dbh Logistics

Customs declarations through ATLAS

dbh Logistics IT AG, which trades as dbh Logistics, is a German software company that says it has been digitising logistics chains for about fifty years. Its customs and foreign trade software prepares electronic customs declarations through ATLAS, and the company holds certification for that software. The same products handle the origin of goods and preferential tariff treatment, which are the questions that decide whether a consignment qualifies for lower duties.

Compliance checks before goods move

The compliance and risk products screen names against sanctions lists, check goods against export control rules, and deal with the questions raised by US re-export control. They also handle tariff classification, which is the work of deciding the correct code for a product so that the right duty and controls apply. For businesses that trade with several countries, the company presents these checks as a single step that sits alongside the customs declaration rather than as a separate process.

Shipping and freight software

Multi-carrier shipping software helps a business choose a carrier for each consignment and print the labels. The company's freight tools cover the booking and management of air and sea freight, and its transport management and forwarding software, including the TA-LOGISTIC forwarding system, supports the coordination of transport between the sender and the export port. Its shipping work therefore runs from the point a consignment leaves the sender to the moment it reaches the port.

Ports, containers and seaport systems

For ports, dbh runs port community systems and inland port solutions, along with a product for container release and the tracking of container movements in German seaports. The company also covers SOLAS verified gross mass reporting, which it presents as part of the container paperwork for ships.

SAP, Dynamics and data exchange

The company offers SAP consulting and SAP plug-ins, and it works on SAP S/4HANA projects. Its connectors link logistics systems to Microsoft Dynamics 365, to customer relationship management systems and to electronic data interchange through its Advantage Data Exchange product. The point of this work, as the company puts it, is that stock, dates and costs can be seen in one place without re-keying data from one system to another.

Hosting, archiving and managed services

dbh runs its own data centre, offering cloud hosting and managed services. It also provides invoice management and long-term archiving that is designed to be audit-proof, which means records can be retrieved in a form that holds up under inspection. Its Advantage Invoice Management product and its data exchange work sit alongside these services for businesses that want the whole chain run by one provider.

The businesses it works with

Its clients span producers and traders, forwarding agents, logistics operators, and the shipping and port sector. The company also runs industry seminars and webinars on customs, origin and export control, and it takes part in research projects. Its material is written in German and English, reflecting the company's home market in Germany and its work with international traders.