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July 23, 2003
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| BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT
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Friday, June 27, 2003
Nashua software maker
plays key role in world trade
By Michael McCord, NHBR
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Software maker Trade Point Systems has captured a big
share of the international trade market, both in the United
States and abroad. Here a container ship docks at the Miami
seaport, one of the world’s busiest. (U.S. Customs
photo) |
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is no small matter for the latest DVD player from Korea, automobile
from Germany or cotton shirt from China to land at your local
dealer. The international shipping of goods is a frantic,
hyper-competitive and complicated business as tens of billions of
dollars of goods are shipped in and out of the country 24 hours a
day, seven days a week.
That’s a lot of
detailed paperwork to fill out, which includes volumes of
ever-evolving tariff, embargo and regulation information for the
nation’s customs brokers, freight forwarders, importers and
exporters.
Ironically, one of the country’s
main suppliers of such vital and sophisticated software isn’t
located in a big port city or a major transport area -- unless you
consider downtown Nashua as the hub of the shipping
universe.
Since its founding in 1972 and
through its various incarnations, Trade Point Systems has quietly
grown into one of the state’s largest tech companies, with more than
$11 million in revenues and 71 employees and with branch offices in
London and The Netherlands. A few years ago, Trade Point moved into
its current Franklin Street location, former offices of Nashua
Corp.
“We work in a niche market, and so
haven’t attracted a lot of attention except in our industry,” said
Ken Halle, Trade Point’s chief operating
officer.
Halle, a University of New Hampshire
graduate and former teacher, also exemplifies Trade Point’s ability
to attract and retain top talent, including the industry’s top
software and international trade specialists. According to company
figures, more than 30 percent of its employees have been with Trade
Point for more than 10 years, 10 percent have been around for more
than 15 years and another 30 percent have been there for more than
five years.
“It’s a fascinating,
ever-changing industry, and that keeps people interested. But open
communication is the key (to retention). We frequently share company
results, direction and vision. This is a good company, a well-run
company,” said Halle, who first joined the company as a trainer in
1976 and later branched out into sales and operations.
Trade Point’s employee stability stands in
stark contrast with the ever-complex and demanding labyrinth of U.S.
trade regulations.
“The government is always
changing compliance requirements,” Halle explained, and that
requires flexibility.
Financial
implications
What the folks at Trade Point
Systems do is create state-of-the-art software complete with updated
security, tariff and embargo requirements to facilitate the physical
shipment of goods across both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and
the borders with Canada. It may be a niche market, but it’s a
crucial one.
In addition to hundreds of
customs brokers and freight forwarders, Trade Point import/export
clients include General Motors, Oracle, Hynes and Sherwin Williams.
At any moment of the day, Halle estimated, Trade Point software --
dealing with export compliance and documentation, global logistics,
tracking, forwarding and custom brokerage -- is utilized at 150 key
entry locations across the country.
Since the
September 11th terrorist attacks, security has become the top
priority in shipping regulations, and, said Halle, “Trade Point has
been ahead of the curve” when it comes to applying the latest in
documentation innovations.
Its FASTPoint
product was the first in the industry approved by the federal
government and deployed for the post-September 11th federal FAST
(Fast and Secure Trade) regulations for trade between the United
States and Canada. Halle said the electronically filed paperwork
(and pre-travel inspection process) now allows trucking to cross the
border “in a matter of 15 seconds via a special travel lane, when
before it could take four hours or more of waiting at the
border.”
This speed has major financial
implications for companies such as General Motors, which employs
just-in-time inventory practices and frequently ships parts at a
moment’s notice from many of its Canadian-based
suppliers.
Trade Point also recently released
Manifest 24 in response to new container shipping regulations that
require 24-hour advance manifest declaration to U.S. Customs by the
overseas forwarder before a ship can leave port for the United
States. This allows agents to conduct due diligence on the freight,
the ship and its owners and other relevant intelligence long before
the ship arrives in a U.S. port.
“A ship just
can’t show up anymore without its paperwork being filed before it
leaves,” said Halle.
Trade Point’s market
revolves around U.S. imports and exports, but its expansion into
Great Britain and continental Europe reveals the importance of its
growing international customer base and a potential plunge into the
global trade market, said Halle.
Business
Spotlight is sponsored by Citizen's
Bank. |
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