Maersk, the world leader in containerized shipping, and the IBM IT group announced yesterday the creation of a joint venture to digitize supply chains through the implementation of blockchain technology and other open source technologies based on on the cloud. Accessible to all - industrialists, shipowners, freight forwarders, port operators and customs authorities - the platform will allow real-time monitoring of international freight, ensure greater transparency and simplicity in the movement of goods, streamline and standardize information flow but also to save money. Maerks and IBM have been working on this project since June 2016 and the platform has already been tested by the ports of Rotterdam and Houston, DuPont companies, Dow Chemical and Tetra Pak and US and Dutch customs. General Motors, Procter & Gamble, Agility Logistics and Singapore and Peru Customs have shown interest in the platform, said a statement from IBM. The supply chain will be digitized via two channels: a real-time flow of information on the movement of goods and a "Paperless Trade" that will digitize and automate the filing of documents, which should reduce the time and cost of customs clearing. merchandise. The new company, headquartered in the United States in the New York area, will be headed by Michael J. White, formerly chairman of Maersk Line in North America.