Businesses frequently rely on a complicated web of overseas partners and suppliers for everything from acquiring raw materials to manufacturing goods to reaching customers. Effective collaboration with these foreign organizations is essential to a company’s success since it can result in enhanced productivity, better product quality, and access to new markets.

An “open network” is a type of collaboration in which all parties involved — enterprises, partners, and suppliers — cooperate in an open, welcoming, and communicative atmosphere. This model encourages information exchange, builds confidence, and gives each organization the freedom to contribute to the fullest extent possible, resulting in a supply chain that is more effective and efficient. Companies that work closely with their suppliers perform better than their competitors and may experience cost reductions of 5 to 10% and revenue increases of 7 to 10%, depending on the industry.

The Challenges of International Collaboration

Despite the obvious advantages, international cooperation has its share of difficulties. Businesses that collaborate with foreign partners and suppliers frequently face a number of challenges that might thwart productive collaboration.

Dealing with time zones is one of these difficulties. Meetings, answers, and deadlines can become difficult to coordinate when your partners or suppliers are spread out across the globe. Communication lags can result in operational bottlenecks and delayed decision-making processes.

Another difficulty is a disparity in culture. Every nation has specific social norms and business practices. A business activity that is considered normal in one culture might not be acceptable in another. Due to cultural differences, there may be misunderstandings, which can cause misinterpretation and slow down operations as well as potentially ruin corporate relationships.

The absence of transparency might also cause a big problem. Lack of transparency in the activities of partners or suppliers can cause mistrust, misalignment, and inefficiencies in business relationships.

These difficulties highlight the need for a more transparent, open, and effective method of international cooperation, which is where the idea of an open network comes in. An open network resolves all the aforementioned issues, allowing companies to collaborate easily with their international partners and suppliers.

The Benefits of an Open Network

An open network offers a wide range of advantages that can greatly improve cooperation, especially when working with international partners and suppliers.

Improved Communication and Information Sharing. An open network guarantees that everyone is on the same page and lessens the possibility of misunderstanding by providing a platform where all parties may communicate freely and in real time. Additionally, it encourages efficient information sharing by enabling suppliers and partners to swiftly exchange crucial data, updates, and insights.

Enhanced Transparency and Trust. Another important advantage of an open network is transparency. Partners and suppliers can better align their procedures and expectations, lowering the likelihood of mistakes or misalignments, when they are aware of each other’s business operations. Additionally, this openness fosters trust. Businesses that are open in their operations show that they are dependable and honest, which builds trust among all parties.

Streamlined Operations and Improved Efficiency. Last but not least, an open network can result in greater efficiency and more streamlined operations. Businesses can get rid of pointless delays, cut errors, and improve workflows with clear communication, increased transparency, and higher confidence. Shorter time to market, lower costs, and greater product quality can all be the outcomes of increased efficiency.

How to Build an Open Network

Strategic planning, an investment in the appropriate tools, and the promotion of an open and inclusive culture are all necessary for creating an open network. Here are some guidelines for building a successful open network.

Leverage Digital Platforms and Tools. There are many platforms and tools available that can encourage transparent communication and collaboration. Businesses may interact with their overseas partners and suppliers in real-time using cloud-based collaboration tools, supply chain management systems, and data-sharing platforms, ensuring that everyone has access to the information they require when they need it. Blockchain technology can offer a transparent and secure manner of recording and validating transactions.

Promote a Culture of Openness and Inclusivity. A truly open network considers both technology and culture. Businesses need to promote an environment where all partners and suppliers are respected and heard. This may entail putting policies into place that promote candid communication, inclusivity, and respect for one another. It also entails recognizing cultural distinctions and figuring out how to fill up the gaps to enable effective collaboration.

Encourage Regular Communication and Feedback. An open network cannot function without consistent communication. Businesses should promote constant communication with their partners and suppliers, keeping them informed of any changes or developments and, when appropriate, soliciting their input. The establishment of feedback channels is also crucial. Giving partners and suppliers the freedom to express their issues, recommendations, or ideas helps promote innovation and ongoing improvement.

Ropaar’s Approach to Fostering an Open Network

Ropaar leverages its expertise in SAP services and next-generation technologies to facilitate effective collaboration. Our SAP services, including Global Trade Services (GTS) implementation and support, provide robust and integrated solutions that streamline operations and improve visibility across the supply chain.

Ropaar’s use of advanced technologies such as AI, machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT) allows for real-time data sharing, increased operational transparency, and improved decision-making. This digital-first approach not only enhances efficiency but also fosters a high level of trust and cooperation among all parties involved.

By leveraging Ropaar’s years of experience in foreign trade, you can be confident that your organization can overcome current and future global trade challenges. Contact us to learn more about our solutions and services.

