Audio-Technica streamlines customs clearance with Descartes’ FTZ solution

Descartes Systems Group, the global leader in uniting logistics-intensive businesses in commerce, announced that Audio-Technica, a renowned designer and manufacturer of audio equipment, is using Descartes’ foreign trade zone (FTZ) solution to accelerate customs clearance, reduce the costs associated with filing customs entries, and eliminate duties on exports from the U.S.

“As a manufacturer and distributor of high-value, high-volume goods, we wanted to lower costs for imports into the U.S. and increase supply chain velocity by operating our U.S. warehouse as an FTZ to distribute to the Americas,” said Richard Sprungle, Vice President of Operations at Audio-Technica. “The Descartes solution helps us maximize the operational and cost savings benefits of FTZs through automation while ensuring compliance with customs regulations. Using the solution, we can speed the delivery of imports, expedite the distribution of goods to consumers and avoid the duty all together when we export from the U.S. warehouse.”

An FTZ is a secure area authorized by the federal government in which commercial domestic and foreign merchandise receives the same treatment by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as if it were outside the commerce of the United States. The Descartes FTZ solution allows importers and logistics services providers (LSPs) to comply with CBP regulatory requirements for operating a foreign trade zone in the U.S. by automating detailed chain of custody, access, shipment release and record-keeping processes. The solution is also used to streamline shipment management, customs clearance, classification and warehousing. The FTZ solution can be operated as a stand-alone module or as part of a company’s wider trade compliance platform. 

“We’re pleased to help Audio-Technica operate its U.S. warehouse as a fully compliant FTZ,” said Preston Barton, Vice President at Descartes. “Global supply chains operate in complex and dynamic regulatory environments and it’s critical to ensure the movement of both data and goods is efficient and compliant. With our solution, customers have a platform to manage the entire FTZ process, allowing them to minimize duties, fees and taxes while upholding CBP rules.”