Metro Archives | Page 22 of 34

Metro short-listed for two industry awards

Aug 29, 2023 | Metro

We are very proud to be short-listed, with a prestige car brand client, for Logistics UK’s ‘Partner of the Year’ at the Logistics UK Awards, with a second short-listing for a ‘Supply Chain Innovation Award’, at the Supply Chain Excellence Awards, in association with a technology partner.

Trade awards are a great opportunity to highlight the professionalism of our team, by showcasing the successes we have achieved with customers and partners, in demonstrating the value and impact delivered by Metro.

Logistics UK Awards Finalist; Logistics Partner of the Year

In 2021 our client, a midlands based prestige car and luxury SUV manufacturer, launched their corporate strategy to create more sustainable supply chains and achieve net-zero emissions by 2039.

The award submission to Logistics UK highlighted the support Metro provided our client in moving towards their environmental objective, with three specific initiatives, including the conception and development of a cloud-based tool to calculate emission costs and CO2 equivalent emissions, of every consignment, by any mode:

1. To measure and monitor emissions in the supply chain.

2. To access sustainable aviation fuel and tests to conduct flights in the most sustainable manner possible.

3. To create operational templates and drive down CO2 emissions by 1/3rd in the critical air freight channel.

In driving supply chain efficiency, with carbon footprint measuring and reduction through MVT Eco, Metro is positioning this client ahead of regulations (reporting Scope 3 emissions) and giving them a competitive advantage, with the tools to benchmark environmental performance.

Winner to be announced on the 7th December 2023.

Metro has specialised in the automotive, construction and agricultural vehicle sectors for over four decades, working with many of the most respected and established global brands, to coordinate the end to end movement of vehicles and machinery around the world, by RoRo and container services.

Supply Chain Excellence Awards Finalist; Supply Chain Innovation Award

Technology is a key differentiator for Metro. Conceived, created and supported by our technical solutions team, our technology is innovative and valuable to our customers.

Evolving continuously we constantly scan for emerging technologies and trailblazing partners to take our solutions to the next level and add even more value.

MVT is our cloud-based, hyper secure, workflow solution that connects shippers to their entire supply chain, harnessing participant, process and inventory data to provide complete real-time visibility, control and intelligence.

Accurate ETA real-time visibility and current shipment information is a critical milestone, but traditional methods rely on carriers and terminal operators' updates, which are often inaccurate or outdated, leading to wasted time and resource in tracking accurate updates.

Metro partnered with Windward, the leading Maritime AI company, and its Ocean Freight Visibility (OFV) solution to develop real-time visibility and AI Predicted ETAs for better planning, management by exception, and risk mitigation, which led to a 75% reduction in time spent on shipment operations and a 50% decrease in demurrage & detention costs.

The solutions developed with Windward includes “Reasons for Delay”, which automatically provides users with actionable visibility to support better business decisions and exception management.

Windward’s AI Predicted ETAs and delays updates are automated through API integration which enables efficient communication internally and externally with direct integration through our TMS and customer portal.

ETA Predictions, which are 88% more accurate than carrier ETA predictions, are displayed on Metro’s customer portal, next to the carrier’s most updated ETA, together with reasons for delay for containers arriving late.

Windward’s solution has also provided full visibility on over 95% of container milestones from Gate In at the port of loading to Gate Out at the destination port, with proactive mitigation measures and management by exception, to free up our operators’ time, to focus on customers.

Winner to be announced on the 9th November 2023.

Metro are at the forefront of supply chain management and visibility, in conceiving and developing the technologies that deliver real value in supporting businesses of all types and sizes.

The Metro board continues to invest in internally developed and externally acquired innovation in 2023-2024, which promises to be an exciting period for the Technical Solutions Team and business as a whole.

To learn more about our automotive capability, or how we can simplify your supply chain management, EMAIL Elliot Carlile.

The new Metro

Aug 16, 2023 | Metro

Competition in the forwarding, supply chain and logistics space is always fierce and while the largest multinationals are easily identifiable, many medium and even large freight forwarders fail to develop and articulate their branding, which means they have nothing of substance to attract customers.

The new Metro branding is currently being rolled out in a soft launch.

Stationery and signage already carry the new identity, with additional uses and in particular the new web site to follow shortly.

Reflecting the multi-modal strengths of the business, ‘shipping’ has been dropped from the new identity, and a special font selected for the higher levels of strength and authority perception that uppercase branding conveys, with the E of Metro adapted and coloured to represent sea, earth and sky.

At an emotional level our branding is about psychology and perception. It says “who we are”, “what we do” and “what we want to achieve”.

Having consistent messaging, personality and look and feel makes us more memorable for our existing and prospective customers, while consistent, well-executed branding makes us look better, larger and more successful.

