TRADLINX

1. Customer Overview: Managing Import Logistics from the Strategic Purchasing Front Line

Nousbo operates a global business and manages a significant volume of import shipments.

On the company’s Strategic Purchasing Team, Minji Gil is responsible for purchasing and import logistics. Her role is to make sure inbound cargo from around the world arrives on time and moves safely through to the warehouse.

As import volumes grow, two things become especially important for logistics teams: clear visibility into inbound schedules and tight control over terminal free time.

2. The Challenge: Free-Time Risk Hidden in Fragmented Carrier Data

Before adopting TRADLINX, the biggest challenge for Nousbo’s Strategic Purchasing Team was managing terminal free time.

Once imported cargo arrives at port, failing to pick up the container within the allotted free time can lead to unexpected charges such as demurrage and detention. For Nousbo, this meant that arrival schedule visibility was not just a matter of convenience. It was directly tied to cost control.

To manage free time effectively, the team needed accurate, real-time visibility into arrival schedules, including ETA and ATA. But the existing workflow was highly inefficient.

To check the arrival schedule of a single shipment, staff had to log into the relevant carrier website, enter the B/L number, and review the schedule one case at a time.

Even checking one shipment took at least two to three minutes. Valuable morning hours were being lost every day as the team moved between carrier sites and checked multiple shipments manually.

Nousbo needed one real-time view of all inbound cargo, not only to save time, but also to manage free-time risk before it turned into additional logistics cost.

3. Nousbo’s TRADLINX Workflow: One Dashboard for Inbound Schedules and Free-Time Control

To solve this problem, Nousbo adopted TRADLINX Ocean Visibility, which brings together data from more than 45 global carriers.

Without API work or a complex system build, the company was able to apply the solution immediately through a web-based dashboard.

One Master B/L registration for inbound schedule visibility

Nousbo centralized its previously scattered shipment management process into the TRADLINX Ocean Visibility dashboard.

Once the team enters the Master B/L number for an inbound shipment, the platform automatically maps the relevant carrier and vessel information and organizes everything in a single dashboard.

Instead of visiting multiple carrier websites, the team can now monitor ETD and ETA for all active import shipments in one place.

Container event tracking for free-time management

To address its biggest operational concern, Nousbo uses TRADLINX Ocean Visibility’s container event tracking capabilities.

The dashboard records critical milestones such as vessel arrival, ATA, and discharge status. This gives staff a clearer and more intuitive way to track how much free time remains for each shipment.

With that visibility, the team can identify delayed or soon-to-arrive shipments earlier and coordinate inland transport in advance.

A web-based setup that fits directly into daily work

Nousbo did not need to build a new system or integrate through API to begin improving its import logistics workflow.

By using the web-based dashboard, the Strategic Purchasing Team could move from scattered carrier checks to a single daily monitoring process. This made it easier to manage inbound schedules, watch for free-time exposure, and reduce repetitive manual work.

4. Results: Better Free-Time Control, Lower Cost Risk, and 30 Minutes Back Every Day

After implementing TRADLINX Ocean Visibility, the way Nousbo’s Strategic Purchasing Team worked changed significantly.

The old process of keeping B/L numbers in Excel and refreshing carrier websites one by one was replaced with a single TRADLINX dashboard in the morning.

Better free-time visibility and lower cost risk

With a real-time view of inbound shipment schedules and container events, managing terminal free time became significantly easier.

The team could identify delayed or soon-to-arrive shipments earlier and coordinate inland transport before free time became an issue. This helped reduce the risk of unexpected logistics costs tied to demurrage and detention.

At least 30 minutes saved each day

Previously, checking the arrival schedules of just 10 shipments could take 20 to 30 minutes, including site login and manual lookup.

Now, the team can review not only 10 shipments but dozens of active shipments at once by scrolling through a single screen. This saves a meaningful amount of repetitive work every day.

A more stable import logistics process

By bringing inbound schedules, carrier data, and container events into one dashboard, Nousbo built a more stable way to manage import logistics.

The team gained a clearer view of arrival timing, reduced repetitive manual checks, and improved communication across departments.

“Being able to check arrival schedules for each shipment on a single screen has made our work much more efficient. We used to spend at least two to three minutes per shipment logging into carrier websites and checking schedules one by one. Even with just 10 shipments, that now saves us at least 30 minutes a day.”
— Minji Gil, Manager, Strategic Purchasing Team, Nousbo

In import logistics, visibility directly affects both time and cost.

Through the TRADLINX Ocean Visibility web dashboard, Nousbo brought fragmented carrier data into one view and created a more practical way to manage terminal free time.

For Nousbo’s Strategic Purchasing Team, this meant less time spent on repetitive carrier checks, earlier coordination around inbound shipments, and better control over demurrage and detention risk.