The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) has published IoT Standard for Gateway Connectivity Interfaces, for shipping containers
The DCSA internet of things (IoT) standards can be implemented by vessel operators and owners, ports, terminals, container yards, inland logistics providers and other third parties to ensure interoperability. It includes radio standards for gateways on vessel, on land, at event locations and in handheld devices and provides connectivity recommendations that are vendor and platform agnostic to reduce investment risk, increase operational efficiency and enable innovation.
DCSA said that by implementing these standards, stakeholders will be closer to providing customers with an uninterrupted flow of information to track cargo at any point along the container journey.
DCSA chief executive Thomas Bagge said the release will help to enable the mass deployment of ’smart containers’. “Once implemented, our IoT standards will enable, for example, reefer container tracking, monitoring and controlling along the entire container journey, with no connectivity blind spots. This will provide more value to the end customer while increasing the efficiency of container operations.”
In May, speaking at Riviera’s recent webinar on digitalisation, DCSA chief operating officer Henning Schleyerbach said operators would invest in smart container tracking devices when the standards for data communications are ready.
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe chief of trade facilitation section Maria Rosaria Ceccarelli said DCSA’s new standards will help align the industry in terms of IoT interoperability and that the standards are “complementary with the UN/CEFACT interoperability standards, namely the Multi Modal Transport Data Reference Model and the Smart Container Business Requirement Specifications in particular.”
DCSA, a nine-member association, was established in 2019 to drive digitalisation in container shipping. The new standards are the first of three planned IoT standards releases addressing connectivity requirements for reefer and dry containers, as well as the RFID registration of these containers. The association said future releases will focus on data structure and handling, physical device specifications as well as security and access management. IoT Standard for Gateway Connectivity Interfaces can be accessed here.
Get the latest information and viewpoints on maritime digitalisation during Riviera Maritime Media’s series of webinar weeks on key technical subjects in shipping
© 2023 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.