The “Digital Container Shipping Association” of the major liner shipping companies has two prominent new members: the Swedish furniture giant and important shipper Ikea and Europe’s largest feeder carrier Unifeeder.
Ikea Supply AG has joined the DCSA+ partnership program, which aims to involve the shipper side in the development of digital standards at an early stage (see below). According to a statement, the Swedish group is the first company to bring the cargo owner’s perspective to a growing community of shipping companies, freight forwarders, terminals, feeder services and technology providers. In this way, Ikea aims to increase transparency, automation and consistency in its global container shipping activities. At the same time, the company wants to contribute its own experience in the development of digital standards and the creation of harmonized data definitions.
“We are convinced that collaboration is the key to more sustainable and predictable global shipping. By joining DCSA+, we can develop digital solutions that simplify the exchange of information for all parties, increase transparency and ultimately provide a better shopping experience for Ikea customers worldwide. We ensure that our products are available where and when they are needed – and at an affordable price,” said Ewelina Taylor, Global Transport Manager, Inter Ikea Group.
Mariana Bock-Losada, Chief Growth Officer at DCSA, emphasized: “Having a global leader directly involved in this work confirms the relevance of the DCSA+ model and strengthens collaboration between shippers and carriers as we move towards consistent digital practices across the industry.”
The world’s major liner shipping companies are members of the DCSA
In the “Digital Container Shipping Association”, the world’s major liner shipping companies want to work together to drive forward the digitalization of seaborne trade. The DCSA was founded in 2019 by 9 of the 10 largest container liner shipping companies: MSC, Maersk, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, Evergreen, Yang Ming, HMM and ZIM. Pacific International Lines (PIL) was added in 2024. The aim is to define IT standards that enable the interoperability of technology solutions across the industry. The DCSA standards are developed in close collaboration with members, who validate and agree to them and work with the DCSA to ensure broad adoption. The aim is to enable transparent, reliable, easy-to-use, safe and environmentally friendly container transportation services by establishing a framework for effective, universally applicable solutions and innovations.
Finally, DCSA+ was launched as a partnership program to accelerate the adoption of digital standards across the container shipping ecosystem. It extends the DCSA’s collaborative approach beyond shipping lines to technology providers, shippers, forwarders, feeders and terminals. Through DCSA+, partners gain early insights into new standards and direct opportunities to co-create scalable, practical and industry-specific digital solutions.
Unifeeder transports over 5.5 million containers every year
Shortly beforehand, it was also announced that Europe’s largest feeder carrier Unifeeder – part of the Arabian shipping and port group DP World since 2018 – had joined the program. With more than 150 ships, Unifeeder transports over 5.5 million containers in Europe, Africa and Asia every year. “Unifeeder’s participation underlines the company’s ambition to optimize the exchange of schedule and operational data between feeder and shipping companies, enabling more transparent and efficient coordination across the network,” said the official statement explaining the move.
“At Unifeeder, we see digital collaboration as essential for the future of shipping. By joining DCSA+, we can contribute our expertise in the feeder network to industry-wide efforts to standardize data exchange and improve interoperability. By aligning with and contributing to DCSA’s open standards, we are creating a more transparent, efficient and sustainable supply chain that benefits our customers and partners worldwide,” said Chief Commercial Officer Søren Castbak.
According to the carrier, it has already started to implement the DCSA standards in its digital processes. Working with the Track & Trace standard, supported by a customer portal, is “a good example of how standardized data improves the transparency and consistency of container tracking”.
“Unifeeder plays a crucial role in connecting the global network of ports and shipping companies,” said DCSA manager Bock-Losada. The Group thus secures valuable insights from the feeder and short sea segment.
