Main content

Securing the UK’s largest sea port

Felixstowe is the UK’s largest sea port and each year handles 45% of the UK’s sea-bound freight, which equates to more than four million 20- foot shipping containers. With thousands of freight containers arriving daily, Border Force, part of the Home Office, secures our ports and entry points by carrying out immigration and customs controls for people and goods entering the country.

At the port, freight containers are stacked 10-15 units high with rows stretching as far as the eye can see. If Border Force had to manually log and identify containers for inspection, there would be lengthy hold ups directly impacting the reputation of the UK government. They needed a technology-driven solution to automate the identification of potentially suspect containers.

The application enables Border Force to intercept these suspect containers quickly and efficiently.

FCDO Services enjoys a long relationship with the Home Office and Border Force, and, in 2013, was commissioned to provide a solution to support their critical operation. We implemented an Automated Freight Tracking Capability Shipping Container (AFTC SC) Service Application. It tracks all freight containers being shipped to the UK, identifying containers that may contain prohibited items.

The application enables Border Force to intercept these suspect containers quickly and efficiently. They can now pull specific containers from a ship, investigate them and (if safe) allow their onward journey with very little impact on the scheduled arrivals at a port.

FCDO Services provides hosting for the application and an IT support package is in place, with first and second line support for our customer. Regular customer engagement and a robust reporting function ensures FCDO Services continues to provide an optimal service for our customer.

The project with Border Force is an excellent example of the vital role we play in supporting UK government departments to keep our people and our assets safe.

In early 2020, Border Force invited FCDO Services to visit the port in Felixstowe to see our solution in action and experience how it supports operations.

Our Customer Relationship Manager said, “Seeing our application working effectively on the ground brought to life the critical work we support on a daily basis. It is so much more than hosting, we are actively protecting our nation. I’m grateful to Border Force for providing my team with this invaluable experience, seeing this impressive, critical operation.”

The project with Border Force is an excellent example of the vital role we play in supporting UK government departments to keep our people and our assets safe.

All case studies