Customs Efficiencies to Establish Growth

Orac had been working with another software provider for several years. This other software solution allowed them to submit their customs declarations but it involved a highly manual process. They had to either fill in all fields from scratch, or duplicate a previous similar declaration and then manually change the relevant fields. This process was unreliable, as it was easy to make mistakes or forget to fill in certain fields. An AEO audit revealed the pitfalls of this manual process, deeming that it was too error-prone for internal compliance.

Business was expanding, leading to an increase in number of customs declarations and a heavier workload for the export team, which was also handling a growing number of projects. A solution was needed to help optimise their workflow and at the same time minimise waiting times for drivers in order to save as much time as possible.

Orac kept their customs declarations archive in multiple Excel files and EADs saved on their company servers. With a major focus on compliance, Orac began exploring different options. They first spoke with their current partner and were very open and transparent about the main issues with their software and the business requirements. The software partner suggested increasing automation by linking their software with Orac’s ERP SAP. However, it became clear that this option was not the most cost-efficient. Next to the offer from the software partner to make the link to the ERP system, SAP changes on Orac’s side also required the input of several consultants, which increased the investment exponentially. Additionally, this non-cloud-based solution was not a future-proof option for Orac. Therefore, option one was not feasible. After online research and consulting other companies from the VOKA Business Club customs network that had successfully transitioned to CAS, Orac began talks with C4T to explore what CAS could offer to their business.

“CAS seemed like a match from the early conversations. A big advantage was that the SAP integration could be postponed to a later phase, and we could start up quickly by using Excel uploads,” said Ellen Mennes, Customer Experience Manager & Customs Responsible at Orac.

Compared to the previous customs software, it now takes Orac approximately five minutes to file a declaration in CAS, whereas it previously took 15 to 30 minutes. Additionally, obtaining a release from customs authorities is quicker with CAS. To provide more perspective, since the invoice and declaration can only be made when the truck is loaded, the truck driver had to wait 15 to 30 minutes for the declaration to be finalised. Now it has been reduced to five minutes. This results in significant time savings, not only for the customs team but also for the drivers.

“The time our team saves on this is incredible, and it still amazes me since we are ‘only’ using Excel uploads, a ‘soft integration’, to lodge our customs declarations in CAS. Imagine the time-saving when we move to the full API integration with our ERP system SAP! I’m really looking forward to that,” said Ellen Mennes, Customer Experience Manager & Customs Responsible at Orac.

Apart from the significant time savings achieved with CAS, Orac also experiences a considerable decrease in yearly operational costs and increased control over their customs processes and related data.

“Working with CAS is straightforward. We love the ease of use, the automation and customisation possibilities, and the support we get from the entire C4T team and are very happy with the benefits it brings to our business,” said Ellen Mennes, Customer Experience Manager & Customs Responsible at Orac.