| Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) has received the following update from the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment (the department) regarding the recent AIMS outages. (refer IAN 235-2020 and IAN 234-2020).
The AIMS system outage over the Christmas/NY period was initially challenging to identify and fix as the issues were intermittent, but this has now been resolved.
The timing was unfortunate as it precluded the department from getting closer to achieving service standards for entry processing.
The department has noted that there has been an approximate 20% increase in the amount of dual entries (Quarantine and IFIP) compared with this time last year. The increased volume combined with the fact that dual entries take longer to process has contributed to the delay issues.
The department has also advised it is in the process of returning staff to the workplace in line with the COVID regulations of each relevant State Government authority. This return also includes Melbourne and Sydney, but will be monitored and remain aligned with State Government advice as a result of recent outbreaks in both regions.
The return of staff to COVID safe levels in DAWE offices is expected to improve productivity due to better network connectivity and speeds in the office as opposed to staff homes. Note that due to COVID physical distancing requirements, staff in most regions will be working some days in the office and some days from home each week until such time that these COVID distancing requirements no longer apply. |