The intricate world of international trade can intimidate businesses involved in importing and exporting products. Achieving compliance with customs requirements and reducing the possibility of expensive delays, fines, and penalties are crucial aspects of this process, especially in trade classification.

Classifying imported or exported products is a complex endeavor. Numerous potential pitfalls can trip up even seasoned professionals. Some of the most frequent errors include incorrect or outdated product classifications, improper use of classification codes, and misinterpretation of classification guidelines.

While these mistakes might appear minor, they can lead to significant consequences, such as:

• Delayed shipments: Improperly classified products may face hold-ups at customs until the correct classification is determined, delaying shipments and causing financial losses for importers or exporters.

• Increased costs: For example, if importers or exporters pay the incorrect customs duty amount due to a wrong classification, they may need to pay the difference plus interest, which can become a substantial financial burden.

• Potential legal issues: Importers or exporters who classify products non-compliantly may face fines or other penalties.

Reasons for trade classification mistakes and errors

Several factors contribute to the prevalence of trade classification errors, including the complex nature of international trade classification systems and constantly evolving procedures.

Manual processes and data entry errors also pose challenges in trade classification, particularly in systems like the Harmonized System (HS). A Thomson Reuters and KPMG study (as cited by the World Customs Organization) discovered that 95% of participants encountered difficulties with HS classification, emphasizing the challenges of predominantly manual classification processes.

The enormous volume of daily imported and exported products enables errors to slip through unnoticed in various trade classification systems. Additionally, insufficient internal procedures and control mechanisms worsen these problems, leaving inaccuracies undetected and unresolved.

Strategies successful global traders use to avoid mistakes and errors

Global traders avoid trade classification pitfalls by employing various strategies, including staying current with the latest classification guidelines and changes and ensuring their staff is well-informed and capable of classifying products accurately.

However, leading global traders understand the importance of establishing robust internal processes for classification and utilizing intelligent solutions like ClassifAI, a machine learning assist tool for trade classification.

ClassifAI significantly lowers the risk of human error by standardizing and automating much of the classification process and offering a more efficient method of handling classification tasks. It employs algorithmic intelligence and continually learns and updates its knowledge base to stay current with classification changes, ensuring that businesses using the platform comply with the latest requirements.

With ClassifAI, global traders can achieve the following:

• Predict trade classification with 99%+ accuracy

  ClassifAI harnesses the predictive power of product-related supply chain data already existing in the company’s ERP system. It helps achieve 99% accuracy in predicting the correct classification for fully qualified HS codes and more than 99% for the 6-digit harmonized classification.

• Empower users to confidently choose classifications

  ClassifAI’s predicted classifications are accompanied by predicted probabilities. When there is a high likelihood for a single AI-suggested classification, the tool assists users in reaching a decision, offering extra reassurance when selecting evident classifications.

• Avoid costly consequences

  By improving classification accuracy, ClassifAI reduces the risk of delays and penalties associated with classification errors, saving businesses both time and money.

• Improve efficiency

  The increased efficiency the tool provides frees up valuable resources, allowing staff to focus on other important tasks and responsibilities.

• Increase compliance

  By staying up-to-date with the latest classification changes, the platform helps businesses reduce their audit risks and maintain a strong reputation within their industry. This can be particularly important for companies operating in highly regulated sectors, such as life sciences and chemicals.

ClassifAI supports multiple industries, catering to various sectors and ensuring that the platform is tailored to meet specific classification needs. This level of customization and adaptability is invaluable for companies dealing with diverse product lines and ever-evolving regulations.

Moreover, ClassifAI seamlessly integrates with existing systems and processes, allowing businesses to easily incorporate it into their current workflows without the need for extensive changes or overhauls.

Get started

In the competitive landscape of global trade, minimizing trade classification mistakes and errors is essential for ongoing success. By leveraging advanced technology like ClassifAI, businesses can simplify their classification processes, improve accuracy, and reduce the risk of costly mistakes.

Don’t let trade classification errors hold your business back. Learn more about how ClassifAI helps overcome common classification challenges and enhance your global trading capabilities. Request a demo today.

International trade is a crucial driver of global economic growth but comes with unique risks: currency fluctuations, trade barriers, geopolitical instability, and product quality and safety concerns. Managing these risks is essential for businesses engaged in international trade to ensure successful outcomes. Fortunately, companies can increasingly rely on digital solutions to manage these risks like a pro.

Understanding International Trade Risks

Before diving into digital solutions, it’s essential to understand the types of risks involved in international trade. These risks include political, credit, market, operational, legal, and regulatory risks. These risks can cause significant financial losses for businesses if not properly managed.

Identifying and assessing potential risks early on is critical in developing a proactive approach to risk management. For instance, a company that exports goods to a country facing political instability may face delayed or canceled shipments and, in the worst-case scenario, the loss of its products. On the other hand, a company importing raw materials from a supplier that goes bankrupt could result in financial losses due to missed production deadlines. Thus, businesses must identify and analyze these risks to minimize their impact.

