CargoWise overview
CargoWise is published by WiseTech Global, a publicly listed Australian software company (ASX:WTC). The platform is deployed across more than 193 countries and supports the full forwarding workflow from quote to invoice, with module coverage across air, ocean, and ground freight, customs filings, warehousing, and accounting. Among large global freight forwarders, CargoWise is the dominant TMS spine; the mid-market segment more often runs Magaya, GoFreight, or Logi-Sys, with smaller forwarders sometimes operating on spreadsheets and email.
The typical CargoWise customer is a multi-country forwarder with dozens to thousands of seats, dedicated IT capacity, and complex multi-carrier workflows that span trade lanes and regulatory regimes. The platform's depth is a function of how deeply embedded it sits in ops, finance, and compliance flows; replacing it is rarely on the table for forwarders running it today.
For ops automation, that depth matters. The route to value is not migration to a different TMS; it is closing the gap between CargoWise's eAdaptor surface and each carrier's portal-specific execution channel.
API capabilities and constraints
CargoWise exposes carrier integration through eAdaptor, a message-based architecture using XML over SOAP. Forwarder-to-carrier and carrier-to-forwarder data exchange flows through a defined set of EDI message types: IFTMIN for booking submissions, IFTMBF for booking confirmations, IFTSTA for milestone events and tracking, VERMAS for verified gross mass, and BAPLIE and COPARN at the terminal layer. eAdaptor also handles document attachments, structured shipment events, and reference reads against the customer's CargoWise data store.
What eAdaptor handles natively: forwarder-side data exchange, structured shipment events, and the EDI-grade carrier integrations published through neutral-portal partners (INTTRA, now part of e2open; Infor Nexus; CargoSmart). These cover the load-bearing end of carrier connectivity for high-volume, consistent-template flows.
What eAdaptor does not handle: carrier-specific portal validation rules (Maersk's HS-code minimum at SI submission, MSC's character sanitisation on myMSC, Hapag-Lloyd's New SI versus eaSI selection for ICS2-bound cargo), per-country ICS2 filing-mode selection (F10, F11, F12, F13, F14, F15, F17), document-type changes that lock at booking on certain carriers, or spot-product portal flows like Maersk Spot, CMA CGM SpotOn, and Hapag-Lloyd Quick Quotes. eAdaptor is structured-data plumbing; the carrier's portal is where workflow-specific rules apply.
How Expedion integrates
Expedion agents read shipment state from CargoWise through eAdaptor. Booking references, BL drafts, SI fields, container assignments, and milestone events are pulled as reference reads against the customer's existing CargoWise data store; they do not introduce new transactions on the customer's CargoWise contract.
Agents execute carrier-side workflows on each carrier's canonical channel. On Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, ONE, COSCO, and Evergreen this means authenticated portal sessions on Maersk.com, myMSC, My CMA CGM, ONE eCommerce, SynCon Hub, and ShipmentLink, where the carrier's portal is the canonical execution surface and where carrier-specific portal rules apply. On Hapag-Lloyd, CMA CGM, and ONE, agents use carrier-published REST APIs (api-portal.hlag.com, api-portal.cma-cgm.com, developers.one-line.com) where production-grade endpoints exist. EDI via INTTRA, Infor Nexus, or CargoSmart is the standard fallback for high-volume IFTMIN and IFTSTA flows.
Completed events write back to CargoWise via eAdaptor so the system of record stays current. Authorization is forwarder-provided: agents use customer-supplied CargoWise credentials and carrier-portal credentials with explicit, auditable scope. No credential reuse across forwarder accounts.
Workflows automated
Five Phase 1 workflows on CargoWise across all 7 Tier 1 carriers. Each row is a workflow; the integration column describes how Expedion agents bridge between CargoWise's eAdaptor surface and each carrier's execution channel.
CargoWise's eAdaptor handles forwarder-side message exchange consistently. The Carrier execution column reflects what each carrier's portal or API actually accepts: Maersk's HS-code enforcement at SI stage, MSC's ICS2 filing options at documentation stage, COSCO's lack of confirmed DCSA T&T v2.2 conformance at tracking, ONE's Premier Alliance operating-carrier event attribution. Expedion agents handle this carrier-side variance per workflow; the integration depth on CargoWise itself is uniform.
