Although few would disagree with the need for increased air cargo security, most shippers and the air cargo community view the mandate for 100% screening as a cost burden and impediment to supply chain flow. We believe that proper implementation of the CCSP can meet the dual objectives of security while maintaining, and in some cases accelerating, supply chain flow through improved collaboration and better use of information to take advantage of inefficiencies in the current system.
Analogies can be drawn between the implementation of manufacturing quality programs in the 1970’s and 80’s to improve the U.S.’s competitiveness in the face of low-cost, high quality products from Japan. American manufacturers were reluctant to take on the quality programs practiced by Japanese manufacturers that were viewed as costly and burdensome. Phillip Crosby, quality control manager of the Pershing missile program, implemented a “Zero Defects” program that yielded a 25% reduction in the overall rejection rate and a 30% reduction in scrap costs, more than paying for the program. Crosby's prescription for quality improvement was a 14-step program outlined in his landmark 1979 book, “Quality is Free” (9), which quickly became the rallying cry of the manufacturing quality movement in the U.S. He believed companies that established similar initiatives could realize savings returns that would more than pay for the cost of their quality programs.
In the same way, we believe that shippers, freight forwarders and ICSF’s that embrace the air cargo security program in the CCSP together with advanced collaborative supply chain management techniques will find that the benefits far outweigh the costs. These may come from a variety of sources, including:
Reduced Annualized Loss Expectancy (ALE) from lower exposure factors due to the introduction of enhanced security measures and fewer occurrences of loss;
reduced loss from theft and mishandling of cargo resulting in lower insurance costs;
shipment visibility and a consistent, monitored, auditable chain of custody across the air cargo supply chain for enhanced shipment flow, tracking and traceability;
improved operational efficiency, lower supply chain system inventories, increased customer service levels and cash flow through process optimization and advanced supply chain planning and scheduling techniques;
and of course, a significantly reduced possibility that catastrophic terrorist acts will occur.
Given the program’s potential benefits, the mantra of the CCSP may soon become “Security is Free”.