The infrastructure that has grown up around this industry traditionally includes ships, trucks, containers, terminals and giant loading and lifting facilities. But today there's a new set of tools that have become absolutely essential for companies who want to establish and maintain a competitive edge. To outsiders, these tools are virtually invisible, but within the companies they've becoming the lifeblood of the business. They're the sophisticated electronic systems and software that enable faster transits and deliveries, precise tracking and better management of stock and inventories.

Taiwan-funded freight forwarder Soonest Express has only recently adopted e-commerce procedures, but already this company is proving to be a great example of the benefits of these systems. The company, which specializes in sea freight, air freight and China trans-shipment of electronic components, is experiencing remarkable gains by cleverly combining the traditional labor-intensive elements of the business with their technological Great Leap Forward.

According to Mr Holam Cheung, systems analyst at Soonest Express, the company adopted e-commerce solutions just two years ago. Like many other industry players, they started out by acquiring ERP (Enterprise Resources Planning) software, which enabled them to integrate all departments and functions across the company into one database. "It turned out to be the greatest help for the lowest cost," claimed Cheung.

An e-volution

The company's inventory, sea/air freight divisions and trans-shipment departments were the first to experience the full impact of the change. Basically the ERP system enables inventory and export/import records to be stored in one single system shared by all the company's computers for easy retrieval. Inter-departmental exchange of information further helps facilitate internal communications and ensures accuracy. The results speak for themselves: a more efficient, organized system of documentation and fewer staff required for paper work. Initially, of course, the new innovations raised concerns about redundancies and lay-offs, but the management of Soonest Express were careful to ensure that staff had the option to move into departments and work areas that continued to require intensive labour input. Far from creating a problem, the change enabled a cost-effective utilization of one of the company's key resources: their loyal staff.

On the client side, Soonest Express is currently using two major e-commerce solutions. One is in association with their biggest client in China who, as a direct result of their huge trans-shipment volume, have developed their own system to enable precise online tracking of their goods. The other system, hosted entirely by Soonest Express themselves, is for the use of all other clients. By simply logging on to the Soonest Express web site, tracking the transit of goods is only a mouse click away.

For Government trade document submission, Soonest Express now utilizes ValuNet Deluxe, and LogiNet provided by Tradelink ValuNet Deluxe. allows users to fill in, sign and submit trade declaration and Textile Trade Registration Scheme forms online, while. LogiNet is used for the electronic submission of logistic and cargo documents.
Soonest Express quickly found that their clients were very pleased with the benefits of the new technology, and liked the idea of being able to execute and monitor many of the freight forwarding stages by themselves. It wasn't just a matter of providing greater efficiency: these new systems also added noticeably to customer satisfaction-a big bonus for Soonest Express, who constantly emphasize their commitment to quality customer service.

Extremely satisfied with their first serious forays into e-commerce, Soonest Express now find themselves looking for more opportunities to sharpen their competitive edge and improve the services they're offering. ERP is flexible and has a wide range of applications, but clients needs not only vary they can also change every day and even a minor change can result in a need to readjust some elements of a system. Soonest Express, with their emphasis on excellence in customer service, view this as a challenge, and it has already led to constant discussions with vendors on how best to adjust software to accommodate the different requirements of various clients. Although this consultancy process is reasonably effective, it's also time consuming, labour intensive and costly, so Soonest Express is looking at other options, including the possibility of creating their own system. "We know the infrastructure from scratch, so with a control system also created by ourselves we could make changes and re-adjustments in no time," says systems analyst Cheung, who is very positive about the potential for improved flexibility and responsiveness that this big step would bring.

Looking ahead

But in the meantime, Soonest Express are introducing other new e-commerce solutions to improve their business. Set to be launched this year is a system which will enable clients to check their inventory online as well as providing regular reports on their goods. Daily in/out volume references and statistics will also be available. The system is presently at testing stage, but expected to be in full service later this year. Because of the sensitive nature of the data being handled, special attention is being paid to the enhancement of security.

Other ambitious plans in store for the near future include the introduction of a GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) to track the movements of trucks; and an online e-billing system which incorporates invoice, purchase orders (PO), airway bills, etc.

Management support

A major factor in the successful implementation of these innovations is support from the highest levels of the company. Cheung says of this situation: "Our chairman made it very clear that he is IT-illiterate, yet he shows no hesitation when it comes to technology and insists money must be spent in order to make the company technologically advanced."
Cheung is adamant that having a management that is open to new ideas and trusting of key staff is essential for the success of an IT operation. A comprehensive e-commerce solution is no small investment, and budget is undoubtedly a concern, but conservatism can all too often become a hindrance to breakthroughs.

The China challenge

The incredible rate with which China is catching up with the rest of the world has alarmed many businessmen around the world, and also in Hong Kong. Many see the mainland as a threat. But in the logistics industry this doesn't seem to be the case. Instead, progressive companies like Soonest Express appreciate the quick actions of their mainland counterparts, and see China's improvement as an incentive to improve their own performance. According to Cheung, information system and electronic solutions adopted in China were first transferred from Hong Kong and the United States, but ". . . their hard work and keenness to advance is impressive, and China has already exceeded Hong Kong in some areas. The export/import process is now faster on the mainland side."

Though Hong Kong's status as a trans-shipment gateway is not yet challenged, Cheung believes it is necessary to speed up the work flows here to stay compatible.

e-voice: company intranet

An intranet is an internal network connecting people within a company or an institution. In the information age, company intranets are becoming increasingly common. Soonest Express has added an intranet as part of their overall e-commerce and IT development, but they've given it a different twist: it serves as a general forum and is often where staff go to express their grievances. They talk about many work-related issues, and since it is anonymous there are some surprisingly lively discussions on matters of a sensitive and controversial nature within the company. Does management have concerns about this?

Apparently it's quite the opposite: according to one employee in Soonest Express even the group chairman logs on constantly to post articles for sharing and encouragement to the staff. Management also find it useful to get insight into real problems in the company that they otherwise might not be able to identify until a crisis has occurred; and they make a practice of following up with complaints. Ranging from the incorrect calculation of check-in times due to a malfunctioning time punch through to minor gripes like vacuuming during office hours, this small offshoot of the Soonest Express e-commerce network has given employees an extra voice and helped improve the company.