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Contxto – If the ongoing pandemic wasn’t bad enough as a health threat, now we’ve discovered that the measure needed to stop its spread means that companies literally cannot know if they’ll get the imported goods they need to keep running.
Covid-19 has imposed social isolation onto billions of people. These include the port operators and administrators who kept tabs on where shipping was at any given point.
Now that many are at home, suddenly companies have no idea when or even where their essential imports will be coming in.
It gets worse. With countries closing down their borders, some ports that were open just yesterday have suddenly been shut. So, many importers are, as we speak, waiting, with zero information for products that will never arrive.
Related article: Virtual freight forwarder Nowports prepares to launch in Brazil and Peru
Nowports gives companies their eyes back
Mexican freighttech startup, Nowports, had been speaking to automakers and food traders to find out what they need to weather the coronavirus storm. They did their reachout for a few days when the startup realized that the issues with shipping were so dire that they had to go way further than they initially thought.
Therefore today Nowports exclusively informed Contxto that it would be opening up its real-time, automated tracking platform for free and for the foreseeable future.
The reason Nowports can do what old ports can’t, is because they have a system that links them up via satellite and internal shipping comms in real-time with every ship on the high seas.
Now, even their competitors can find out where their imports are, whether they might have to make an emergency stop anywhere in the world, and they will even get predictions as to when the goods might arrive.
Given the situation, “the foreseeable future” may mean until May or June.
Alfonso de los Ríos told Contxto right as they were opening their platform today (26), that they would lift their paywall again only when between 90 to 95 percent of ports and shipping lanes were back in action.
If your company requires this service, sign up to this emergency service provided by Nowports. We know your company may depend on it, but know that we also depend on your company to stay afloat in these difficult times.
-AG
