The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) has announced the release of a new set of guidelines for API development to make it easier for industry stakeholders to adopt its standards and connect third-party technologies.
These guidelines can already be used to implement the organisation’s standards for Track & Trace and Operational Vessel Schedules (OVS), outlining how APIs should be designed, developed and implemented in the container shipping context.
The document defines a list of API characteristics which compliant systems should follow, noting that they should have clearly defined responsibilities and an appropriate level of abstraction, while also being stable, secure and optimised for common interactions.
Specific technical details for API developers are described in the guidelines, detailing elements that ‘Must’ and ‘Should’ be included, those that are ‘Recommended’ or ‘Optional’, as well as noting inclusions that ‘Must Not’ be made.
The API guidelines are free to download, and are available via the DCSA website.
