CSX joins TradeLens shipping information platform

CSX has become the first North American railroad to join TradeLens, a global shipping information platform that provides customers with improved supply-chain transparency and shipment-status visibility.

Developed by IBM and Maersk, TradeLens is an open, neutral platform that currently includes data on half of the world's ocean container cargo.

The platform uses secure blockchain technology to support collaboration across the supply chain and provide customers with timely updates on their shipments.

By leading North American railroads onto the platform, CSX is expanding its commitment to greater transparency that enables shippers to manage their supply chains more efficiently, CSX officials said in a press release.

“Railroads are vital links in the global supply chain, and CSX wants to support all of the ways our customers are seeking greater efficiency and flexibility," said Mark Wallace, CSX's executive vice president of sales and marketing.

As CSX customers move onto TradeLens, the Class I "will be helping provide them with better end-to-end shipment tracking capability," Wallace said.

To learn more about the potential use of blockchain technology in the rail realm, read this feature in Progressive Railroading's July issue.