| Good morning *|FNAME|* My apologies for interrupting your weekend but for those who been involved in the industry of the last couple of decades I thought it appropriate to celebrate today, Sunday 12 October 2025, being 20 years to the day that the Cargo Management Re-engineering (CMR) Integrated Cargo System (ICS) went live — a memorable milestone in Australia's import and export reporting history.
I reflected on this anniversary in an article (soon to be published by the Daily Cargo News) titled "From the Frontline to the Front Page: Reflecting on the ICS 20-year anniversary".
Drawing on my personal experiences from being a customs officer and then moving to the "hot seat" as the government contracted ICS User Representative (prior to that known as the COMPILE User Representative), I recount the challenges of the 2005 "big bang" ICS rollout, the resulting trade disruptions, and the extraordinary efforts of government and industry to restore cargo flow.
The article also traces the evolution of Australian Customs systems from the 1970s to today, highlights lessons learned and explores the need for future reforms to ensure a modern, efficient, and resilient cargo reporting framework capable of meeting an increasingly complex trade environment.
Stay tuned — the full article will be available shortly. Paul Zalai - Director FTA / Secretariat APSA
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