ePort

Worked with the software development team of Vietnam’s largest port operator, contributing to the digital transformation of their workflows in order to cut down processing time.

Role

UX Designer Intern

Tools

Photoshop, Figma

Areas

UX Research, Design

Cat Lai Port

Cat Lai Port is one of Vietnam’s busiest terminals, processing 16,000 to 18,000 container trucks every single day. However, the process for container trucks to enter the port for import or export remains time-consuming and inefficient.

  1. Logistics companies kick off by filling out an online form with owner information, container IDs, and scheduled entry dates, then assigning each shipment to a specific truck.

2. When a driver arrives at the gate, they pull into a holding lane, climb down from the cab, and re-enter those same details—plus last-minute data like container weight or damage—onto a paper manifest.

3. The gate operator compares each handwritten entry with the pre-filled digital records

4. Then they print a confirmation slip and hand it back to the driver so the truck can pass through.

All these steps add up to wasted minutes on every visit. Drivers wait in line under the sun, step out of their trucks, and staff often pause to decipher shaky handwriting. The paper-based confirmation process also produces a huge stack of single-use forms.

By moving the entire workflow onto a mobile app, drivers could complete and submit their entry forms from their seats and receive instant digital approval at the gate. This shift would cut wait times by minutes—or even hours—each day, eliminate awkward paperwork handoffs, and save enough paper that Mother Nature might send us a thank-you postcard.

ePort

The process begins when the company assigns each driver a specific truck and its matching chassis—known locally as a “mooc.” Although the drivers may operate any available vehicle on a given day, there usually be a limited amount of trucks in the company. My initial design choice was to allow drivers to pick from a list of trucks and matching chassis and not having to type the plate number everyday, which then required the logistics companies to cooperate to build a database of their owned vehicles and chassis.

Drivers then proceed to a storage yard or port and can pick up to two containers per trip; because container IDs, seal types, and other specifics change with each load, those fields remain manually entered. I was mainly involved with the UX research process and created the first prototype during my two-month internship before returning to my studies. Since launching in 2023, the app has evolved over two years into a comprehensive tool that supports nearly every step of the container logistics process.

Wireframe Sketches

Drivers pick from a list of trucks and matching chassis provided by the companies

Manually type container IDs, seal types, and other specifics

Since launching in 2023, the app has evolved over two years into a comprehensive tool that supports nearly every step of the container logistics process.