K&R International Services is turning to automation to manage the growing regulatory demands surrounding high-volume e-commerce air cargo, using Descartes’ global security filing solution to automate European Union Import Control System 2 (ICS2) submissions for charter cargo carriers.
The Michigan-based company is using technology from Descartes Systems Group to standardise shipment data and handle hundreds of thousands of regulatory submissions every month. The approach is designed to help K&R keep pace with tight air cargo security and processing windows while maintaining responsive service for its customers as shipment volumes increase.
The scale of the operation highlights why automation has become increasingly important. A single charter flight can carry tens of thousands of individual e-commerce parcels, with each shipment generating data that must be processed within strict regulatory and operational timeframes.
“At this scale, one-at-a-time security filings aren’t feasible,” said Kelly McFall, President at K&R International Services. “Descartes helps us automate and standardize this work, giving our team the capacity to support high volume ecommerce while maintaining the accuracy and responsiveness our carrier customers require.”
Through the Descartes Global Logistics Network™ (Descartes GLN™), the company’s global security filing solution allows organisations to standardise shipment data capture, electronically submit security filings to customs authorities, and manage responses and exceptions from customs agencies.
These capabilities are intended to improve filing accuracy while keeping cross-border customs processes efficient, particularly when companies are working against compressed entry timelines and handling large numbers of shipments simultaneously.
Descartes’ security filing capabilities cover cargo security requirements across several major markets, including the United States and Canada, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the Asia-Pacific region.
For K&R, the technology provides a way to manage the operational complexity created by the continued expansion of e-commerce air cargo, particularly on charter flights consolidating large numbers of individual parcels.
“High-volume ecommerce air cargo creates a demanding security filing environment, especially when charter flights consolidate large numbers of individual parcels,” said Scott Sangster, General Manager, Logistics Services Providers at Descartes.
According to Sangster, K&R’s deployment of the Global Security Filing solution illustrates how automation and connectivity can help specialised air cargo providers process substantial shipment volumes more efficiently while supporting compliant cargo movements into the EU and across international markets.
