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The
port and shipping communities in the
country are baffled with recent
calls to use the so-called national
ports exchange which many claim are
not even aware of its existence.
Instead,
the government has been urged to
scrutinize claims over the
development of the exchange which
sources said lacks credibility and
has created confusion and
embarrassment in the industry.
“We
are not sure what this all about –
and we are certainly not part of
this exchange although it claims to
be a national exchange,” said a
source from one of the federal
ports.
Several
other federal ports agencies and
port operating companies contacted
also expressed similar sentiments
and said it was merely an initiative
of Port Klang Authority and Dagang
Net Technologies Sdn Bhd (previously
known as EDI Malaysia Sdn Bhd).
They
said a national port exchange could
only be set up with the
participation of all the ports and
that it was somewhat misleading to
call the exchange a national site
when it lacks not only the
participation of other ports,
relevant agencies but even all
terminal operators and agencies in
Port Klang.
In
a recent statement Dagang Net
Technologies Sdn Bhd (DNT) said many
are still slow in using the online
services of the NPE which, for some
strange reason is available only via
DNT’s web-site.
“We
are not sure why this was announced
in such a haste when it is not even
fully developed. Besides, we do not
know why it sits on DNT’s web-site
without its own domain name,” an
industry source said, adding the
exchange lacked both an identity and
content.
DNT,
which has a concession agreement to
develop a national electronic
document interchange took more than
a decade to fully build the Port
Klang Community System (PKCS) which
records about 40 million
transactions annually.
The
so-called national ports exchange,
officially launched by the Minister
of Transport Datuk Seri Dr Ling
Liong Sik, eight months ago has
however, not been able to carry out
transactions it promised.
This
is clearly manifested in the
attempts by PKA and DNT to meet
prospective users and participants
to find out of their needs and
requirement and why the exchange was
not being used.
Two
weeks ago PKA and EDI met with some
Port Klang-based shippjng and
forwarding agents to seek their
views on the exchange.
Last
week a further meeting was held with
more shipping agents and terminal
operators at which more expressed
their reservations on the exchange.
According
to a shipping agent who attended
they sought additional information
on the exchange and expressed their
concern on being burdened with
additional cost to secure services
which are already available from
other online services offered by
terminal operators, the Customs and
the PKCS.
The
minister, who was led into launching
of a web-page address with a promise
of more to come, declared that the
exchange would provide an important
and useful platform for all players
in the transport and logistics
industry.
"It
will benefit the entire maritime
community by making available all
relevant information and transaction
function under one roof and easily
accessible through the Internet,”
said the Minister of Transport
confidently.
“To
my knowledge it is only a ghost
exchange,” said an agent.
The
recent meetings merely served to
confirm that an empty cart had been
put before the horse.
At
the fanfare that preceded the
launching of the port exchange it
was claimed that for the first time,
a port user will have access to a
combination of environment,
interaction and e-commerce
transaction capabilities through a
single connection via Dagang*Net's
Internet connectivity.
The
general manager of PKA, Datin O C
Phang even went further in her
enthusiasm.
“In
cooperation with DagangNet
Technologies Sdn Bhd (DNT) which
pioneered the nation’s first EDI
based a community system, we have
thus progressed to the development
of the National Port Exchange that
meets the demands of the new
technology,” declared the general
manager, in last issue of the port
authority’s newsletter.
She
said the NPE was developed on the
premise an efficient platform for
electronic B2B relationship in the
port community will enhance the
growth of trade through electronic
transactions that move documents
faster, and as well as cargo with
better speed.
“In
any effort that takes a quantum leap
– such as the one we are
attempting via NPE - an important
challenge is achieving real and
sustainable results,” said Phang,
quite little not knowing that it was
quite leap alright – albeit, a
leap in the dark.
“PKA
would thus take all necessary
measures to ensure that moving into
this brave new world of e-commerce
the expectation of the port
customers is successfully managed
and met,” she added in her
comments in the newsletter.
But
users at Port Klang seemed far
removed from this brave new world
and are in the dark over the
national port exchange.
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