FourKites and Ocean Insights team up for ocean container visibility partnership

Chicago-based FourKites, a provider of real-time tracking and visibility solutions across transportation modes and digital platforms, said this week it has formed a strategic partnership with Hamburg-based ocean freight intelligence provider Ocean Insights that they said will provider shippers and carriers with enhanced tracking capabilities, from global seaports to final destinations.

The companies noted that this partnership marks a shift into a new addressable market, as around 80% of global trade is conducted via ocean carrier and handled by ports, and will have a major impact in cross-border commerce shipments. And they explained that this will be done by creating what it called a “plug and play deployment model” that meshes Ocean Insights’ ocean freight tracking data and FourKites’ real-time visibility platform.

What’s more, they explained that by combining FourKites’ network of more than 260 global shippers with Ocean Insights’ real-time global container tracking capabilities enables import and export teams to leverage a single system for door-to-door tracking. And through real-time visibility and advanced analytics, customers of both companies will be able to better manage detention and demurrage costs, they said, coupled with FourKites comprehensive dashboards that are able to augment operational performance and also cut down on operational costs.

“This partnership gives FourKites and Ocean Insights customers powerful new capabilities to track cargo and notify downstream supply chain stakeholders of potential delivery disruptions,” said Mathew Elenjickal, CEO of FourKites, in a statement. “Now, supply chain professionals can better manage their operations and unlock value through a single, consistent visibility platform, regardless of international and domestic responsibilities.”

A FourKites’ spokesperson told LM that this partnership was driven by a strong customer need for a true end-to-end global visibility solution.

“Ocean Insights is the leading power player in this space with a sharp focus on building the world’s best ocean visibility solution,” she said. “By combining forces, we can now provide customers with the world’s only true end-to-end visibility solution with accurate and dynamic ETAs to the final destination. The main benefit is the plug-and-play nature of the implementation that can provide ocean freight tracking at unprecedented speeds that are much faster than the status quo—customers can get set up in a few hours. Additionally, as above, the deep vaults of data we now have will enable the industry’s most reliable ETAs.”

When asked to provide a basic example of how a shipper would use this offering, the spokesperson laid out the following scenario:

1. a shipper partners with FourKites to track ocean data;
2. the shipper sends FourKites the carrier name and the booking number, the bill of lading or container number; and
3. FourKites can then begin providing the shipper with event and location updates, including AIS (automatic identification systems) data within a few hours

Going forward, the FourKites’ spokesperson said that the company will continue to enhance the solution to optimize handoffs between different modes, track the broadest set of dray carriers, and provide improved terminal and customs data.