Career at Metro

Inspiring the next Metro generation – a platform for a logistics career

Oct 7, 2021 | ,

The British International Freight Association (BIFA) the freight forwarding trade association is launching a campaign to encourage schools to promote careers in logistics, forwarding and the supply chain, and Metro is helping them, with public-speaking support at Multimodal.

The COVID pandemic has highlighted the importance of supply chains and the role of the freight forwarder in maintaining the flow of products and with schools returning for a new academic year, BIFA has committed to promoting careers within the freight and logistics sector to students.

Carl Hobbis, BIFA executive director and training development manager, says: “Since the Brexit vote and the onset of the Covid pandemic, global supply chains have been in the news more than ever, so what a great time to encourage someone to consider a career in the international freight sector that manages those supply chains.”

Apprenticeships are certainly something that a lot of students are considering, rather than taking on the debt associated with a degree, and there is a specific apprenticeship standard for International Freight Forwarding, that Metro helped BIFA in establishing over three years.

Metro apprentices complete the International Freight Forwarding Specialist Apprenticeship (IFFS) over 18 months, in an immersive, on-the-job, learning experience, that covers the complexities of air, sea and surface freight.

At higher education Metro engages directly with regional universities to introduce the logistics and supply chain sector to undergraduates, with the opportunity to experience a wide range of tasks and responsibilities, during a placement year.

At the forthcoming industry expo, Multimodal, which takes place at the NEC from the 19th to 21st October, Colin Smith, Metro’s Training & Career Development Manager will join a panel discussion with BIFA’s Carl Hobbis, to consider ’How to implement an effective apprenticeship scheme’. (SEE BELOW)

Colin commented. “It is really gratifying to see how our apprentices have progressed within the business and flourished professionally, since joining Metro with no prior knowledge. 

The International Freight Forwarding Apprenticeship course provides a really solid foundation for their career and encourages them to learn more, whilst retaining a focus on core capabilities.”

“My most pressing challenge is finding the next apprentice, the next undergraduate and the next cohort of graduates, by re-engaging  with local universities, colleges and schools, that took such a hit at the start of the pandemic.”

We are actively seeking new apprentices and are recruiting in other more experienced roles. If you, or someone you know, would enjoy working with a progressive colleague-focused business, please send us a CV, with covering letter to cv@metroshipping.co.uk

How to implement an effective apprenticeship scheme
MULTIMODAL 2021
21st October 10.30-11.30 - PORT OF TYNE THEATRE
Carl Hobbis BIFA (Chair)
Colin Smith, Metro Shipping
Marnie Rose, Seetec Outsource Training & Skills
Click HERE to register for Multimodal and join the event

For a fulfilling career with many opportunities please contact Colin and we will consider your application and respond to you immediately. As we continue to expand as a business one of our key priorities is to encourage new people to join Metro and our industry, providing a consistent and reliable career path for all our colleagues.

Brexit red line

Brexit delay, dithering and duties: Metro has your back

Sep 23, 2021 | , , , , , ,

To the consternation of many shippers, the Government is changing the start dates for new border checks and processes for imports and exports with the EU. The good news is that Metro’s experts can protect your supply chain from these changes and simplify customs compliance, with our intelligent, automated, digital solutions.

With three significant Brexit changes and developments already this month, it is clear why so many businesses trading with the EU are confused, uncertain and concerned about changing customs regimes, requirements and compliance.

Metro’s dedicated customs brokerage team, is one of the industry’s biggest, most experienced and best resourced. It is a unique repository for EU/UK Brexit expertise and a flagship for graduate professional development in a critical area.

Continuing investment in technology and the brokerage team has expanded the capacity of our groundbreaking Customs Document System - CuDoS - and the capability of the advisory, support and compliance resource we provide businesses that trade with the EU. 

The proprietary CuDoS embraces proven, new and emerging technologies including optical character recognition, to convert documents into digital data. With automation technology, machine learning and artificial intelligence, to simplify and automate declarations, CuDoS is constantly adapting to ensure compliance with change UK/EU customs regimes.