Top Digital Solutions for International Trade Risk Management

Digital solutions can be advantageous for businesses seeking to stay ahead of the curve when managing international trade risks. The use of digital technologies offers promise in reducing trade and transaction costs, which includes identifying and negotiating a deal, demonstrating compliance with standards, and delivering products across borders quickly and efficiently.

Here’s a round-up of the top digital solutions that can help businesses manage risks in international trade:

Data Analytics can help businesses gain real-time insights into their supply chains, enabling them to identify potential risks before they become significant issues. This solution can help companies to monitor changes in currency exchange rates, trade policies, and geopolitical events, allowing them to adjust their strategies accordingly.

Artificial Intelligence can support businesses in automating various processes related to international trade, such as customs and regulatory compliance. For example, AI can help enterprises automatically classify products for import and export purposes, ensuring compliance with customs regulations. Similarly, AI can help screen for potential trade sanctions and embargo violations, minimizing the risk of fines and penalties.

Blockchain Technology can assist businesses in improving transparency and accountability throughout the entire trade process, from manufacturing to the final destination. For example, blockchain technology can help companies to track and trace products, ensuring that they comply with safety and quality standards. Additionally, blockchain technology can help businesses protect against counterfeiting and intellectual property theft, minimizing the risk of reputational damage and financial loss.

The Internet of Things (IoT) can improve the visibility of the supply chain, optimize warehouse operations, and monitor the condition of goods in transit. By utilizing IoT-enabled sensors and devices, businesses can receive real-time data on the location and status of shipments, enabling them to make informed decisions, reduce waste, and improve customer satisfaction. For example, IoT can monitor the condition of goods during transit, alerting businesses if any parameters deviate from expectations and allowing them to take corrective action. Additionally, IoT can automate inventory tracking, optimize routing, and improve material handling, resulting in overall warehouse efficiency.

Global Trade Compliance Platforms, such as SAP S4 International Trade and SAP GTS can help businesses comply with complex regulations related to international trade. These platforms often include tariff and duty management, customs declaration management, and trade sanction screening, which can help businesses avoid fines and penalties.

By leveraging these solutions, companies can gain a competitive advantage in the global marketplace and achieve success in their respective industries.

For example, in the CPG industry, digital solutions can help ensure compliance with packaging, labeling, and product safety regulations. In the food and beverage industry, digital solutions can help businesses comply with food safety standards and regulations while also helping to track and trace products to minimize the impact of any quality issues.

In the sporting goods industry, digital solutions can help manage risks related to counterfeit products and intellectual property theft. Similarly, in the chemicals industry, digital solutions can help ensure compliance with safety regulations while also helping to mitigate risks associated with hazardous materials.

Overall, these digital solutions offer businesses the ability to identify and manage risks associated with international trade while minimizing costs and ensuring compliance with regulations.

Achieve Pro-Level Risk Management in International Trade with Ropaar

Ropaar offers systems integration services focused on a range of digital solutions for international trade risk management, including their SAP GTS and SAP S4 International Trade.

SAP S4 International Trade and SAP GTS are powerful software platforms that help businesses manage their global trade operations more effectively. Among the features and capabilities offered by the platform are those that aid companies in identifying and managing risks associated with international trade. These include:

Global Trade Compliance: SAP GTS includes a comprehensive global trade compliance module that helps businesses comply with complex regulations related to international trade. The module includes tariff and duty management, customs declaration management, and trade sanction screening, which can help businesses avoid fines and penalties.

Trade Document Management: SAP GTS includes a robust document management system that helps businesses manage the large volumes of trade documents generated during international transactions. The system’s highly automated design minimizes the risk of errors and delays.

Trade Analytics: SAP GTS includes powerful analytics capabilities that allow businesses to gain insights into their trade operations. The platform can provide real-time data on metrics such as import and export volumes, compliance rates, and costs, which can help businesses make informed decisions about their trade operations.

To sum up, Ropaar’s services focused on SAP International Trade Management solutions provide a robust digital solution for managing risks in international trade that presents a variety of features and capabilities that aim to assist businesses in prospering in the worldwide market. Whether you’re looking to streamline your trade operations, minimize risks, or ensure compliance with regulations, SAP solutions can help you achieve your goals and stay ahead of the curve. Talk to our experts today!

The food industry has crucial roles and responsibilities in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Most of these goals are associated with the sector — including SDGs 2 (Zero Hunger), 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), and 12 (Sustainable Consumption And Production). At the firm level, global food companies can significantly contribute to achieving SDGs and reap competitive advantages by weaving sustainability into their foreign trade processes.

