Automation Creates Potential Benefits Across Supply Chain, Industry Officials Say
As the expansion of automated systems promotes greater supply chain efficiencies, governments should consider facilitating activities like early goods release, economic mutual recognition agreements, and greater federal spending on U.S. transportation infrastructure, panelists said at Global Supply Chain Summit on May 18. While infrastructure “choke points” prevent supply chains from fully benefiting from recent advances in technology and e-commerce, funding provided through the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) should help CBP improve its Free and Secure Trade program (FAST program), National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America Vice President Amy Magnus said.
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The FAST program accommodates expedited clearances for low-risk goods shipped to the U.S. from Canada and Mexico. “It’s one of those motivations that could’ve helped with the backlog of traffic, but it does us no good if the traffic is backed up on the bridges or on the highway as it has a two-lane road approaching the choke point,” Magnus said during the summit, which was hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “So hopefully some of those funds will be addressed in that area.” The FAST Act authorized $305 billion for surface infrastructure planning and investment from fiscal 2016 to fiscal 2020. Magnus said that all interested supply chain parties should form a partnership to discuss changing port traffic flows, “because everybody has something to lose and everybody has something to gain” from the quality of surface transportation.
Advances in e-commerce might be leveraged through non-security-related mutual recognition arrangements, and by encouraging less developed countries to adopt quick release procedures as more enabling efficiencies become more available to them, Intel Director of Global Trade Mario Palacios said during the summit. “That might have been something that we’ve done in developed countries, but it can also be something we should think about a lot in developing countries,” he said. However, e-commerce’s broad availability has also somewhat complicated the global trade landscape, so tech systems should be formulated “from the bottom-up” so as to include as many firms as possible, Etsy Senior Manager Julie Stitzel said during the summit.
Norfolk Southern Assistant Vice President of Government Affairs Darrell Wilson said the FAST Act’s $9 billion in freight funding should help his company achieve supply chain efficiencies, as the firm is “way behind the ball,” he said. U.S. government policy for railroad funding has helped Norfolk Southern to remain competitive, though, he added. “I’m glad to see that we got the policy right,” Wilson said. “We just need to see a little bit more punch behind the policy.”