CuDoS: 2021 Brexit stats:

  • 74% of workflow automated
  • 15,000 export declarations
  • 6,000 Transit accompanying documents
  • 12,000 import declarations
  • 99% analog to digital accuracy
  • 8 minutes = record declaration turnaround
  • 85% of clearances turned around in under 2 hours

Importers pay more post-Brexit duties

UK importers have paid 42% more in customs duties since Brexit came into force on the 1st January, largely to the “rule of origin” tariff, which applies to goods imported from the EU which were originally made, or contain components made, outside of the EU.

UK importers are paying more duty and UK Customs is losing out on hundreds of millions of pounds, as importers fail to comply with the delayed declaration scheme set up to soften the impact of Brexit.

Delays cost business

Delayed customs declarations are not being converted into actual customs declarations and while some importers may be happy to import without declarations while they can avoid them, they do face the very real prospect of retrospective action and auditing by HMRC, to recover outstanding taxes and duties.

The decision by the UK government to further delay Brexit border controls has been criticised by trade associations who believe that if these controls were imposed on EU suppliers, it would cause friction that might encourage a negotiated relaxation in controls between the UK and the EU and is to the detriment of UK companies.

Under the revised timetable:

  • Pre-notification of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) goods, which were due to be introduced on 1st October 2021, will now be introduced on 1st January 2022.
  • Export Health Certificates, which were due to be introduced on 1st October 2021, will now be introduced on 1st July 2022.
  • Phytosanitary Certificates and physical checks on SPS goods at Border Control Posts, due to be introduced on 1st January 2022, will now be introduced on 1st July 2022.
  • Safety and Security declarations on imports will be required as of 1st July 2022 as opposed to 1st January 2022.
  • Exit safety and security declaration applies from the 1st October 2021. An EXS is required  for a range of situations including, empty pallets, containers or a vehicle being moved under a transport contract and goods moving under transit.

Available, for the first time, to new customers, our CuDoS customs brokerage platform is optimised continuously, in line with the regimes in force on both sides of the Channel. Automating and submitting customs declarations, CudDoS simplifies compliant border processing, in either direction. 

We simplify declaration submission and safeguard our customers EU supply chains from the potential fallout of easement and regime changes, which means that their EU/UK movements will not be interrupted when full UK/EU border controls are implemented on the 1st January 2022.

To discus your situation and to learn how we automate customs declarations for businesses of all sizes, please contact Elliot Carlile or Grant Liddell who can talk you through the options.

Is short sea Brexit proof

Why container transit times matter

Aug 25, 2021 | , ,

The circulation of container equipment and vessel schedule reliability continues to be a struggle, with our own analysis confirming that transit times from key origins increased by an average of 14 days and while some improvements have been made, we expect these to be undermined by the Yantian and Ningbo terminal closures.

Aside from the pandemic itself, there is not a single root cause for the continued supply chain disruption we are facing. The situation is an intertwined blend of port congestion, vessel shortages and schedule disruption, container equipment shortages, chassis shortages, rail shortages, and driver and truck shortages. This is a Global situation and not unique to the UK and Europe further magnifying the impact at every supply chain ‘touch point’ of a container movement in transit.

However, there is not really a shortage in the number of containers and vessels available to handle the amount of cargo in need of shipping.

The real problem is that it now takes much longer to move the cargo (and the equipment carrying it) which removes large amounts of capacity and that is what creates the shortage in the number of containers and vessels available.

Without enough capacity to move cargo in need of transport, freight rates surge as shippers decide not to risk losing the sale of the cargo against paying elevated rates to try to ensure their product arrives into market for manufacture or sale, or both.

The long list of global operational challenges in 2021 is keeping the level of available vessel and equipment supply under severe pressure, including port congestion, bad weather delays, labour disputes, shortages of truckers, Suez, Yantian, Ningbo, insufficient rail capacity, empty box shortages in key locations, and quarantine and social distancing in terminals, depots, warehouses, and for vessel crews.

All these elements combined slow down the circulation of container equipment and slow down the progress of vessels travelling from port to port.

Only about 40% of container ships arrived on time in the first quarter of 2021, with average delays stretching to more than six days, which is far behind pre-pandemic reliability levels of 70%.

Our review of four key China origins - Ningbo, Qingdao, Shanghai and Yantian - confirms that between last October and February 2020 transit times from each origin had increased by an average of 14 days and while some improvements have been made, we expect these to be undermined by the recent terminal closures at various Chinese ports and throughout Asia.