| Workflow | CargoWise integration | Carrier execution | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booking | eAdaptor IFTMIN + IFTMBF | Carrier portal or API per carrier (Maersk.com, myMSC, My CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd OBS, ONE eCommerce, SynCon Hub, ShipmentLink); portal-only for spot products (Maersk Spot, CMA CGM SpotOn, Hapag-Lloyd Quick Quotes) | Full |
| Shipping Instructions | eAdaptor message exchange | Carrier portal SI submission with per-carrier validation: HS-code minimum (Maersk), character sanitisation (MSC myMSC), New SI form for ICS2 (Hapag-Lloyd), ICS2 multi-filing options (ONE three-format EDI), eBusiness portal (CMA CGM) | Full |
| Bill of Lading | eAdaptor for draft BL events and amendments | Carrier portal amendment, switch BL coordination, telex release across Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, ONE, COSCO, Evergreen ShipmentLink; BLDA tool on Hapag-Lloyd Online Business Suite | Full |
| Documentation | eAdaptor VERMAS for VGM, document attachments | Carrier portal VGM, DG declarations, and ICS2 advance manifest filings (F10 through F17); VGM via OBS webVGM or VERMAS on Hapag-Lloyd; VERMAS through INTTRA, Infor Nexus, or CargoSmart on Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, ONE, COSCO, Evergreen | Full |
| Tracking | eAdaptor IFTSTA for milestone events | DCSA T&T v2.2 API on Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, and Evergreen; COSCO via SynCon Hub plus third-party aggregators (TrackCargo, TRADLINX) | Full |
Onboarding timeline
Customer onboarding for CargoWise itself is a multi-month engagement at most enterprise scales. Module coverage, country rollout, and integration with the customer's accounting and customs filing surfaces drive the timeline; specifics depend on scope and are outside Expedion's surface area.
Expedion onboarding sits on top of an existing CargoWise deployment. The typical engagement runs five to seven business days from kickoff to first agent in supervised production, covering eAdaptor connection mapping, customer-specific custom-field reconciliation, carrier credential provisioning, and a supervised validation period across booking, SI, BL, documentation, and tracking workflows on the carriers in scope.
The asymmetry is deliberate. Forwarders running CargoWise have already paid the multi-month implementation cost; agent onboarding is the layer that activates automation against that existing investment. No replatforming, no parallel TMS, no second source of truth.
Pricing and counter-positioning
CargoWise charges per transaction. The structural implication is straightforward: when a CargoWise customer processes more shipments through manual ops work, CargoWise revenue grows; when a customer reduces manual processing through automation, CargoWise revenue contracts. This is the math of the pricing model, not a claim about intent.
Expedion's headcount-budget pricing creates the opposite alignment. When automation reduces ops headcount load, the customer's value from Expedion grows directly. The two pricing models work together because they are aligned to different customer-value axes. Forwarders running CargoWise can stack Expedion on top without changing the TMS.
Industry coverage in December 2025 documented 20-50% pricing increases on CargoWise contracts; that timing context shaped the 2026 receptivity window for ops automation alternatives. Specific per-shipment dollar figures are not publicly published in a stable, citable form and should be confirmed with the customer's own CargoWise account team.
When automation reduces manual processing on CargoWise, CargoWise revenue contracts. When automation reduces ops headcount load on Expedion, the customer's value from Expedion grows. The pricing models are aligned to different customer-value axes; that is the structural fact, not a marketing claim.
Related pages
Carriers on CargoWise: all 7 Tier 1 carriers integrate via eAdaptor: Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, COSCO, Evergreen.
Hubs: Carriers hub · Solutions hub · Integrations hub
Solutions on CargoWise: Bill of Lading · Shipping Instructions · Booking · Documentation · Tracking
Other TMS integrations: Magaya · GoFreight · Logi-Sys · Descartes · ShipThis · No TMS
Frequently asked questions
Does Expedion replace CargoWise?
No. Expedion runs on top of CargoWise as the agent execution layer. CargoWise stays the system of record; agents read from CargoWise via eAdaptor, execute carrier-side workflows on each carrier's portal or API, and write completed events back. There is no data migration, no replatforming, and no parallel TMS to maintain.
Will Expedion integration affect our CargoWise transaction count or pricing?
Agents read from and write to CargoWise via eAdaptor. The transaction count for billing depends on the customer's specific CargoWise contract. Expedion's typical deployment pattern reads existing booking, SI, and BL records as reference reads (not new transactions) and writes back milestone events as they occur. Most agent-driven activity does not increase billable transactions on CargoWise's side, but specific contract terms vary; confirm with the CargoWise account team during onboarding.
What CargoWise modules does Expedion integrate with?
Agents work with the standard CargoWise One forwarding workflow: booking, shipping instructions, bill of lading, documentation, and tracking. Other modules including warehouse, customs filing, and accounting are not in current scope; the Expedion focus is the carrier-facing operational workflow where eAdaptor's structured-data layer ends and each carrier's portal-specific execution begins.
How does Expedion handle CargoWise's eAdaptor for forwarders with custom configurations?
eAdaptor's XML over SOAP message structure is consistent across deployments, but customer-specific custom fields, validation rules, and approval routing vary. Agent onboarding includes mapping the customer's specific eAdaptor configuration during the supervised validation period. Custom field reconciliation is part of the standard five to seven business day onboarding cycle, not a separate engagement.
Does Expedion work with WiseTech's newer AI features?
WiseTech's AI features augment the CargoWise user; they help the team work faster. Expedion replaces ops headcount workload; it takes manual work off the team's plate. The two are complementary at the architecture layer, and both can run on the same CargoWise deployment without conflict.