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Release note #14

29-09-2026

Good day,

We’re pleased to announce the latest platform update. This release introduces new automation capabilities for Shipping Instructions, enhancements to transport order communication, dashboard improvements, stronger security, and a number of bug fixes.

In the spotlight: Automated Booking

  1. Connect: As soon as an order is received (12 to 6 weeks before the loading date), HelloContainer links the most suitable carrier based on your valid sea freight rates, allocations and preferred carrier per consignee. This gives carriers an early forecast. 
  2. Match: When the order becomes ‘Ready for booking’ (within 6 weeks of the loading date), the carrier choice is re-evaluated and the best sailing schedule is linked, based on the ETD and/or ETA window you configure in MySettings. 
  3. Book: If automated submission is enabled, the booking request is sent to the carrier automatically via the carrier’s own connection (EDI, API or email). 
  4. Confirm: When the carrier confirms, HelloContainer checks whether the confirmed schedule is within your ETD/ETA tolerance. If not, the order is flagged for review.


Every decision is recorded in the order log, and orders that need attention are labelled and shown in the Bookings widget, so your team can manage by exception. 

New in this release: allocation management 

  • New role: Allocation Manager: A dedicated Allocation Manager role gives access to the Allocation Dashboard, so allocations can be managed by procurement instead of all super users. 
  • Allocation Dashboard update: Monthly allocation is now leading and mandatory; weekly and yearly allocations are optional. New columns show per lane Allocation Reserved (linked, not yet sent), Allocation Booked (sent, not yet confirmed) and Allocation Remaining per month. Cancelled or failed bookings are released back to the remaining allocation. 
  • Carrier selection across multiple allocations: When several allocations match an order, automated booking now selects the carrier using a weighted scoring model. 
  • Notification: order booked without allocation: Allocation managers and order owners are notified when an order is booked without a matching allocation or without remaining allocation. Configurable under Order → Notifications (Booking segment). 
  • Cost lines for automatically booked orders: Sea freight and pre-carriage cost lines are now shown in the price panel for orders booked via automated booking.

     

Benefits 

  • Bookings placed within the agreed tender, rates and allocations 
  • Controlled distribution of volumes across carriers 
  • Less manual work: your team focuses only on exceptions

Automated Booking is activated per customer and configured with your key users. Interested? Contact your HelloContainer contact person or support. 

In the spotlight: Goods translator

Exporting to multiple countries often means the same product has to appear in a different language on each document. With the Goods translator, you manage your product descriptions once in HelloContainer, and every document is generated in the right language automatically. No more manual rewriting per shipment. 

How it works 

  1. Manage your goods: On the Goods page you maintain each product with its description in Dutch, English and French. With this release, the packing type can also be translated, so it appears in the correct language on the BL and the Certificate of Origin. 
  2. Select goods in the order: In the order, goods are selected from your managed product list via a multiselect instead of being typed manually. This keeps descriptions consistent across all orders. A direct link takes you to the Goods page and back to your order in one click.
  3. Set the document language per party: Per party (e.g. consignee, shipper, trucker, forwarder) you choose the language per document type: booking request, transport instructions, Certificate of Origin, customs declaration and BL instruction. 
  4. Documents are generated automatically: When a document is created, HelloContainer uses the language variant that matches the party’s setting. If no setting exists, the primary product description is used.

Benefits 

  • Consistent product descriptions across all orders and documents 
  • Fewer errors and rejections of documents at destination 
  • Less manual work for your booking team

     

The Goods translator is activated per customer. Interested? Contact your HelloContainer contact person or support to get started. 

Export – Booking Module

  • Show/hide contact details on the BL: Super users can configure in MySettings (Shipping Instruction) whether Notify, Shipper and Consignee contact details are shown on the BL. Default behaviour is unchanged. 
  • Reefer ventilation preset applied at order creation: The ventilation preset from ‘Presets reefer settings’ in MySettings is now applied to all containers when an order is created, in line with the other reefer presets. 
  • Clearer booking warnings: The warning ‘Schedule or rate unknown, please select first’ is no longer shown on orders that are ready for booking. 
  • Fewer, more relevant notifications: The ‘Delivery terminal known or changed’ notification is now sent once per booking instead of per container, and the ‘Container Number Changed’ alert is only sent when the container number actually changes. 
  • User attribution in the order log: The order log now shows which user performed an action. 
  • Carrier document extraction: Extracted carrier documents are now always linked to the correct order. 

Carrier Connections

  • New schedules: Evergreen (DCSA) and Grimaldi: Evergreen schedules are now imported via the DCSA Commercial Schedules API, and Grimaldi schedules are now available in HelloContainer. 
  • CMA CGM schedule updates on active orders: Schedule updates from CMA CGM are now applied to active orders. 
  • CMA CGM shipping instructions: ICS2: Shipping instructions to CMA CGM now include the ICS2 data elements and an improved goods description layout. 

Track & Trace

  • ‘Latest Milestone’ column in Container Overview: The Container Overview now shows the latest actual milestone per container, as already available in the D&D overview. 
  • Barge milestones on containers: Barge milestones (Modality) are shown on containers. 
  • Improved schedule validation: Stops without reported events (e.g. an empty origin port) are ignored in the schedule check, so Track & Trace orders continue to progress. 

Customs

  • Faster declarations overview: The declarations overview loads significantly faster. 
  • Complete declaration export download: The export declaration overview download now contains all results. 
  • Validation when cancelling a declaration: Cancelling an export declaration without an MRN now shows a clear message. 

Rates

  • More surcharges available: Seven new surcharge types have been added for sea freight rates: Congestion Surcharge Origin, Congestion Surcharge Destination, Emission Surcharge (ETS), Conflict Risk Surcharge, Contingency Surcharge, Reefer Monitoring Surcharge and Import Service Charge. Existing surcharges are unchanged. 
  • Clear error message on rates upload: When a rates upload cannot be processed, the notification now shows the reason. 

Transport Orders

  • More reliable delivery to trucking partners: Transport orders are now automatically retried over several hours when a trucking partner is temporarily unreachable.