MF Shipping × C Teleport at a glance
booked over time
booking time
per crew change
Company overview
MF Shipping Group is an innovative shipping management company founded in 1994, operating over 50 vessels, mostly across Northern Europe. Based in Farmsum, Netherlands, they manage tanker vessels, dry cargo vessels, and cement carriers.
As a mid-sized ship manager in a traditionally conservative and heavily regulated industry, MF Shipping has built its reputation on safe, efficient, and compliant ship management. However, what sets them apart is their forward-thinking approach as early adopters of digital solutions.
This case study focuses on one critical piece of their digital transformation: automated crew travel management – a decision that demonstrates how C Teleport has helped them simultaneously improve efficiency, reduce costs, and provide coordinators with the flexibility and tools to focus on crew welfare.
The challenge
Before implementing C Teleport, MF Shipping’s crew coordination department faced significant operational bottlenecks in travel management:
Time-intensive manual processes
The crew coordination team worked with a traditional travel agency through their crew software system. Every flight request required manual updates, back-and-forth communication, and lengthy waiting periods.
“With the previous agency, we had some waiting hours. It was taking four or five hours at least before we’d get a flight update with options, and then you’d have to confirm it. It was taking a lot of time. Sometimes one day you were busy with one crew change.“
– Stephanie Kanon, Crew Coordinator
Limited control and flexibility
The existing system offered minimal flexibility in choosing optimal travel routes. Crew coordinators received one or two flight options with little ability to customise based on seafarer needs or operational requirements.
“When we had our previous agency, we’d get a flight and that’s it. We didn’t have a lot of choices. Sometimes in the email, they’d send a message –’oh, I also have this flight’– but then it was only one or two options.“
– Stephanie Kanon, Crew Coordinator
Operational impact
- Work interruptions: Coordinators were stuck waiting for flight confirmations while other tasks accumulated
- Seafarer wellbeing concerns: Limited flexibility made it difficult to ensure crew arrived rested before joining vessels
- Budget visibility: Lack of transparent pricing options made cost optimisation challenging
The solution: Automating crew travel with C Teleport
MF Shipping adopted C Teleport’s automated crew travel management platform department-wide after a successful pilot programme with two team members.
Key features used
- Flight booking with advanced filters: Marine fares, free cancellation/changes, airport/airline preferences.
- Hotel reservations: Integrated accommodation booking on one platform.
- Mobile accessibility: Full functionality on mobile devices for on-the-go management.
- 24/7 disruption support: Immediate assistance when needed.
Smooth onboarding process
The implementation included comprehensive training that accommodated team members from diverse backgrounds, ensuring everyone could confidently use the platform.
“It’s very nice that you have the opportunity to work together with someone from your team (C Teleport) to check how it works (…) onboarding went very smoothly”
– Stephanie Kanon, Crew Coordinator
The results: 98% Faster crew change operations
“…now with C Teleport, it’s getting more efficient. If necessary, I can arrange a crew change in five minutes”
“Working with C Teleport is very nice because you have everything under your own control (…) it makes your life much easier.”
– Stephanie Kanon, Crew Coordinator
| Metric | Before C Teleport | After C Teleport | Improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booking and processing time | 4-5 hours minimum per crew change | 5 minutes per crew change | 98% reduction |
| Response time for urgent changes | Hours (phone calls required) | Minutes (direct desktop and mobile access) | Near-instant |
| Number of flight options visible | 1–2 options from travel agent | Transparent view of all flight options | Full control and transparency |
| Visa-risk routing | Risk of Schengen and transit-restricted stops | Flexible filters and custom travel policies | Fewer compliance issues |
| Policy-friendly fares | Limited control | Marine fares, free to change & cancel overview | Smarter budget control |
Enhanced operational control
- Full transparency and choice: Coordinators now see all available flight options with complete pricing visibility, enabling optimal decision-making that balances cost, travel time, and seafarer comfort.
