The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) has introduced DCSA+, a partnership program that promotes the use of digital standards in the container shipping industry. The initiative seeks to enhance supply chain efficiency and resilience.
As container shipping moves towards a new era of digitalisation, DCSA said collaboration has never been more critical and DCSA+ will provide industry leaders with a structured programme for organisations across sectors to ensure the industry moves forward in a coordinated and efficient manner.
While DCSA's core membership plays a vital role in shaping foundational digital standards, DCSA+ extends participation to a wider group across the container shipping value chain, including cargo owners, feeders, freight forwarders, technology providers, and terminals so standards and digital solutions can be developed to more effectively address a broad spectrum of industry challenges.
"By joining DCSA+, partners will gain direct access to the tools, insights, and collaborative opportunities that will empower them to tackle industry-wide challenges, accelerate their implementation of standards with expert guidance from DCSA’s team, and contribute to the development of future digital standards," it said.
The programme is built around three key service offerings: connect to boost industry relationships through engagement, collaborations, and access to other exclusive networking opportunities and industry insights; accelerate to receive direct implementation support from DCSA experts and leverage a digital implementation portal; and partners can also contribute to influencing the future of digital shipping through participation in early-stage testing of new standards, access to exclusive previews of upcoming DCSA roadmap developments, and the provision of input during Alpha and Beta phases of new standardisation initiatives.
"The launch of DCSA+ is an exciting next step in our mission to digitally transform the container shipping industry. This programme is about more than just accelerating the adoption of digital standards ─ it’s about making them work for the entire industry," said Mariana Bock-Losada, chief growth officer, DCSA.
"By expanding engagement beyond ocean carriers, we are enabling a more diverse group of stakeholders across the value chain to actively participate in shaping and implementing digital standards, complementing the important work carried out by our members over the past few years," she added.
The DCSA chief growth officer noted that this approach ensures that digital solutions are practical, scalable, and aligned with the evolving needs of the industry.
"The enthusiasm we have seen so far proves that the industry is ready to embrace this change together. We look forward to welcoming partners and continuing this vital work together," she added.
The DCSA+ Partnership Programme will officially launch on March 5.
DCSA is composed of 10 of the largest ocean carriers representing 75% of global trade volume to digitise and standardise the container shipping industry.
Its open-source standards are developed based on input from DCSA member carriers, industry stakeholders, and technology experts from other industries. DCSA member carriers include MSC, Maersk, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, Evergreen, Yang Ming, HMM, ZIM, and PIL.