Single Window Systems
In the OIC Member States
37
The trader submits data to TradeNet/Trade Xchange. The rule-based engine is creates the
request for permit and certificate and sends the request and date to all relevant government
agencies for processing. The TradeNet Single Window rule engine contains 8000 rules for
creating the request for permit and certificate and risk profile rules for automated approval of
requests.
The Singapore Single Window is fully paperless. In the Singaporean legal framework
Government decisions do not need to be signed anymore. A law on Public Key Infrastructure
(PKI) and digital signature was introduced in 2003.
Benefits
The focus on process automatisation combined with risk management has resulted in
significant improvements for the end-users. Previously, the TDB, Customs, and 35 Controlling
Agencies managed approximately 10,000 declarations daily, and all of them were paper based.
On average 4-20 documents had to be completed for each import / export handled manually.
Now, the Single Window is processing the requests for permits and certificates within 10
minutes-se
Table 5: Impact of the National Single Window
Key Indicator Before TradeNet After TradeNet
Processing time/permit 4 hrs. to 2 – 7 days 10 minutes
Submission of documents Multiple submission Single document through a single
interface
Number of documents 3 – 35 documents 1 document
Trade documentation fees US$6.25/document US$1.80/application
Source: Crimson Logic, TradeNet, under
Freight forwarders have reported time savings of 25%-35% in handling trade documentation
as TradeNet operates 24 hours. Benefits also accrued to government agencies using the
system. By moving from a system of post-approval to pre-approval of applications, the customs
receive payments faster as duties are now pre-paid through electronic means33.
2.2.4 ICT Architecture
The Enterprise IT Architecture of TradeNet/TradeXchange is based on a Service-Oriented
Architecture (SOA), decomposed into various sub-systems offering specialized Single Window
services. The Single Window is a taxonomy hub for exchange of information between the
Single Window and end-to-end user’s business processes (agencies, banks, port authorities,
33Jonathan Koh, Towards a Single Window Trading Environment: Singapore’s TradeNet® (Crimson Logic)