Logistics embraces technology to improve competitiveness

Le Quang Trung, deputy general director of the Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines), said information technology plays an important role in the development process and is a lifeline in connecting the components of the logistics services chain. In the face of the inevitable market trend, Vinalines has promoted investment in information technology, such as e-tracking/tracing, online payments and e-invoices.

Nguyen Manh Ha, director of the Nam Dinh Vu Port Joint Stock Company, said promoting investment in modern equipment and strengthening development of seaport logistics services would contribute to optimizing their costs.

Located in Hai Phong, the Tan Vu Container Terminal is one of the first ports in Vietnam to operate a differential global positioning system (DGPS), which features wharf planning, ship loading/unloading planning, container handling at the yard, container position management, terminal operation monitoring, charging, as well as electronic data exchange with customers. To increase the capacity of container loading, unloading, and receiving, two QC gantry cranes which can load 14 container lines horizontally were put into use in August 2017.

However, the number of companies using advanced technologies is modest. The Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Agency of Foreign Trade is urging the development of specific programs to improve the logistics capacity of service providers and the use of the National Technology Innovation Fund to finance these programs.

In addition, logistics companies are urged to focus on improving their technology and logistics platforms, and increase digitization and human resource training to meet the sector’s development demands.

The prime minister has approved a scheme for building a competitive multimodal transport market and focusing on application of information technology to reduce transport costs and facilitate the circulation and distribution of goods and services. The overall objective of the scheme is to build a healthy competitive transport market, promote the strength of each transport mode and apply advanced transport technologies to facilitate goods circulation, reduce logistics costs and improve national competitiveness.