Author: Jon Bass I Head of Business Development and Partnerships

Like much of the wider, global supply chain and logistics industry, freight forwarding is advancing rapidly with key trends like the IoT, blockchain, augmented reality, AI, and autonomous vehicles registering in recent advancements. 

And we aren’t just talking about start-ups. Industry big hitters including Genesee & Wyoming – which has recently invested £25 million in an operational and digital transformation to revolutionize rail logistics with a UK-wide roll-out of an end-to-end automated logistic solution – are turning to AI to bring their business goals to life, enhancing operational performance, and maximizing the time and therefore the output of skilled team members. 

In a similar vein to how we are working with importers and exporters to make their customs clearance processes efficient, frictionless, and as easy as sending an email – freeing up more time so their skilled employees can better fulfill their roles – freight forwarders too should be looking to automation, if they aren’t already, to revolutionize their customs clearance process and benefit the day-to-day performance of their employees. 

We’ve covered the ‘why’ of automating customs clearance quite a lot recently, touching on how it can improve the process to be more efficient, more accurate, and less costly while reducing errors and increasing customer satisfaction. 

But what about the ‘how’? 

Operationally, there are countless ways that automation can be applied to improve customs clearance for freight forwarders. 

Critically, and most importantly from our point of view, it is the significant role automation can play in helping freight forwarders retain key team members by creating a more engaging, efficient, and supportive work environment, which is crucial for retaining key team members and maintaining a competitive edge in the industry, championing human skill over the convenience of automation. 

How AI is applied in Customs Clearance…

• Automation and Management of Documents: AI-powered Optical Character Recognition (OCR) – created by our in-house engineering team – extracts and processes data from various documents such as invoices, packing lists, and bills of lading to compile the data you need for customs clearance declarations in one easy step.
• Compliance and Risk Management: Automated compliance checks through AI systems automatically verify if shipments comply with local and international regulations. Intelligent machine learning gets to know your documents and processes to minimize errors, while algorithms work to identify any high-risk consignments, enhancing security while expediting low-risk shipments in the process. 
• Integration and Analysis of Data: Azarc’s automated solution can seamlessly integrate with various customs authorities’ systems for real-time data exchange and updates, as well as with your legacy systems, analyzing large datasets, and uncovering trends and insights that help further optimization in the process.
• Predictive and Prescriptive Analytics: AI models not only support customs clearance processes, but give an insight into the future by predicting potential delays based on historical data, weather patterns, and other variables, allowing freight forwarders to plan accordingly while suggesting optimal shipping routes and schedules to avoid potential bottlenecks in customs.

By leveraging AI in customs clearance processes, including Azarc’s own customs declaration solution, freight forwarders can achieve greater efficiency, reduce costs, and improve overall service quality, making AI an essential component for modern logistics and supply chain teams.

Find out more and book a chat with our sales team today – or book in for a demo.