PIn the past, goods were received by the shipping line in the port of loading, and delivered to the port of destination. The shipper would normally deliver the cargo to the port of loading. The shipping line had nothing to do with the cargo before it was loaded on board the ship, or after it had been discharged from it. According to the INCOTERMS, the point where responsibility is transferred ('critical point') was the ships rail. The shipping line covered only the movement of goods from port to port, or hook to hook.
With the advent of containerisation, shipping lines took responsibility of the goods at an earlier stage whereby the transfer of responsibility moved ashore. The shipper no longer delivers the goods 'under the hook', but to the carriers container freight station (cfs) for consolidation and stuffing into the container, or the shipper stuffs his goods into a container at his own premises.
The International Chamber of Commerce developed new INCOTERMS which recognise this development. The 'critical point' has been removed from the ships rail and instead placed at the point where the goods are taken in charge by the shipping line. The UCP were also revised in order to take containerisation developments into consideration.
Intermodal transport aims to reduce transit time and costs. In order to facilitate fast international intermodal transport, various Customs formalities have been standardised and international conventions have been signed.
The Singapore Freight Forwarders Association recognises this development by creating the 'Singapore Registry of Accredited Multimodal Transport Operators'.