When carriers report on transit times they do so based on pier to pier, or quay to quay,  performance and do not take into account vessels held at anchor, the time taken to unload the vessel and make containers available for collection, or the inland leg to final delivery.

It is also worth noting that carriers do not take into consideration omitted ports and what happens to consignments that are offloaded en-route, or transhipped as a result to the final destination.

For shippers, any lost days are critical, because they have inventory (and cash) potentially tied up for extended periods, waiting for containers to arrive, unload and progress through to delivery.

Higher freight costs and delays are particularly hard for smaller businesses, with less stock on hand, to buffer supply disruption, which is why we have worked so hard to expedite the movement of landed containers to delivery. With the average time of 7 days between container arrival and final delivery, being maintained from August 2020 to last month. However even this element of a container movement is being disrupted with the inland issues with well-publicised driver shortages over recent months.

Metro negotiate rate and volume agreements with carriers across all three alliances, which means we can access the widest pool of equipment and offer shippers the biggest range of service offerings, port-pairings and rates.

Our fixed validity contracts provide supply chain security and peace of mind, but with space and equipment in such short supply, we recommend a minimum of four weeks visibility and booking window, to secure space on the vessel and get the right equipment positioned.

We will always keep you informed of the market situation and provide clear guidance on alternative options for critical cargo, when necessary.

Please contact Elliot Carlile or Grant Liddell to learn how we can support your supply chains, even in the most challenging market conditions.

FIATA FBL

Metro successfully test new eBL with FIATA

Aug 25, 2021 | , , , ,

Metro continues to actively support the development and adoption of emerging technology, across the shipping industry, by participating in the successful testing of new e-FIATA Bill of Lading (eFBL) standard, with FIATA , the trade association for 40,000 freight forwarding and logistics firms in 150 countries.

The COVID19 pandemic has highlighted the urgent need for adoption of the digital version of one of the most important trade documents – the bill of lading. 

At ports and terminals around the world, goods cannot be released because the paper bill of lading is not there due to border restrictions, changes to the cargo’s routing, or people cannot physically stamp the document.

The ongoing disruption to trade, transport and the movement of documents, means that the digitisation of physical shipping documents is becoming much more significant

Several solution providers and carriers have offered proprietary versions of eBLs but the lack of standardisation has prevented large-scale adoption. 

Metro’s tech experts work with the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT), to harmonise trade documents and the exchange of information in the supply chain

In 2021, FIATA will release its eFBL standard, which is based on the UN / CEFACT Multimodal Transport Reference Data Model, to ensure interoperability with other standards and most systems. 

“From a trust perspective we definitely see value in the document audit trail and the possibility for stakeholders to check the validity of documents.” 

Simon George, Technical Solutions Director, Metro Shipping

Earlier this month FIATA’s eFBL was tested by Metro, other freight-forwarding companies and software providers, as part of a proof of concept, aiming to make the open source standard available to all.

As part of the concept testing, Metro’s operations system generated a document that went electronically to FIATA’s servers, made an entry containing ‘issue date’ and ‘issued by’ as well as the document itself, which then sent back a FIATA bill of Lading  directly into our operations system.

FIATA really appreciate Metro’s assistance, in testing the electronic FIATA Bill of Lading issuance, sharing and verification processes. The detailed feedback will ensure our eFBL solution does answer to the needs of members around the world.

Lucelia Tinembart, Digital Projects Officer, FIATA

FIATA is going even further by testing a tracking solution for its documents, which will allow full traceability, through a unique QR code and number attached to each document. This will enable all parties interacting with an eFBL to verify the validity of the document, the integrity of its content, as well as the identity of its issuer, by scanning the QR code or uploading the PDF on FIATA’s website. 

Full implementation is planned to start in Q3 / 2021.

Metro believe that Blockchain, machine-learning and emerging technologies are the future of international trade. That’s why we work with UN/CEFACT and FIATA: to harmonise the exchange of information in the supply chain; and develop digital capability with critical documents like eBL’s.

For specific information, or to discuss how our technology could support your supply chain, please contact Simon George our Technical Solutions Director.

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