The addition of Kaohsiung Harbor further strengthens SST's footprint in Asia, where a significant portion of goods are manufactured and imported into the United States, and where SST already has network infrastructure installed in the ports of Yantian, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Kaohsiung Harbor joins the Smart and Secure Tradelanes initiative as it builds momentum during its second phase of operations. SST Phase Two is aimed at extending the network's global footprint, increasing shipper participants and incorporating a range of automatic identification technologies -- including anti-intrusion sensor devices and satellite (IMMARSAT) tracking systems -- to its existing backbone of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technologies and networked software.

Since completion of SST Phase One about six months ago, SST has had 72 company participants, including many of the world's largest port operators, carriers, service providers, and technology companies, along with a growing number of shippers representing a wide variety of industries.

The announcement was made jointly by the Department of Commerce, Ministry Of Economic Affairs (MOEA) of Taiwan, a governmental department whose duties include planning and improving the nation's supply chain efficiency, and the Strategic Council on Security Technology (SCST), a founding member of SST and an advisory resource of international supply chain leaders committed to cargo security.

SCST helped start SST, whose network now extends to 16 major ports in Asia, the United States, Europe and Latin America -- including 6 of the world's 10 busiest port facilities.

In a separate press release today, it was announced that the United States Trade and Development Agency is providing a grant to extend SST's network technology to South Africa -- a vital trade link between Asia/The Middle East and Europe/the United States. This extension in Africa expands the SST network to a fifth continent.

The partnership agreement involving Kaohsiung Harbor in Taiwan includes participation in a project by a major furniture manufacturer, which will have its products transported in containers equipped with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) sensor seals, transforming them into "smart containers," from Kaohsiung Harbor to the Port of Los Angeles.

From there, the products will be transported by truck to their consignee's warehouse for final assembly in San Diego. Also instrumental in formulating the multi-party agreement for SST participation were Futaba Technology Development Corporation and the Industrial Technology Research Institute.

"As one of the world's busiest ports, and a key transshipment facility for goods heading to the United States, we want to ensure our customers and the world community that we're implementing best practices and technologies for securing and managing shipments," said Mr. Kuen-Tarng Liu, Director General of Department of Commerce, MOEA.

"We're eager to implement this solution to help comply with government security regulations and U.S. anti-terrorist policy and take advantage of the most advanced ways to improve efficiency."

"The addition of Kaohsiung Harbor to the SST global network is a major development in the continuing expansion of SST because of its strategic location and importance in the shipment of goods to the United States and elsewhere worldwide," said Dr. Hau Lee, a founding member of SCST and supply chain professor at Stanford University who co-founded the university's Global Supply Chain Forum.

"Several studies on SST's first phase have validated both the security and efficiency benefits of this real-time tracking network, and we're gratified to see more participants coming on board as we extend the depth of solutions and the breadth of locations in SST Phase 2."

In the pilot involving Kaohsiung Harbor, Winners Only, Inc., a leading U.S.-based manufacturer and distributor of affordable quality furniture, will package its goods at its production facility and send them directly to the Yang Ming Terminal for loading, which will be managed by the Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp. Bar codes will be affixed to the boxes of packaged goods to identify them.

A smart RFID security sensor seal will be electronically and physically affixed to the container. This information from the barcodes on the packaged goods will be linked to the anti-intrusion sensor device, which will communicate two ways with the reader network in place throughout the supply chain.

This combination will provide nested visibility into the contents of the container and real-time, item-level, information about the specific shipment's status and location. This real-time visibility and management of in-transit inventory has been one of the primary benefits shippers have realized through their participation in SST.

The technology, provided by Savi Technology, also includes the SmartChain software platform and Transportation Security System application, which together provide real-time visibility of the shipments throughout the supply chain.

The SST network is built on an open and flexible platform that supports automatic identification technologies that conform to international standards and can be integrated with other technologies for extra layers of security and visibility. Such technologies may include sensors, automated surveillance cameras, biometric identification, gamma ray image scanners and satellite tracking systems.

Related Links
Department of Commerce, MOEA of Taiwan
Strategic Council on Security Technology
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