Help Strengthen The Pillars

According to the Handbook for SDG-Aligned Food Companies, international food traders can use the Four Pillars Framework to evaluate their alignment with the SDGs.

Pillar 1: Beneficial Products. International food traders must ensure that their products are healthy and sustainable, employ “responsible, equitable, and honest marketing and labeling practices,” and keep the products secure and safe until they reach end consumers.

Pillars 2 and 3: Sustainable Operations and Value Chain: International food traders must participate in minimizing greenhouse gas emissions, water footprint, and food waste. They should also help eliminate human and animal abuses, respect resource rights and ensure occupational health and safety.

Pillar 4: Good Corporate Citizenship. International food traders must “implement governance structures and management systems that center impacts of the company’s operations, products, and value chain on people and planet.” They must also observe responsible tax and litigation practices and support the government’s efforts to achieve the SDGs without influencing policymakers to advance the company’s interest.

To help “strengthen the pillars,” food companies must comply with relevant standards (such as USDA-mandated requirements) and implement sustainable practices when exporting or importing ingredients and food products.

Overcome Foreign Trade Challenges And Disruptions

The inherent complexity of the food sector’s value chain makes it difficult to achieve sustainable foreign trade management. Many internal and external players are involved in end-to-end food production and distribution. Ensuring sustainability can be daunting when visibility, transparency, and traceability are poor. Processing compliance papers alone can be complicated, particularly when the process is mainly manual and paper-based.

Aside from compliance processing challenges when importing or exporting food products, various supply chain events can be a problem. Supply chain disruptions (e.g., labor, transportation, and container shortages; inflation; and the pandemic) can have cascading effects such as longer shipping times that lead to food contamination, food waste, and other “non-sustainable” consequences.

How do you overcome these challenges?

Use The Right Global Trade Solutions

There is no single recipe for foreign trade problems and sustainable food product trading. However, implementing robust solutions that optimize visibility, transparency, and traceability, eliminate manual and paper-based processes, and increase regulatory confidence can all be a great help.

Ropaar helps food exporters and importers implement robust SAP foreign trade solutions. This enables them to be more sustainable in international trade management. Ropaar’s technical and industry expertise can help international food traders gain the following from SAP deployments:

• Automated management of foreign trade zone admissions
• Simplified intercompany cross-border goods movement via invoice integration
• Improved data quality and compliance
• Reduced costs with consolidated import/export filing

Food companies can take advantage of our industry expertise in food production and processing. This includes compliance with USDA-mandated requirements for all major protein exporting companies, inventory-managed customs procedures, exception-based compliance processes with denied-party screening, and self-filing import/export documentation.

Conclusion

Food companies have a crucial role in achieving Sustainable Development Goals. And making their international trade management sustainable is one of the key ways they can participate in achieving sustainability.

Ropaar helps international food traders to integrate sustainability into their foreign trade processes. They also gain competitive advantages by using proven GTS services and solutions.

Let’s talk and see how our global trade experts can help your company achieve sustainable foreign trade processes. Contact us.

The world is becoming increasingly interconnected as we develop interdependence among countries. The driving force behind globalization is global trade – with multiple industries sourcing their products from across the globe to find the best prices and deals. With this, several countries leverage their industry expertise and turn to export as an avenue to expand their businesses.

Global trade compliance requirements continuously change, making foreign trade management a challenge for exporters. Moreover, the supply chain partner ecosystem and foreign trade networks rapidly expand. These issues leave several businesses in a bind as customers demand quick and frictionless transactions with the expectation of automated and streamlined processes.

SAP Global Trade Services

SAP Global Trade Services (GTS) has been a helpful solution for businesses that want to simplify their global trade processes. It streamlines transactions by allowing supply chain leaders to automate, standardize, centralize, and manage trade compliance requirements. These processes help maintain consistency across global operations, advance trade within the supply chain, automate trade compliance, and boost bottom-line profitability.

Implementing SAP S/4HANA Foreign Trade Management

Despite the preexisting solution already provided by SAP GTS, customers are now migrating or looking into migrating to SAP S/4HANA to take advantage of its embedded foreign trade management solution. Unlike SAP GTS, SAP S/4HANA has a less comprehensive set of global trade services. However, SAP S/4HANA has unique benefits that specifically aid foreign trade management. These advantages include:

• Having a simplified data model for greater sociability, flexibility, and agility
• Offering a Fiori-based user experience to help all lines of business in managing foreign trade processes
• Featuring advanced capabilities such as Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
• Automating vital activities for a more seamless and cost-efficient international trade management

The main challenge in implementing SAP S/4HANA Foreign Trade Management is customizability to business needs. While it is customizable, it takes superior expertise to ensure that the system is accordingly calibrated and executed. SAP S/4HANA requires specific technical skills to architect, implement, and optimize the system with minimal error and threat.