Positive attributes like these enhance trust, and trust is what often triggers the decision to partner with us, which is why our branding unites us in our purpose to make the business stronger and more effective. It underlines why the work we do matters and how it is part of something bigger.

In developing our branding we want to promote our strengths and value propositions, while highlighting our tech capability and acknowledging our history.

Many of the best companies in the world have succeeded as a direct result of high employee engagement, which is based on purpose and shared values.

Metro is committed to our purpose and values, in being the supply chain partner of choice for ambitious importers and exporters, by continuously developing our people and innovating technology that unlocks value in our customers’ supply chains.

By being brave, honest, innovative and committed we will support our customers’ growth and drive success.

We conceive, build and manage the smart, simple and efficient supply chain solutions that give businesses of every size, the power to trade internationally; securely, simply and efficiently. To support their growth and success.

Summer party and promotions

Aug 3, 2023 | Metro

As we continue to expand and grow, one of the board’s priorities is to develop and grow our team, which is why we like socialising, promoting from within and encouraging new people to join Metro, providing a consistent and reliable career path for all our colleagues.

On Saturday the 22nd August, 140 staff and partners from across our UK offices, gathered at the Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club, in the heart of the country, for a new tradition; The Metro Summer Party.

Gastronomic delights, beverages and live DJ were enjoyed by all in a giant marquee in the Forest of Arden’s delightful grounds, and while the outside entertainment was sadly ‘rained off’ everyone had more energy to dance the night away.

We are delighted to take this opportunity to publicly announce our latest round of internal promotions and congratulate all those shown below, wising them every success in their new roles and careers at Metro.

Andy Brooks - Operations Director

Elliot Carlile - Operations Director

Paul Moss - HR & BPO Director

Ian Powell - Customer & Technical Solutions Director

Jade Barrow - Process Improvement Director

Shelley Underwood – Airfreight Operations Manager

If you, or someone you know, would like to work with a progressive colleague-focused business, please EMAIL us a CV, with covering letter.

Royal assent for Electronic Trade Documents Bill

Aug 3, 2023 | International Trade, Metro, MVT, Technology

Exactly two weeks ago the Electronic Trade Documents Act 2023 (The Act) received Royal Assent from King Charles III and will come into effect on the 20th September 2023. It sets out the basis upon which trade documents can exist and be dealt with in electronic form, such that an electronic trade document has the same effect as an equivalent paper trade document.

The Act paves the way for a significant shift in international trade. It states that a person may possess, endorse and part with possession of an electronic trade document, and anything done in relation to an electronic trade document has the same effect in relation to the document as it would have in relation to an equivalent paper trade document.

The International Chamber of Commerce has estimated that digitalising trade documents could generate £25 billion in new economic growth by 2024, and free up £224 billion in efficiency savings.

Prior to the Act, under English law it was not possible to possess electronic trade documents and therefore key English law principles in relation to documentary intangibles (such as bills of exchange) could not be applied to electronic forms of those documents.

The Act also amends the Bills of Exchange Act 1882 and the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992 to remove certain incompatible provisions and means that businesses can now exchange trade documents electronically, such as bills of exchange, bills of lading, waybills, and insurance certificates.

The Act speeds up trade transactions and removes the need for paper documents in many cases. It also addresses transferability issues by permitting the legal concept of ‘possession’ to apply to an electronic document.

The transfer of documents of title, which can take days, could now happen in moments, but the UK is the first G7 country to pass this capability into law, so the government must now take the lead in building the systems and getting the digital economy agreements in place with the rest of the world.

The United States and Germany, have legislation enabling the use of most transferable documents already in place, while France is not far behind and Japan is exploring digital bills of lading and already possesses laws for digital promissory notes.

The UK’s move is likely to encourage similar shifts elsewhere. Already, there is talk of comparable bills in other jurisdictions, which may act as a catalyst, prompting a domino effect in other countries.

The Act does not outline specific requirements for an electronic trade document system, which allows for the development of industry standards for such systems, such as the Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA)’s e-bill of lading, the ICC’s Digital Standards Initiative (DSI), and the Future International Trade (“FIT”) Alliance.

The Act will be transformative to trade and trade finance processes, but in the short-term users of trade documents and finance providers will need to deploy "reliable systems”, get comfortable with the risks associated with them and prepare for governments in other key jurisdictions to adopt similar legislation.

Metro is leading the industry in developing the technologies and platforms that integrate with critical trade documents, including electronic bills of lading (eBL).

We have a seat at the UN/CEFACT forum and are members of the bodies that agree the standards and frameworks for standardised industry e-bill of lading and critical documents.

Please EMAIL Andrew Smith, CCO, now for further Information on our digital capability and how this can benefit your own continued global trade growth ambitions.