largest common denominator, namely big volumes and advantages of scale. But there is still plenty of room for players with a business model in niche markets, according to Jan Cools. They can still offer added value that these big players are not interested in.

Technology can help us with this, provided we share the data with each other.

His remedy: good data are important (not too much and not to little) to share information efficiently with one another.

Conclusion

No, logistics operators will not be swallowed up by the internet giants. On condition, that is, that they specialise, go in search of greater efficiency, make smarter use of the existing data flow and share it among themselves.

Source: Great Logistics Debate, 13 June 2017, organised by Interactive Supply Chain Network

The post How can logistics operators stand up to the Amazons, Alibabas and Coolblues of this world? appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

But putting this simple scenario into practice is easier said than done, as logistics professionals have always known. They know also that there is no magic formula for managing the supply chain efficiently.

Certainly not one that applies year-in, year-out, as society, technology and the economy are all constantly changing.

And the changes are getting more and more rapid. It’s no longer enough simply to “keep up”: you have to be one step ahead in order to stay in the game tomorrow.

Logistics service providers who want to continue playing a role in the worldwide logistics scene in 2030 will have to be flexible and pro-active.

So, what are the five trends not to be missed?

Go to the Cloud

Not just with one application or a single solution, but with everything, including the servers.

Because we’re heading for “industry 4.0” in which new technologies (the Internet of Things, Big Data, 3D printing, mobility, the digital economy, Cloud computing) offer a wealth of opportunities for efficient management of the supply chain.

Get into Big Data

In particular, join the data bundling and data sharing initiatives. Once all the logistics links in the supply chain share their data with each other (albeit on a neutral platform such as NxtPort in Antwerp or iShare in the Netherlands), this can only offer advantages for the planning, visibility and seamless interconnection of the supply chain.

Re-think the uncertain processes

Uncertain processes lead to loss of time, loss of quality and unnecessary costs. So regularly challenging the company’s internal processes is something you can’t afford not to do.

Identify the uncertain processes and make the choice: outsource or improve.

Intensify the collaboration and connectivity with partners and suppliers

In the ideal logistics world, all trucks, trains, ships and planes travel with a 100% load factor, and all inbound and outbound movements are in lock step.

Freight consolidation is a realistic option, provided all parties are ready to accept intensive collaboration and thus also connectivity.

Don’t lose sight of the customer

The more connectivity, visibility and mobility, the smaller the world appears from the perspective of the supply chain, and customers demand ever faster and more individual treatment.

To gain a better understanding of the customer’s needs and tailor your logistics services accordingly, strategic collaboration is essential.

The post Supply Chain 2020: the five “to do’s” appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.

With the emphasis on “was.” Then came the age of “the customer.”

Suddenly it was all about the customer. They had to be “earned” daily in their millions, and when the customer had everything, the market gurus switched to “customer experience.”

This customer experience still counts for a lot, as demonstrated by Ryanair, Uber and Airbnb. These “disruptors” are leaving many conventional companies helplessly behind.

So what more can they do to further justify their existence in future?

Focus on the product: a Miele is for life

The 1960s were dominated by new appliances that made daily life easier for us: washing machines, vacuum cleaners, lawn mowers … you name it.

The main objective of each manufacture was to make the best product. Not just the best quality, but simply indestructible. The German appliance manufacturer Miele was famous for this: “Expensive, but made to last a lifetime.”

The profit margins of Miele (and other producers) lay in standardisation: the fewer variants of the product, the more profit could be extracted from the critical mass of components.

The same applied to service: here too, the emphasis was on quality and standardisation. Computerisation contributed significantly to this.

The most successful companies were the ones that could “sell” as many of their services to as many customers as possible.

Focus on the customer: all extras as standard

But then customers became even more demanding. Or manufacturers became more inventive. Which came first? Difficult to say: it’s always been a chicken-or-egg question. But whatever the case, customers demanded – and got – ever more customisation.

Standardisation was now “out.” No two cars identical, no two customers served according to the same pattern. The customer is king. Even more than that: manufacturers and service providers no longer charge for the “extras,” in the hope of retaining the customer.

Based on this customer-centric thinking, companies seek to distinguish themselves from the competition through the concept of “experience.”

Steve Jobs (yes, the Apple guy), was one of the first to put this customer experience front and centre: “We have to start from the customer experience and then work back to the technology, not the other way round.” Not like IBM and Microsoft, in other words.

Focus on a fast-changing environment

But putting the product or even the customer front and centre no longer applies in these fast-changing times. Nobody wants a cumbersome standard solution any more, let alone a “customised” solution that actually has only one characteristic, namely lack of flexibility.

“Flexibility,” now we’re talking. The concept may not be new, but now it is more essential than ever in order to meet the challenges posed by the rapidly increasing number of technological solutions.

Uber would never have managed to disrupt the old-established taxi operators without the technology that made it possible to have a user-friendly app that instantly matched supply and demand.

AliBaba would never have managed to scare the pants off the forwarders without a technology that permitted internet shopping at container level.

Are these new products, or even new services?

No. They are still the same cars, containers and taxi trips.

What’s different are the processes. And they are changing constantly.

Focus on the processes

To react in a flexible way to rapidly changing situations, the unpredictable market and the unique requirements of each customer, we need to focus on the process.

Do that, and you no longer need to cling fast to the product, service or customer.

Companies that can put their customers’ business processes front and centre and react quickly and flexibly to each stage in the process have a golden future in front of them.

Because the world will keep changing.

And technology will continue to accelerate.

In the not-too-distant future, cars will drive off the ship by themselves, all components will be 3D-printed in the warehouse for a fully customised product, and our built-in chip will tell us when it’s time for the next check-up.

Right?

The post Forget the wonderful product: go for the flexible process appeared first on Intris - Transportation Software.