- Smart scheduling alignment: The ability to view multiple options simultaneously allows coordinators to align arrival times of crew members from different locations, optimising ground transportation and reducing costs.
“Now (with C Teleport), if I want to book a flight, I see a lot of options I can choose from. (…) This is also avoiding extra costs.“
– Stephanie Kanon, Crew Coordinator
Cost optimisation
- True cost awareness: With +9,500 flights booked to date, MF Shipping has gained actionable visibility. Thanks to C Teleport’s clear overview, personalisation, and flexible booking options, coordinators can look beyond ticket prices and evaluate the total journey cost – including hotels, layovers, and rest periods – to choose the most efficient and cost-effective travel plans.
- Lower operational costs: MF Shipping’s median booking time now stands at an impressive 2 minutes and 45 seconds, per their last 300 bookings, significantly reducing the man-hours spent on each crew change. This efficiency directly lowers administrative costs and frees the coordination team to focus on planning, communication, and crew welfare.
“Of course, cost savings because now you have more– a clearer view of what the options are. (…) You have several options, and then you can choose what you prefer or what the seafarer prefers.”
– Stephanie Kanon, Crew Coordinator
Easier crew welfare management
- Rest before duty: The platform’s flexibility enables coordinators to book flights that allow seafarers to arrive a day early, ensuring they’re well-rested before boarding – a critical safety consideration often missed with traditional travel agencies.
- Visa compliance made easy: Advanced filters help avoid routing through countries requiring visas that seafarers don’t possess, preventing travel complications.
Strategic time reallocation
With automation streamlining routine booking tasks, crew coordinators redirected their time to higher-value activities:
- Personal connections: More time for annual office visits with masters, chief officers, and chief engineers to strengthen relationships and maintain open communication.
- Vessel visits: Increased capacity for on-board visits to meet entire crews, building trust and identifying operational improvements.
- Proactive planning: Better focus on crew scheduling, document management, training compliance, and responding to seafarer requests.
Why it works: MF Shipping’s innovation philosophy
MF Shipping Group represents a new generation of ship managers who understand that staying competitive requires embracing digital transformation, even in a conservative, heavily regulated sector.
Automation as an enabler, not a replacement
MF Shipping’s philosophy centres on a crucial insight: automation doesn’t replace people, it empowers them to do more meaningful work.
“It helps you to get jobs done easier. You have more time to do other things. (…) If you need to fill in everything with pen and paper, that will take a lot of time – time you don’t have – to spend to have a talk with the seafarers. (…)
Digitalisation in that way helps us get more time for our seafarers.”
– Stephanie Kanon, Crew Coordinator
This approach directly addresses common fears in the industry about technology replacing maritime expertise. Instead, MF Shipping uses C Teleport’s automation features to:
- Free crew coordinators from repetitive tasks to focus on crew welfare and relationships
- Enhance safety compliance through better rest management and careful travel planning
- Improve operational efficiency without sacrificing the human touch that seafarers need
- Enable data-driven decisions while retaining expert judgment on complex situations
Building lasting operational success with C Teleport
MF Shipping’s story shows how one smart digital solution can completely change the way a team works. With C Teleport, their crew coordinators now manage travel faster, easier, and with full control. What used to take hours now takes minutes – giving them more time to plan ahead, support their crews, and keep operations running smoothly.
With 9,500+ flights booked to date, the company continues to rely on C Teleport to make travel management more efficient and transparent. By using its automation features, the team can quickly find the best flight options, manage bookings in real time, and keep every trip organised – all in one place.
About C Teleport
C Teleport is a crew travel platform that revolutionises crew travel management through automation and transparency. Designed for industries where plans change often – such as maritime – it replaces manual travel coordination with a seamless, automated experience.
Serving thousands of users worldwide, C Teleport simplifies crew travel management, replacing the hassle of juggling multiple systems, waiting hours for changes, and dealing with unexpected costs. It empowers companies to easily search, book, change, and cancel flights and hotels instantly in one integrated online platform.
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