Fixturegram launches industry-first solution to revolutionise global bulk-shipping
KUCHING: Fixturegram, a technology startup founded and led by shipping professionals, has launched an industry-first, livestreaming solution aimed at providing greater efficiency and accessibility for the entire bulkshipping industry.
The patent-pending solution provides charterers, shipping agents and ship owners with game-changing features never before seen within the industry, allowing greater efficiency while minimising redundancy and data error.
Charterers can gain instant access to information, access vessel timelog in spreadsheetready format and collaborate easier with teams across various locations.
Shipping agents are able to provide their clients with instant access to information, automate timesheets and reports, and work remotely from anywhere.
Ship owners or charterers provide clients with instant access to information, collaborate easier across multiple office locations, and automate direct data feed into existing Voyage Management Systems, or any inhouse software.
“The shipping industry operates at a manual and labourintensive manner,” Fixturegram’s Malaysian founder chief executive officer (CEO) Eric Lim elaborated.
“For example, current access to in-port status or activity updates are via emails, instant messages and even verbal updates. This puts the burden squarely on shipping professionals who are encumbered with manual data tracking across various ununiformed mediums of communication.
“As a result, data accuracy is affected and efficiency reduced, which can lead to loss of valuable time and resources. Fixturegram solves this age-old industry problem through innovative use of technology by automating port-call tasks, creating real-time analytics and improving data organization and efficiency, all via a single seamless solution.”
Fixturegram’s launch is by no means an isolated event. It comes at a time when shipping professionals within the industry are struggling to cope with work-from-home directives and lockdown measures amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, as a large part of the industry’s data management system is done manually, and on site.
“We believe Fixturegram, with its fully integrated on-and-off site solution will reimagine how in-port activity information is effectively relayed, especially during the current pandemic.
“Our digital solution offers a virtual work environment for the shipping community to collaborate and share realtime shipping information and documents, eradicating the need for on-site, manual data entry.”
One such corporation that is reaping the benefits of Fixturegram’s industry-first solution is local industry leader, Kudrat Maritime (Kudrat).
With close to 40 years experience in providing shipping and total logistic solutions worldwide, Kudrat is one of the pioneers within the shipping industry and are all too familiar with the pain-points plaguing it.
It is not by chance that Kudrat became Fixturegram’s firstadopter, paving the way for much-needed reforms within the industry.
“Kudrat is Fixturegram’s first user, and since implementing their solution, we’ve seen consistent service levels at all of our branches with marked improvements in operational efficiency, especially in areas of data automation and time efficacy,” Kudrat executive director Khalzani Saffian explained.
“The ability to provide realtime shipping information to our customers provides a significant advantage in the evercompetitive shipping agency market.
“The improvements and benefits we see are then passed on to our customers as valueadd, enabling our customers to analyse performances of their shipments more accurately, and support better decision making on future shipments.”
Kudrat’s implementation of Fixturegram’s total digital solution is in line with Malaysia’s government’s efforts to transform the local logistics ecosystem for greater efficiency, as outlined within the Twelfth Malaysia Plan recently.
Stated as one out of four Policy Enablers, the logistics industry will undergo reforms by centralising the planning and development of logistics hubs, accelerating digital adoption and encouraging mergers and acquisitions among industry players.
These initiatives will ultimately create resilient and competitive logistics service providers, enhance international trade competitiveness as well as improve the governance structure.
“Having a framework to overcome fragmentations and low digital adaptation within the industry is exactly what is needed to reinvent the shipping industry at large. We’ve taken that first step with Fixturegram, and with the government’s focus on the greater logistics ecosystem, the future of the industry looks to be in good hands,” Khalzani concluded.