Quick Answer
Tracking the same shipment across Maersk, CMA CGM, and ONE often gives you different labels, timestamps, or missing milestones. Each carrier uses its own terminology and timing logic. A unified dashboard translates these differences into a single set of standard events. You get one accurate timeline instead of three fragmented ones.
How Unified Dashboards Normalize Carrier Data
Most operators check Maersk, CMA CGM, and ONE individually and then line up the story by hand. These platforms do not use the same wording or event structure, so direct comparison is difficult.
Here is how a unified dashboard works behind the scenes:
- Event-based structure: Each carrier update is mapped to standard event types and classifiers defined by DCSA. Examples:
- ETD from a carrier maps to an Estimated Departure event (DCSA classifier Estimated + event type Departure).
- Vessel Departure from ONE maps to an Actual Departure event (classifier Actual + type Departure).
- Loaded on Vessel from CMA CGM maps to an Actual Load event (classifier Actual + type Load).
- Planned vs actual: Most carrier pages show both, but not always clearly. A unified view separates planned timestamps like ETA from actual milestones like ATA and updates them as real events occur.
- Cross-carrier logic: The system aligns data by container number, location, and time, even when event names differ or refresh at different intervals.
By translating carrier formats into a shared structure, you see one cohesive shipment journey regardless of which carrier handles each leg.
Why This Is Not Obvious on Carrier Pages
Maersk, CMA CGM, and ONE all publish tracking updates, but they:
- Use different terminology
- Refresh on different cadences
- Emphasize different milestones
A few real differences
- Maersk surfaces planned times like ETD and ETA and actuals like ATD and ATA alongside shipment notifications. Transshipment visibility can vary by context.
- CMA CGM uses container terms such as “Loaded on board” and “Discharged.” Timestamp presentation can differ by port or system view.
- ONE highlights milestones such as “Gate in,” “Vessel Departure,” and “Vessel Arrival” in tracking. Planned times are typically seen in the schedule view.
This makes it hard to build a full picture when your shipment spans multiple carriers or transshipments.
What You Can Do
Think in terms of events, not screens.
Instead of toggling between websites, look for a view that:
- Maps each carrier’s labels to standardized events
- Flags whether each milestone is planned or actual
- Cross-references updates by location and timestamp
- Preserves the original carrier data while organizing it consistently
This makes it easier to detect delays, prepare downstream steps, and manage handoffs even when the vessel or route changes.
Common Event Translation Table
Below is a simplified mapping that keeps container events and vessel events separate. Labels vary by product and region. Planned times such as ETD are often shown on schedules rather than in the tracking UI.
| Standard milestone (plain) | Maersk | CMA CGM | ONE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gate In (container) | Gate in | Gate in full | Gate in to outbound terminal |
| Estimated Departure (vessel) | ETD | Expected Departure | ETD on schedules |
| Actual Load (container) | Load | Loaded on board | Loaded on vessel |
| Actual Departure (vessel) | Vessel departure | Vessel departure | Vessel Departure |
| Actual Arrival (vessel) | Vessel arrival | Vessel arrival | Vessel Arrival |
| Actual Discharge (container) | Discharge | Discharged | Unloaded from vessel at POD |
Note: Availability and cadence of updates differ by lane and carrier system. Always check the last update time and whether a milestone is planned, estimated, or actual.
Methods and Sources
- DCSA Track & Trace Interface Standard 2.2 overview
- DCSA Event Structure Definition 2.2 (event types and classifiers)
- Maersk Track & Trace Plus developer docs (ARRI, DEPA, LOAD, DISC, GTIN, GTOT)
- Maersk Tracking FAQ
- CMA CGM eBusiness Tracking
- ONE Cargo Tracking
Normalize Carrier Data, Not Just Screens
If you manage shipments across Maersk, CMA CGM, and ONE, checking updates is not enough. You need to understand them in context.
TRADLINX translates each carrier’s feed into one clean, standardized timeline and keeps the original details for audit. If you want to see it with your own containers, we can set up a read-only view and walk through live shipments together. [Talk to us about a unified view]
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