SOFTWARE, COMMUNICATIONS AND CONNECTIVITY
INQUIRY INTO NATIONAL FREIGHT AND SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY The National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy inquiry was conducted by the Department of Regional Development and Cities (DIRDC). The motivation behind the inquiry was to identify the areas where funding could be allocated to improve Australia’s physical and digital freight network to better meet the needs of Australia’s burgeoning supply chains. Of note, the inquiry identified that a key challenge for supply chain participants is a lack of visibility within the supply chain and difficulty in locating where goods are at any point in time. Diminished visibility was most often attributed to Australia’s lack of digital infrastructure (i.e. the continued use of paperbased records and poor technological integration). The inquiry highlighted the need for a national freight supply chain strategy that both addresses our expectations of economic prosperity and meets community requirements for safety, security and sound infrastructure for the future. The Trade Community System (TCS) aims to address the critical action areas identified in the inquiry that are required to lift freight productivity and efficiency in Australia. In particular, TCS presents a solution to three of the critical action areas encompassing: an integrated approach, communicating the importance of freight and measuring freight performance. With TCS providing a digital and transparent framework, this illustrates a system that strives to provide an integrated approach whereby government and industry can work collectively to promote the importance of freight. Moreover, TCS establishes a consistent solution to freight and supply chain issues, through providing a mechanism focused on enhancing the reliability of freight travel times, when impaired by disruptions. In contrast to existing traditional Port Community Systems, the TCS drives interconnectivity and operability within and beyond the physical port setting. Systems like these allows
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for public and private stakeholders encompassing customs, stevedores, freight and companies to optimise, manage and automate port and logistics processes. The TCS aims to create efficiency gains through increased visibility and interoperability across the entire domestic landside supply chain as well.
A TRADE COMMUNITY SYSTEM We believe TCS addresses Australia’s need for a digital solution to our shared problem. The TCS is underpinned by four key principles: 1. An open, secure and trusted data sharing platform ♦♦ The data is owned and governed by its creator ♦♦ The platform is operated independently of established supply chain interests 2. Easy to integrate and start using ♦♦ It augments (not replaces) the systems that are already part of Australia’s supply chains ♦♦ Users access directly through a web portal or indirectly through their existing systems 3. Visibility that delivers velocity and efficiency ♦♦ The platform will enable goods to flow through the supply chain more quickly and manage avoidable costs and fees 4. Low to no cost to participate for fair use ♦♦ The platform does not make money from charging users to access data about the goods they are managing ♦♦ The platform’s revenue comes from the productivity and service innovations that the data provides The TCS is a platform whereby participants in the supply chain can share information securely and quickly, driving both increased collaboration and productivity. The system enables all stakeholders within a supply chain to securely share their information thereby generating end-to-end visibility.
March 2019 // Issue 10
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