To add to this, SAP S/4HANA entails upgrades for the system to be up to par with the technical requirements for continuous implementation. SAP S/4HANA requires many IT resources for day-to-day management and security. With this, an IT team must be able to spot when SAP S/4HANA performance begins to degrade and resolve any cyberattacks that may occur.

The TradeBlazer’s Approach

Customer-centric implementation partners such as Ropaar offer a relational customer engagement approach to help businesses implement SAP S/4HANA Foreign Trade Management into their systems. Unlike other implementation partners, Ropaar steers away from cookie-cutter solutions. We study your business thoroughly to assess your needs and provide a tailored solution to your unique problems and needs.

Ropaar first assesses your needs to identify areas where we can help you. Then, we align with you regarding your global footprint and risk exposure needs to consider potential facets in SAP implementation. Finally, we come up with a solution made for you and accelerate time to value with our deep domain expertise, robust frameworks, and AI/ML capabilities.

With our TradeBlazer approach, we can help your business implement SAP S/4HANA Foreign Trade Management solutions by:

• Offering expert consulting on SAP S/4HANA migration and foreign trade functions and processes
• Providing seamless integration of SAP S/4HANA Foreign Trade Management with SAP GTS, SAP Watch List Screening, and other SAP and non-SAP tools
• Utilizing global rollout capabilities and reliable SAP S/4HANA Foreign Trade Management services
• Training end-users and project team on proper implementation and maintenance of SAP S/4HANA Foreign Trade Management

Learn more about our TradeBlazer approach by requesting a demo with us.

Digital transformation has reduced the costs of international trade, affording organizations and enterprises across the globe various opportunities to trade different products, goods, and other commodities. This has resulted in growing competitiveness in the international trade scene as stated by the Digital Trade: Developing a Framework for Analysis report and the World Trade Organization.

This growing competitiveness is a two-sided coin. On the one hand, there are greater possibilities. Enterprises can now offer smaller companies, brands, and even individuals to get into the business of trade. On the other hand, there are more complexities. Trade facilitation has evolved in the digital era as more small parcels cross international borders.

According to the ITIF (Information Technology and Innovation Foundation), “data-localization policies are spreading rapidly around the world.” This significantly decreases trade and productivity as well as increases prices for impacted industries. Cross-border data flows also raise new issues in privacy, intellectual property, cybersecurity, and industrial policy. For almost 8 years now, the landscape for digitally-enabled services has become more restrictive with the implementation of measures that impact communications infrastructure and connectivity — some of these measures affect cross-border data movement.

In addition, rising geopolitical tensions also impact cross-border trade. In an illustrative 2022 simulation study published by the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), “The war in Ukraine and the sanctions imposed on Russia have intensified the debate on the economic repercussions of a shift in global trade policy focus from mutual economic benefits of open trade policies to geopolitical considerations limiting interdependence.” The study also forecasts a possible decoupling of the global trading system into two coalitions: a US-centric and a China-centric. This is threatening to reduce global welfare in 2040 by about 5%.

The economic hangover of the COVID-19 pandemic also — and still — presents a challenge. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), international trade during the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in big shifts and uncertainties. In this 2022 publication, OECD highlights trade impacts across specific goods, services and trade partners, which are described as “highly diverse, creating pressures on specific sectors and supply chains.” OECD states, “The changes in the trade structure caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in a single year was of a similar magnitude to changes otherwise typically seen over 4-5 years.”

All of these result in a high level of unpredictability impacting global trade with subsequent planning difficulties for supply chains and their operations.

Overcoming the Barriers to Trade Cross-border data flows can become a challenge as governments impose dynamic compliance regulations. To address this, companies must increase visibility into global transactions. Increasing visibility into global transactions is key to achieving efficiency in data localization policies around the world in cross-border trade.

Addressing rising geopolitical tensions requires flexibly adapting and meeting region-specific customs and compliance requirements. One approach does not fit all. Also, companies must aim to minimize delays and contain the rising cost of compliance in the post-COVID-19 world, so a dynamic and flexible approach is key to navigating the big shifts and uncertainties. These are highly tedious and complex tasks, but they are non-negotiable.

These areas are where SAP Global Trade Services (GTS) can help. SAP GTS helps companies accelerate cross-border supply chains by automating and streamlining trade processes, so enterprises can control costs, reduce the risk of penalties and fines, and clear customs faster. With a single repository for all compliance master data and content, you can centralize global trade management. With SAP GTS, your company can trade globally with confidence:

• Next-Generation Export and Import Management
  

  You can take advantage of automation and direct filing to effectively manage export/import compliance, minimize logistics and brokerage charges, and improve product classification.

• Simplified Trade Preference Management
  

  You can strategically leverage free trade agreements, maximize eligible products through preference determination, and efficiently manage vendor declarations.

