For immediate release (Kuala Lumpur, 6 October 2017) –
The International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with GS1, a global standards organisation to provide a framework for further cooperation. A joint working group will now commence digitising FIATA documents, using the GS1 global unique identification system, enabling FIATA members to become more efficient
as compared to the former “paperwork” and to improve the services they provide to their customers.
The transport and logistics (T&L) industry provides the backbone of global trade by servicing customers and suppliers in global supply and demand chains. T&L processes provide critical links in the global economy, interconnecting countless manufacturers, traders, retailers and service providers as parts of complex networks that serve many industries in all countries worldwide.
As goods move from points of origin to points of destination, logistics services providers (e.g., freight forwarders, transporters and other stakeholders) must maintain control and visibility of these movements to make informed decisions that ensure the smooth flow of the goods to consumers. Today, these services are expected to be faster, more reliable, more secure and transparent to satisfy ever-increasing consumer expectations.
Rapid developments in logistics, in response to evolving consumer requirements for real-time visibility across the entire domain of multi-modal transport, call for new solutions and closer cooperation between the two organisations. Based on extensive experience coupled with the global reach of their constituencies, GS1 and FIATA are two leading membership-based associations that are best equipped to respond to these modern challenges. With the MoU, FIATA and GS1 are continuing to build on a 20-year relationship.
To kick-off this effort, FIATA’s Advisory Body Information Technology (ABIT) is following a step-by-step approach for identifying and migrating all of their documents into a digital platform, using the GS1 global unique identification system. This project will enable the global FIATA community to offer high-quality intermodal solutions for the benefit of all supply chain stakeholders.
Media contacts
FIATA
Hans Guenther Kersten
Director General
GS1
Nora Kaci
Senior Manager Marketing
About FIATA
The International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) was founded in Vienna, Austria on 31 May 1926. It is a non-governmental
organisation that today represents an industry covering approximately 40,000
forwarding and logistics firms, employing around 10 million people in some 160 countries. FIATA has consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) as well as many other UN related bodies such as the World Bank. It is recognised as representing the freight forwarding industry by many other governmental organisations, governmental authorities, private international organisations in the field of transport and logistics, such as the European Commission (through CLECAT), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the International Union of Railways (UIC), the International Road Transport Union (IRU), the World Customs Organization (WCO), and the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Learn more at www.fiata.com.
About GS1
GS1® is a neutral, not-for-profit organisation that provides global standards for efficient business communication. We are best known for the barcode, named in
2016 by the BBC as one of “the 50 things that made the world economy.” GS1 standards improve the efficiency, safety and visibility of supply chains across physical and digital channels in 25 sectors. We enable organisations of all types
and sizes to identify, capture and share information seamlessly. Our scale and reach – local Member Organisations in 112 countries, 1.5 million user companies
and 5 billion transactions every day – help ensure that GS1 standards create a common language that supports systems and processes across the globe. Find out more at www.gs1.org.