The California Air Resource Board (CARB) is a state agency that leads California’s efforts to reduce air pollution and climate change. Because California often takes the lead at the state level on regulatory requirements and creating stricter emissions rules, CARB has adopted several measures that are currently being introduced or implemented in other states including ACF, TRU and WAIRE.
Visibility is critical at the border, and being proactive rather than reactive can keep products moving. Penske has added a border workflow technology tool as part of its ClearChain® technology suite that facilitates collaboration between the many stakeholders involved in a border crossing to mitigate the risk of a delay.
“In the supply chain, the border can be a big black hole. This technology provides transparency at the border on arrivals, paperwork, handoffs, customs clearance, carrier arrival, and we can mitigate loads getting stuck at the border,” said Ramu Pannala, vice president of supply chain technology at Penske Logistics.
The border application relies on three pillars — visibility, document sharing, and validation and compliance — creating a more granular level of tracking and visibility. It provides alerts and notifications to enable proactive monitoring and exception handling, which increases predictability and significantly reduces time spent at the border.
“This border management solution resolves problems while freight is in motion rather than when it comes to rest,” said LeAnne Coulter, vice president of freight management for Penske Logistics. “With all the milestones along the shipment’s route, there are opportunities for the product to stop or gaps to happen. This management solution resolves these issues in transit, so when a trailer reaches the border, whether going northbound or southbound, there is a far less likelihood of that freight stopping.”
Cross-border loads require specific documentation, including bills of lading, packing slips, commercial invoices and certificates of origin. With all partners communicating on a single platform, those involved can receive advance notification of information and validate if it is right or wrong.
If a piece of critical documentation is missing, it creates an immediate flag. For example, in auto-related shipments, each part number must have a harmonized tariff code. “If it doesn’t, that means customs doesn’t know about it, and we will have to do research. If we can find out there is a new part number when that shipment left, we could have two days to research it,” Coulter said.
There are multiple stakeholders involved in each cross-border shipment, and, traditionally, a lot of communication between parties takes place in emails. “There might be dozens of people included in the email,” Coulter said. “It becomes noise inside of our customers’ email chains. Depending on their volume, they may get hundreds of messages a day, and now they’re trying to decide what issue they have and who is taking care of it.”
Scattered emails result in a lack of action-oriented information. The border application eliminates the need for email and allows all involved to see who is doing what. “We eliminate the email, so everybody is working in the platform together,” Coulter said, adding that the technology also creates accountability.
One of the biggest gaps Penske has identified is miscommunication between when customs paperwork was completed and when the drayage carrier arrived for pickup. Often, the drayage carrier wasn’t clear on the status or didn’t receive the message, delaying arrival. “Now the paperwork is uploaded in the system, it is time-stamped, and the carrier team is able to see it. We’re measuring the time from when the customs paperwork was ready and when the drayage provider picked it up. There is no more confusion,” Coulter said.
Changing regulations in Mexico have the potential to create more complexity, making connectivity and visibility between shippers, brokers, freight forwarders, carriers and all the stakeholders dealing with border crossings even more important.
Data security is a top priority, and the border application uses encrypted messages and rule-based security to ensure the integrity of the data being shared.
With tools to ensure visibility, Penske can keep freight moving at border crossings while maintaining security and compliance. Having the ability to mitigate and resolve problems while freight continues to move is a game-changer, and with open communication and collaboration on a single platform like ClearChain, you'll spend less time at the border and more time moving forward.
To learn more about Penske’s scalable border solution, contact us.
Two new regulations in Mexico — the Suplemento de Carta Porte and Proyecto de IntegraciónTecnológica Aduanera (PITA) — are expected to create more documentation and record-keeping which may further complicate an already elaborate process.
Penske has embraced the Mexican Carta Porte (bill of lading), which documents the merchandise’s general information, origins, midpoints, destinations, the owner, lessees and operators involved in those products’ transport. “We’ve been able to be a step ahead the entire time,” said Bob Black, managing director, Penske Logistics Mexico. “We’ve built up the system to enable our carriers to be compliant.”
The Carta Porte is one of the most significant updates to Mexico’s electronic invoicing system since 2017. It was initially scheduled to launch in 2021 but, after an extension, will now go into effect on January 1, 2023.
Once in full effect, transporters of goods by road, rail, water or air must have a copy of the Supplement of Carta Porte in the vehicle that proves lawful compliance with this mandate. Failure to comply with Carta Porte requirements will trigger fines and create delays.
The Carta Porte process for the border crossing shipments is more complex than for intra-Mexico shipments because additional stakeholders are involved. In order to complete their customs clearance functions, custom brokers will require information from the carrier Carta Porte filing, creating a need for a secure data exchange platform with event updates and alert notifications.
PITA is designed to clear trucks in and out of Mexico in a paperless environment. Its goal is to automate, facilitate and streamline the processes of entry and exit of goods at the country’s customs ports by provisioning and updating various technological devices.
Technology installed in the lanes and the monitoring center assist with automating the customs clearance process using radio frequency technology. Drivers must have a valid PITA badge, and RFID readers scan a QR code printed on the driver’s Consolidated Identification Badge (GUI).
PITA customs clearance requires eight steps:
Moving goods across the border and keeping up with changing regulations requires diligence. Failure to comply with these regulations or not having the proper documentation can severely impact shippers and carriers by resulting in fines, penalties or seizure of hauled goods.
Without proper documentation proving lawful transportation and origin of goods, vehicles can be seized until proper documentation is obtained. Both carriers and shippers will be subject to fines while haulage companies can also face suspension of driving permissions for multiple infractions.
Given the regulations, shippers need partners with a robust border platform and experienced operational presence at the border. Secure data exchange platforms [link to border tech article] with event updates and notification alerts can be a game-changer by reducing delays and dwell time.
Penske has decades of cross-border experience, beginning in the early 1980s, and has invested heavily in technology, processes, procedures and relationships to create a seamless process for those moving goods between the United States and Mexico. As part of its operations, Penske manages cross-border shipments for imports and exports that equate to more than 900 secured loads per day for both truck and intermodal shipments.
Penske has C-TPAT certification, which provides several key benefits, including use of FAST Lanes to reduce border crossing times and increased security. Penske actively monitors status of carriers in the C-TPAT portal, and any change in status is reported via email.
Contact Penske Logistics about our services.