Homegrown technology was used for the first time yesterday for real-time monitoring of container shipment in the country's commercial hub.
If the two- to three-month pilot program, supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Communications, is successful, it will help better fight terrorism, stowaways and food contamination in containers.
Initially, 10,000 containers will be sealed with a special e-tag, which can be re-used on the shipping line between Shanghai and Savannah in the US state of Georgia, said Shanghai International Port (Group) Co vice-president Bao Qifan.
The e-tag that uses radio frequency identification technology will show a container's status in the logistics chain, and send warnings if it is opened without authorization, he said.
The threat against terrorism, stowaways and food contamination has made real-time container monitoring throughout the logistics chain an immediate necessity, Bao said.
US and European firms have been studying the technology, too, but "China is the first to mobilize resources such as ports, shipping companies, cargo owners and Customs and put the technology into use on a commercial shipping line".
The country's container throughput reached a record 100 million TEU (20-foot equivalent unit) last year. And Shanghai handled 26.15 million TEUs, second only to Singapore across the world.
If an e-tag shows a container has not been opened on the way, it will help a cargo owner save the time he has to spend for Customs and quarantine checks at ports.
（英语点津 Celene 编辑）
About the broadcaster:
Brendan joined The China Daily in 2007 as a language polisher in the Language Tips Department, where he writes a regular column for Chinese English Language learners, reads audio news for listeners and anchors the weekly video news in addition to assisting with on location stories. Elsewhere he writes Op’Ed pieces with a China focus that feature in the Daily’s Website opinion section.
He received his B.A. and Post Grad Dip from Curtin University in 1997 and his Masters in Community Development and Management from Charles Darwin University in 2003. He has taught in Japan, England, Australia and most recently China. His articles have featured in the Bangkok Post, The Taipei Times, The Asia News Network and in-flight magazines.