• Adaptive Customs Management
  

  You can leverage FTZs, support region-specific duty minimization, deferral and avoidance regimes, and meet Intrastat and Excise movement requirements.

• Data-Driven Restricted Party Screening

  You can optimize the screening of denied or restricted parties to avoid global trade violations and delays.

Implementing SAP GTS can be challenging at first, though. But the good news is that there are companies like Ropaar that can help you. With Ropaar, you can navigate new trade regulations and region-specific trade policies and regulatory frameworks with SAP GTS. By leveraging Ropaar’s years of experience in supply chain management, you can be confident that your organization can overcome current and future supply chain challenges. Contact us to learn more about our solutions and services.

The most recent crisis has accelerated the integration of technology in trade and business. However, technological disruption is not new to international trade. Innovations such as Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to read container numbers, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and QR codes to identify and trace shipments, and digitized trade documents have modernized international trade and improved its reliability and efficiency. Today, however, many companies are leveraging new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, autonomous operations, the Cloud, and other technologies to unlock new opportunities for goods and services in the logistics chain. These innovative technologies make trade easier and more efficient by streamlining complex processes. The 2021 Future of Trade report discussed critical digital trends that will continue to disrupt global trade. Some of the significant points are: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly emerging in many sectors as mainstream. Several businesses have deployed AI in diverse types of autonomous vehicles, intelligent robotics, and automated supply chain management. With AI, companies can enhance trade shipping routes, oversee vessel and truck traffic at ports, and obtain real-time translation in different languages during verification and certification processes. Automation in warehouse management systems includes autonomous robots for order fulfillment. ABI Research estimates that over four million robots will be installed in more than 50,000 warehouses globally by 2025. Automation in ports and shipping continues to drive innovation like the Port of Rotterdam, which is developing a ‘digital twin’ of its port based on sensor data. Its goal is to communicate directly with other systems, such as autonomous ships, by 2030. Other game-changing ports follow suit, starting with Dubai’s DP World deploying autonomous boats and Australia and Singapore having fully automated terminals. China also has unmanned intelligent port solutions like driverless port container trucks. Blockchain or distributed ledger technology (DLT) is now being used by major IT companies such as IBM, AWS, Oracle, and SAP to deploy supply chain solutions. PwC study predicted that the blockchain technology would boost the global economy to US$1.76 trillion in 2030. Blockchain can be utilized for smart contracts and ‘track and trace’ applications. Track and trace systems allow for product status and location to be tracked in real-time and provide historical information about the product’s origin. Blockchain creates an immutable record of the product’s location and streamlines complex trade processes such as bills of lading, letters of credit, and other customs clearance documents. Cloud services have become the norm due to the rapid adoption of online services after the crisis. Gartner forecasted a 22.1% growth in cloud services spending in 2022. The Internet of Things (IoT), which uses sensors to gather and transmit real-time data about a shipment’s physical condition, provides accurate visibility throughout the supply chain. IoT can be used to identify bottlenecks and produce accurate status updates. Together with other technologies such as AI, collected data patterns can facilitate predictive analysis and contingency planning and optimize transit speed, cost and security. 3D printing has been shown to help address supply-demand imbalances and delays in well-established supply chains. It is gaining momentum for prototypes, replacement parts, toys, shoes, and medical devices. A World Bank study identified a 58% increase in the trade of hearing aids using 3D printing. With these cutting-edge technologies, global trade can be made more efficient, far-reaching, and cost-effective. Companies that have yet to digitally transform their businesses to take advantage of these new technologies are missing out big time. Level Up Using SAP Solutions It is time to level up your supply chain processes by leveraging a next-gen foreign trade solution engineered by an experienced vendor. Ropaar uses SAP’s proven on-premises and cloud solutions to help businesses cope with disruptions caused by new technologies.

• SAP Global Trade Services (GTS)A complete suite of solutions for global trade management that empowers you to automate, standardize, centralize, and manage global trade compliance requirements for smoother and faster global transactions. With SAP GTS, you can drive consistency across global operations, elevate global trade in your organization, automate trade compliance, and drive bottom-line savings.
• SAP Logistics Business NetworkAllows logistics organizations to collaborate digitally on an open network to accelerate and simplify logistics processes. SAP LBN leverages advanced technologies such as Cloud and Blockchain to optimize traceability and freight collaboration.
• SAP International Trade ManagementEmpowers businesses to ensure legal compliance, manage International Trade activities integrated into the supply chain, and reduce work effort through automation. With SAP International Trade Management, companies can optimize on-time delivery performance, facilitate compliance and risk management costs, and minimize overall supply chain planning expenses.
• SAP Watch List ScreeningA robust cloud-based application that streamlines and automates the entire screening process using the most updated, correct, and complete information. With SAP Watch List Screening, you can optimize screening compliance, reduce supply chain disruptions and delays, and minimize the cost and effort of third-party due diligence.

