Partnerships help PIL accelerate digital transformations

Pacific International Lines (PIL) has accelerated its digital transformation across 90 countries through partnerships with two technology companies.

The Singapore-headquartered container shipping group is integrating automation, artificial intelligence (AI) and digital twins into its operations and expanded its intelligence-processing centre.

PIL is using the Celonis to create a dynamic, real-time digital twin of its operations to understand how operational processes are applied and where to improve them.

WNS will help PIL embed Celonis’ capabilities across the shipowner’s systems and operations, including across a fleet of more than 100 container vessels.

PIL chief commercial officer, Lionel Chatelet, explained why these partnerships were necessary and the benefits they should generate.

“In shipping, we are often dealing with dozens of different systems across the globe, which makes it hard to see where things are actually slowing down,” he said.

“We are using Celonis as it gives us a single, clear view of how our processes are running in real life.”

This is visibility across global shipping workflows, from customer-facing operations to back-office processes.

PIL anticipates getting faster identification and resolution of operational inefficiencies through process standardisation across its various operations.

It intends to use AI-driven automation for smarter, more resilient operations at scale.

“It is not just about efficiency,” said Mr Chatelet. “It is about getting to learn how to make our operations leaner and faster.”