Case Study in Ship Agency/ Shipping Management Industry

Profile Mega Ports Agencies strong presence in the ship agency/shipping management industry is indicated by its highly-experienced management team and global shipping hubs located in Singapore and Indonesia, two of the busiest container ports in SouthCustomer: Mega Ports Agencies Website: http://megaportsagencies.com/ Country: Singapore Industry: Ship Agency/ Shipping Management Partner: Asterisk Computer (FE) Pte Ltd

east Asia. Their strength lies on container shipping lines and their strategic positioning in the Asia and Australian market. Their broad knowledge and wide network of the key trading and commercial centres has served them well in providing world class services to their customers. The ship agency/ shipping management business is one of the toughest industries and Mega Ports used to face challenges with regards to controlling overhead costs, complying with regulations and most importantly satisfying their customers.

Costumer Profile

Mega Ports Agencies is a dynamic company involved in ship agency/ shipping management business. Offering quality freight transportation services in a full-service environment is one of their key strengths as well as delivering the best service possible.
Software and Services Microsoft Dynamics Navi - Ship Agency/ Shipping Management

Challenges

Complicated Communication Channel Connecting with ship owners, operators, charterers and such were a complex process, as an efficient communication method wasnt been set-up yet. So coordination with multiple port-call operations were hard, especially for fulfilling customers needs and requirements. Providing customers with information and updated details about their vessels such as its movements, activities, schedules and transactions took quite longer to process. Even the simple activity of viewing and generating a reconciliation report for a ship owner or ship agent was hard for the Mega Ports team. Inefficient Vessel Management Keeping track of related vessel activities and transactions was also hard for the Mega Ports team, as there were no systematic method of providing a comprehensive information. Even providing a list of agents responsible for each vessel is hard to come by. Scheduling of vessels and liners are also complicated for the team, especially providing updates about its movement and loading and discharging activities to its customers. Crew and voyage expense were also hard to generate, even more hiring a necessary number of crew personnel's, not to mention managing the crew and vessel maintenance activities.

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Ineffective Tracking of Fund Activities The Mega Ports team had a hard time processing payments then, as there was no quicker way for them to receive such transactions. Even the changing of billing customer information was not available, even more so the adjusting of payments and refunds for customers. Even the generating of a split expense invoice was a complex process. There was even no system for controlling and tracking the budget for each vessel.

Tighter Communication Channel Ship related personnels such as ship owners, operators, charterers can now be effectively contacted, simplifying the coordination of multiple port-call operations. Customer needs and requirements are immediately fulfilled and met. A quick way of providing customer information about their vessels and its activities was also devised, including but not limited to movements, activities, schedules and transactions, as well as pricing structures for related ship-agency services. Even the tracking of the status of vessel can be done with ease. Reconciliation reports meant for ship owners, agents and other relevant parties

Solution

can now be quickly checked and generated, as the system dramatically improves the seamless sharing of information across a variety of channels.

Mega Ports Agencies was in dire need of an effective system then that could handle the integration of their massive customer information and also at the same time, provide a simpler way of handling manual processes as well as control the credit limit of their customers. Microsoft Dynamics Navi - Ship Agency/ Shipping Management Solutions became the top ERP system choice and Asterisk Computer (FE) Pte Ltd became the selected vendor to implement and deploy it. Having 20 years in the business and with a committed and highly-experienced team of consultants (averaging 10 years of experience), Asterisk Computer was the topmost trusted vendor by the Mega Ports Agencies to implement a ship agency/shipping management-industry solution. Crew and voyage expenses can now be tracked with ease, as well as related activities and transactions, making it easy for the Mega Ports team to provide agency/voyage estimates. Quick scheduling of vessels and liners is now possible, making it easy for the staff to provide the latest report to ship owner about their vessels, its movement, loading and discharging activities. Even an extensive method of hiring a number of crew personnel's for ships and vessels can now be also easily done,. Crew and vessel maintenance is not a problem anymore, giving the Mega Ports a huge relief. Effective Vessel Management

Efficient Tracking of Fund Activities Payment transactions can now be processed quickly, as transferring them can be done in the nearest available payment station. Even adjusting the advance payment of customers can be done with ease, as well as refunding payments and such. Changing the customers' billing information is now easily available, making it easy for the Mega Ports team to view and generate a split expense invoice. Tracking and controlling the budget for each vessel can now be done with ease, as it is easy to set-up a system for it.

Product Overview

MS Dynamics NAVI - Ship Agency/ Shipping Management Solution allows you the following functions:

Vessel Management System Indoor Planning - Allows voyage consignment and vessela nd liner scheduling. Imprest confirmation, Imprest estimation sheet printing is also available. Outdoor Dispatching Includes dispatching log,

Benefits Mega Ports Agencies is now currently enjoying a wide array of advantages and functionalities via MS Dynamics NAVI - Ship Agency/ Shipping Management Solution, courtesy of Asterisk. Customer information is now seamlessly updated within differing departments. Data is now quicker to locate and generate. The system exceeds their expectations in handling financial transactions as well as dealing with extensive and urgent issues such as credit limit and overdue balances. Manual processes has turned automated making it easier for the staff to carry on with their usual job functions and more, all with the help of MS Dynamics NAVI - Ship Agency/ Shipping Management Solution.

loading/discharging record and even vessel/voyage information maintenance and vessel movement report. Also vessel mode switch is available as well as easily generating a crew list of a certain voyage. Querying and Statistic - Get a comprehensive view of related information such as Vessel information querying, Agent vessels collection table, Agent business volume statistic and analysis, Collecting cargo volume according to cargo type

New Vessel Setup Chart of Accounts, Customer - Vessel setup, Track weight of vessel, Multiple revenue, Collect on Behalf/Interdependently, BL report format

Product Overview Voyage Master Expense transaction, Advance Transaction, Crew Master, Vessel Invoice Status, Vessel Crew, Agency/ Voyage Estimates Advance Payment Transfer advance payment entry, Refund advance payment entry, Adjust advance payment entry, Advance payment stations Expenses Vendor, Expense purchase invoice, Expense purchase credit invoice, Ship management purchase journal, Ship management general journal Invoicing Generate invoice, Change billing customer, Split expense invoice , Assign/Unassign DA, Track status of vessel Budget entry View expenses for each vessel, Set budget for each vessel AP history Agency Estimate, Voyage Setup, Update Vessel Position Report Reconciliation, Owner

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