SATS Ltd. (SATS) has signed a three-year agreement with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to expand the rollout and implementation of DG AutoCheck compliance solution for the safe handling and transportation of dangerous goods shipments at key stations across its international network.

The air cargo handler said this follows its acquisition of Worldwide Flight Services (WFS), further strengthening its global footprint.

SATS noted that the expanded agreement will facilitate the adoption of DG AutoCheck at both existing and new stations across the combined SATS and WFS network, which now operates over 215 stations in 27 countries.

This network handles trade routes responsible for over 50% of global air cargo volume, enabling SATS to play a crucial role in ensuring the safe transportation of dangerous goods.

 [Source: SATS]

"SATS is proud to have signed the first global agreement with IATA to implement DG AutoCheck across our network as part of our commitment to the highest standards of aviation safety and security," said Henry Low, SATS chief operating officer and CEO-designate of SATS Singapore Hub.

He noted that IATA's initiative is helping to maximise safety and improve efficiency by ensuring clear compliance and visibility of dangerous goods shipments moving by air cargo.

DG AutoCheck is an automated compliance solution that optimises dangerous goods acceptance processes to ensure the highest level of safety.

Developed with airlines, ground handlers, and freight forwarders, it replaces manual cross-references of the Shipper's Declaration for Dangerous Goods (DGD) and IATA's Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) to help eradicate the chances of errors that may lead to shipment rejections, fines, and penalties for non-compliance.

"We are pleased to support SATS and WFS in the expanded implementation of DG AutoCheck across their global network. This solution significantly enhances the safety, accuracy, and efficiency of dangerous goods handling, which is critical as air cargo volumes continue to grow," said David Wall, IATA director of safety and cargo compliance & operations solutions. 

"SATS' commitment to adopting innovative safety measures sets a strong example for the entire industry," he added.

Airlines, freight forwarders, and cargo handlers transport over 1.25 million dangerous goods annually, and according to the IATA, this is forecast to grow by 4.9% in the next five years.

Using DG AutoCheck, IATA noted that cargo operations teams can process a shipment in as little as 5 minutes, automatically generate a detailed report of compliance issues together with IATA DGR references, calculate Q Value instantaneously, and make physical inspections easier with the package preview that shows required marks, labels, and packaging requirements.

It will also display all applicable state or operator variations with a simple click of a button, get reliable business intelligence data and insights on processes to identify opportunities for improvement, is e-DGD ready (XSDG), and provides data for NOTOC.

IATA's DG AutoCheck also enables the automated transfer of DG data to CMS using Connect API IATA and users have reported up to a 50% reduction in processing time and a reduction in errors compared to manual processing.