Single report only needed to sail across Flanders and the Western Scheldt
From 2021, skippers and inland shipping companies will only have to submit a single digital report containing their route, cargo and ship's data for voyages on waterways in Flanders and on the Western Scheldt, North Sea Port says in a press release.
North Sea Port, Flemish Waterways plc, Port of Antwerp, Port of Oostende, Port of Zeebrugge, the Agency for Maritime and Coastal Services, and the Joint Nautical Management are all investing in SWINg.
This innovative online reporting platform receives the data through (existing) reporting software from the reporter and forwards it to all authorities on the shipping route. SWINg offers administrative simplification, while also making inland shipping even safer and more efficient.
Those who already report digitally do not have to bring new software on board – the existing reporting software packages are being made compatible with SWINg. This collaboration and initiative, which also includes the Dutch Rijkswaterstaat (Department for waterways and infrastructure), and other actors, puts the partners involved among the forerunners in Europe in the field of digitization.