Let Ropaar help you reduce the impact these new technologies have on your business. Request a demo today!

Regardless of how well-planned, well-managed, or well-orchestrated you think your logistics and transportation processes are, disruption can happen at any moment and result in customer and financial losses. The Suez Canal obstruction, which froze nearly $10 billion in trade daily, is one great example of bolt-from-the-blue supply chain events.

International shipping is expensive – with or without a supply chain disruption – due to transportation distance, compliance requirements, and assets needed to deliver the goods. It’s been a challenge for global players to cut transport costs without sacrificing speed to satisfy customers and obtain higher profits.

The Price Of Speed

“Speed-hungry customers” are willing to pay more for lightning-fast delivery. A 2022 report revealed that 73% of consumers “view fast delivery as critical online shopping criteria, a 16% increase from 2020.”

Likewise, businesses are willing to spend more to accelerate shipping. Amazon, for one, “spent a massive $9.6 billion on global shipping costs in the third quarter of 2019.” It hired more than 100,000 people and deployed more than 100,000 robots in the same year to work for its transportation and logistics. In 2021, the e-commerce giant announced pay increases across its transportation and fulfillment networks.

But how can other businesses compete with or get their cue from the likes of Amazon when it comes to international shipping? How can they find the right balance between keeping costs to a minimum and accelerating shipping?

Control And Visibility

Ensuring seamless and fast delivery of goods is more difficult for international traders because visibility and control can be limited. You will face various roadblocks during the entire process, from utilizing and managing your global transportation and logistics assets to ensuring all orders are in the correct containers and reach the right customers at the right time.

To remove the roadblocks, you need to improve visibility and control by

• Integrating core supply chain and business processes.
• Automating and standardizing order management and transportation planning.
• Obtaining end-to-end visibility into all transport activities.

SAP Transportation Management (SAP TM) solution empowers you to achieve these goals.

The Right ‘Vehicle’

By leveraging the SAP TM solution, you can create rules-based routing proposals to minimize freight costs and enhance customer service. SAP TM lets you fully harness data to improve resource utilization and carrier selection, avoid costly errors, and achieve right-time delivery.

SAP TM allows your organization to increase accuracy, efficiency, and speed by eliminating manual activities. It enables you to maximize the return on transportation spend through automated freight settlement, consolidation, and negotiation with simulation and what-if analysis. SAP TM also improves transparency using automated transportation cost calculation and integrated transportation management and billing.

Lastly, you can enable real-time, data-driven decision-making using SAP TM. SAP TM provides intuitive dashboards and graphical visualizations to help you understand transportation events easily, mitigate risks proactively, and avoid costly shipment delays.

How To Get Started

To implement SAP Transportation Management, you will need to hire and train an in-house team or seek help from a third-party organization. Both have pros and cons. The latter can be a better option if you want to start the implementation quickly and avoid costly trial and error.

In addition, partnering with industry and technology experts like Ropaar allows you to get comprehensive global trade services and explore innovative ways to optimize the end-to-end global trade processes.

Conclusion

To cut transport costs while ensuring seamless and fast delivery of goods, you need to improve visibility and control over your transportation activities. But this can be more challenging for global traders.

SAP Transportation Management allows you to improve visibility and control by integrating core supply chain and business processes, automating and standardizing order management and transportation planning, and enabling end-to-end visibility into all transport activities.

However, the success of your SAP TM integration depends on who your implementation partner is. Drop us a line if you need expert assistance in implementing SAP TM. Contact us.

The outlook for the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry is relatively positive as growth is forecasted post-pandemic. In a survey conducted among business executives, 50 percent of companies are expecting to increase their operating margins in 2022. This is attributed to the countermeasures they undertook to offset the unpredictability of the industry’s state during the COVID-19 pandemic.

While expectations for the CPG industry are optimistic, significant challenges remain to shake businesses globally. 9 out of 10 business executives pinpoint supply chain pressure as the greatest threat to business growth – the changes caused by which will persist post-pandemic.

Post-COVID Foreign Trade Challenges for CPG Companies

Supply chain pressure is a top challenge for CPG companies nowadays as operational costs increase. Most notably, transportation and container shipping costs have soared by 25 to 50 percent due to stringent trade regulations. Production levels decreased to comply with worker capacity constraints. Additionally, the disruption in the shipping industry also contributed to supply chain pressure as the transportation of goods was suppressed by varying degrees of rigidity in border control measures and foreign trade policies. To add more pressure on CPG companies, the rise of e-commerce has led consumers to expect shorter delivery times for the products they purchase online. This burdens traders to ensure they can supply goods faster to satisfy consumers.

