INTTRA, a global network for ocean shipping, says that "e-invoicing" is emerging as a critical cost reduction tool for those involved in or doing business with the ocean shipping industry, according to the findings of a global study in 2012.
It results were released amid on-going economic pressure on carriers and shippers to seek new ways to cut costs as volumes and freight rates decline while global shipping capacity rises rapidly.
The survey of high-volume shippers and freight forwarders, including four of the top five global logistics providers, 81 per cent of respondents want to receive invoices electronically in 2013. A further 77 per cent of respondents said that "managing disputes" was their greatest invoicing challenge, while 68 per cent said that reducing the "time and cost to process invoices" was their other main concern.
"Invoicing, dispute resolution and payment processes are highly fragmented across the industry and represent a significant area of cost and inefficiency," said Otto Schacht, executive vice president of sea logistics at Kuehne + Nagel. "Logistics providers and their ocean carriers can benefit from standardising the process, improving visibility to their cash liabilities and providing a more transparent invoicing process, all of which save time and resources."
The authors of the report note that manual payment processing can add up to millions of dollars annually for carriers and shippers. The European Commission Informal Task Force on e-invoicing found that the average cost of processing a paper invoice in Europe was approximately EUR30 (US$48). According to the Billentis E-Invoicing/E-Billing 2012 Report, switching to electronic invoicing yielded 50-80 per cent cost savings. For carriers that could mean potential savings of $55-$88 for every bill of lading.
Reduction of errors and disputes as a cost-cutting method remains the top driver of increased demand for e-invoicing in 2013, with invoice errors estimated to affect between 20 and 25 per cent of all freight invoices. This results in delays and non-payment for carriers, and drains time and resources for both parties who must work together to process and resolve these discrepancies.
"We are seeing a rapidly growing adoption and need for e-invoicing in the ocean shipping industry," said Rod Agona, managing director e-invoice at INTTRA. "It's no secret that this sector is dealing with a tough economy - one that has likely forever changed. It has both carriers and shippers looking for ways to be more efficient and profitable, and e-invoicing is a proven method to achieve those goals."
WORLD SHIPPING
27 February 2013 - 23:46
E-invoicing road ahead for carriers, shippers to cut costs: INTTRA report
INTTRA, a global network for ocean shipping, says that "e-invoicing" is emerging as a critical cost reduction tool for those involved in or doing business with the ocean shipping industry.
WORLD SHIPPING
27 February 2013 - 23:46
E-invoicing road ahead for carriers, shippers to cut costs: INTTRA report
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