Case Study
Profit by the Voyage
How a multi-entity ferry group built voyage-level profitability, unified operations, and built-in compliance on NetSuite OneWorld.
The Situation
A fleet of more than 20 vessels carries passengers, vehicles, and freight across inter-island shipping routes. The group behind it spans five subsidiaries: shipping, import and general trading, property management, and barging with crew management. Around 27 vessels are treated as individual profit and cost centers, facing complex Philippine VAT, withholding tax, and BIR reporting obligations.
The Obstacles
With booking, freight, and accounting on separate platforms and much of the work in spreadsheets, there was no real-time link between operations and financials. The group couldn't tell which voyages made or lost money until well after they had sailed.
Voyage Profitability Blindspots
The group only learned what a voyage actually cost long after the vessel had docked. This expensive delay meant next-sailing decisions were made entirely blind.
Fragmented Financial Systems
Three shipping divisions and separate trading, property, and barging subsidiaries kept completely isolated books. This severely complicated manual consolidation.
Manual Sales & Tax
Passenger and freight sales sat in legacy systems lacking a clean financial link. Pricing, Philippine VAT, withholding tax, and BIR reporting were fully manual.
The Solution
Softype implemented Oracle NetSuite OneWorld (with Advanced Financials and Fixed Assets) as a single operating platform, tying each capability directly to a structural challenge. The rollout was carefully sequenced to stabilize financials before layering integrations.
We configured three shipping companies as divisions under a consolidated chart of accounts. A custom vessel segment and NetSuite Classes enabled per-vessel, per-voyage profit-and-loss reporting while preserving separate statutory books.
The Results
Voyage Profitability
Timely per-voyage profitability reporting totally replaced after-the-fact estimates.
Unified Operations
Passenger and freight ticketing integrated, closing costly manual reconciliation gaps
Built-In Compliance
Auditable procurement, withholding tax, and BIR compliance on one platform.
NetSuite OneWorld: How We Delivered the Results
Softype partnered closely with the group's functional teams to sequence the rollout correctly. By stabilizing the financial foundation before layering on complex operational integrations and strict compliance controls, the group gained immediate voyage-level visibility, eliminated pricing disputes, and achieved consolidated group financials without ever disrupting day-to-day ferry operations.
25+
Years of Experience
600+
Successful Projects
100+
Global Clients
30+
Countries Served
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