The American Transportation Research Institute has published an analysis of the ACE e-Manifest roll-out and how it’s affecting carriers. You can download the report from their website: Assessing the Impact of the ACE Truck e-Manifest System on Trucking Operations (PDF).

The overall finding: ACE e-Manifest has been a mixed-bag: workload and costs have generally increased for carriers and the border process has become smoother. Here are a few point I think are worth noting:

1. The northern and southern borders are facing different issues: Paperwork and broker communication are the biggest challenges on the Canadian/U.S. border, while inspections and processing times are a concern on the Mexico/U.S. border.
2. Processes and paperwork requirements are not currently consistent at all border crossings (I’m sure this is not a surprise to you).
3. ACE e-Manifest actually improves inspection targeting: The number of trips where the driver is directed to secondary inspection have decreased by 50%, while the actual number of post-secondary inspections have increased by about 42%.
4. e-Manifest start-up costs have been considerable for many carriers.

Let me expand on that last point a bit. Here is the full paragraph regarding e-Manifest costs (emphasis is mine) :

“The case studies also reveal that although initial start-up costs are considerable for many carriers, the ACE Truck e-Manifest will potentially provide net operational benefits for medium and large carriers. This experience may differ for small carriers or carriers that do not cross the border frequently, primarily due to the substantial initial investment necessary and the lack of returns to scale. For some small carriers, the new technology may be the impetus to cease border crossing operations.”

It’s really a shame that small carriers are even facing that situation. But, the reality is 1) Customs’ ACE Portal is confusing and difficult to use and 2) Most 3rd party e-Manifest service providers charge you an arm and a leg just to get started.

That’s where we come in. We pride ourselves on not only being ridiculously easy to use, but on offering great customer service and no set-up fee. That last part bugs the heck out of some of our competitors, but we want to make it as easy as possible for you to try us out. We think that once you’ve given us a shot, you’ll stick with us. But, if for some reason you don’t, we won’t charge you a thing.

So email us or give us a call at 701.551.1414. You’ll talk to a real person who can answer your questions and get you setup in just a few easy steps.