The consequences of supply chain challenges are felt not just by businesses, but also by consumers. As companies struggle to produce and transport goods, stockouts have become common. Consumer demand is left unmet, making it difficult for them to access and purchase their needs. On the business side, CPG companies are unable to leverage the essentiality of the demands needed for the CPG industry and the increased spending power of consumers. Businesses risk losing brand trust, confidence, and loyalty as they cannot deliver the promise of reliability and availability with limited stocks and empty shelves.

A Digital Solution

To combat the foreign trade challenges caused by supply chain pressure, CPG companies should invest in digitization and automation services to streamline trade processes and meet consumer demand. CPG companies must be able to review their strategy, footprint, assets, processes, and tools to build a supply chain that is resilient to critical disruptions. Trade partners such as Ropaar utilize SAP Global Trade Services to streamline foreign trade compliance by empowering exporters to automate, standardize, centralize, and manage global trade compliance requirements.

SAP Global Trade Services help CPG companies build supply chain resilience and thrive amid critical disruptions through digitization and automation. Ropaar’s CPG expertise allows CPG companies to leverage applicable Free Trade Agreements (FTA) to minimize their duty exposure and reduce the effort required to comply with FTA regulations. With Ropaar’s SAP deployment, CPG importers and exporters can gain the following advantages:

• Significant Free Trade Agreement (FTA) savings
• Consolidated import and export filing
• Single and holistic transportation platform
• Faster results and return on investment (ROI)

Ropaar offers a wide variety of TRADEblazing services for CPG companies such as:

• Management of import and export processes, including licenses and automatic license determination
• Screening of up-to-date, restricted-party lists
• Improvement of compliance confidence with checks throughout the processing of sales and purchasing transactions
• Calculation of product origin and preference eligibility for trade management

Leverage Ropaar’s CPG expertise today by connecting with us through this link.

The COVID-19 pandemic has broken the global food supply chain due to heightened regulatory pressure and limited mobility from transportation carriers. Businesses globally are still suffering from the effects of the pandemic to this day. A 2021 survey conducted by HLB Global found that 81% of the food and beverage industry leaders still consider the pandemic the most substantial risk factor for their businesses. In a much larger picture, this has led to equally pressing issues for consumers as food and beverage supply becomes limited.

Foreign Trade Challenges Post-COVID

The biggest threat to foreign trade is logistics. Transportation of food and beverage products was disrupted by varying border controls and air freight restrictions which vary country per country. These, in turn, have made trade more expensive and difficult for exporters as they have lost significant resources to manage regulatory compliance and battle food waste due to the limited shelf life of food and beverage products. Likewise, logistics challenges also threaten importers as they fail to restock on food and beverage products. Consequently, numerous importers cannot sustain consumer demand due to limited transport and delays.

The Driving Forces

The challenges surrounding foreign trade in the food and beverage industry are fueled by three key factors: consumers, technology, and regulation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made consumers more health-conscious and careful about the products they consume. A survey conducted by the International Food Information Council found that 54 percent of Americans mind the healthfulness of their food and beverage choices. This trend will continue even after the pandemic as consumers continuously seek fresh, additive-free products with traceable origins.

The restrictive nature of the COVID-19 pandemic also strengthened mass digitalization. The mobility and physical interaction challenges brought by the pandemic have transformed digitalization into a necessity rather than a choice. As a response, multiple exporters have transitioned to integrate digital solutions within their internal systems. In the food and beverage industry, these advancements have made functions such as order taking and inventory management more convenient. These technological investments will continue post-COVID as export leaders look into ways to improve efficiency, sustainability, and supply chain visibility.

Food safety concerns were a huge point of concern in foreign trade. With this, regulations surrounding foreign trade within the food and beverage industry have become increasingly stringent to ensure the safety of consumers. Despite the easing COVID-19 situation, regulatory pressure will continue as trade rules and standards are further tightened.

A TRADEblazing Partner

With foreign trade challenges surrounding the food and beverage industry, exporters need to have a system that addresses these pain points for them. Ropaar’s expertise in deploying SAP Global Trade Services helps streamline foreign trade processes by allowing exporters to automate, standardize, centralize, and manage global trade compliance requirements.

In the context of food and beverage operations, SAP Global Trade Services help simplify product traceability and regulatory compliance with comprehensive supply chain management. These enable exporters to implement their business processes with excellent accuracy and precision. Ropaar’s food and beverage domain expertise allow export leaders to:

• Consolidate import/export filing of export document requirements, transaction-specific forms, and import entries declaring partner government agency data
• Manage and oversee full lifecycle implementations
• Comprehensively integrate core processes
• Manage regulatory compliance and risks

Ropaar is your expert TRADEblazing partner as it provides best-in-class SAP Global Trade Services that were formulated and honed from years of industry experience.

Leverage Ropaar’s food and beverage expertise today by connecting with us through this link.