ZIM Taps AI to Detect Misdeclarations

Israeli shipping company ZIM said it has developed and implemented an artificial intelligence (AI)-based screening software to detect and identify incidents of misdeclared hazardous cargo before loading to vessel.

Misdeclaration of hazardous cargo has been at the root of major marine incidents, causing loss of life and severe damages. Last year, several carriers announced the imposition of additional fees as a partial solution for this recurring problem.

ZIM’s new ZIMGuard system scans shippers’ cargo declarations at an early stage and flags potential cases of wrongly declared cargo. The system harnesses AI, including natural language processing (NLP) capabilities and machine learning, to analyze documentation and alert operations personnel of occurrences of omission, concealment or erroneous declaration of hazardous cargo—in real time.

The ZIMGuard system is already in use in major ports in China, the U.S. and Israel, and is expected to be deployed in all ZIM lines by the end of 2020.

“Since launching ZIMGuard, we were alerted to dozens of cases of misdeclared cargo,” said Eli Glickman, ZIM President & CEO.

“In view of ZIMGuard’s potential contribution to the safety of the global supply chain, ZIM is willing to commercially offer licensing this system to parties who may be interested in utilizing it,” Glickman added.

Captain Zadok Radecker, ZIM Global Hazardous & Special Cargos Manager, in charge of Cargo Security, said, “Coping with misdeclarations of hazardous cargo, which can create a serious risk, is challenging. The new system has proven to be effective and on target. It enable us to identify, investigate and clarify any issue prior to loading, ensuring the safety of the crew and ship, and the safety of the supply chain in general.”