Track & Trace gets Container Watchlist and Email Notification functions

APM Terminals has now added personalisation options available on its container tracking system, known as Track & Trace. Among other things, this enables customers to save containers to a Container Watchlist and set up email notifications, saving time and helping them to optimise container flows. 

Last quarter, the T&T platform saw the launch of a function that enables customers to save their import containers to a Container Watchlist. “This saves customers time and effort, continually copying and pasting their containers into the search to retrieve the latest status,” says Wiebe-Jan Kloosterman, Landside Digital Solution Manager at APM Terminals.

“Filtering options in the Container Watchlist allow customers, for example, to quickly identify containers that are ready for collection, missing appointments or have issues (e.g. Customs Holds) that need resolving.”

Email notifications

This week, the company introduced an email notification feature for containers in the Watchlist. Available for APM Terminals in Los Angeles, Port Elizabeth and Mobile in the United States, it will be rolled out in November to the remaining terminals on the T&T platform. Customers can choose to receive the email snapshot of their Watchlist once or twice per day and can specify which exact days based on their convenience.

One central apmterminals.com customer account is used to access all T&T functions. Going forward, this account will be used to access a growing number of features available on the website. “We acknowledge that in the past customers needed to have multiple accounts for different systems at different terminals, in order to do business with us,” says Kloosterman. “This isn’t ideal and requires time and patience from our customers. Going forward, our goal is to provide access to all of our services from one place, and with just one account.” 

For example, customers who have already set up an account for Terminal Alerts on apmterminals.com – a system which sends customers urgent operational updates via SMS or email – use the same login for Container Watchlist Notifications.

Over the coming months, APM Terminals plans to implement improved functionality and usability for live vessel schedules, which are currently available as part of T&T and to add live rail schedules, where relevant.