Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/699972
COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | JULY 2016 59 New technologies connect carriers to shippers, third parties for instant communication BY AARON HUFF A few years ago, it would have seemed unrealistic for any shipper, third-party logistics provider or broker to expect total visibility from every carrier in their freight networks. While large and mid-size carriers had the technology to provide shipment visibility, small carriers traditionally have lacked advanced onboard computers and software with electronic data interchange to be on equal footing. Today, about 97 percent of active U.S. Department of Transporta- tion-registered carriers operate less than 20 trucks, according to RigDig BI Online, a trucking industry business intelligence tool from Randall-Reilly, publisher of CCJ. To bridge the technology gap, small carriers and drivers routinely have had to answer check calls or manually update tracking information in each customer's web portal. Another challenge for shippers and third parties was obtaining instant pricing information from smaller carriers to eliminate phone calls, emails and faxes to inquire about and negoti- ate rates. While these wrinkles always have been part of freight transactions, new technologies are ironing them out. Total visibility Many shippers and 3PLs now require carriers to have automated shipment tracking and tracing, which is easier with today's consumer technology. Any connected device, even a driver's cell phone, can be used to automate shipment tracking, says Dave Halsema, executive vice president of MacroPoint, a track-and-trace platform provider. MacroPoint's system uses location data from drivers' mobile devices and carriers' back-offi ce transportation management software systems to provide visibility to shippers and logistics fi rms. The process can be automated using geofences, or virtual perimeters, that are set up at arrival and departure locations on routes. When drivers enter or leave the designated spots, Macro- Point automatically updates the status of shipments. The system provides exception and predictive reports that show shippers loads that are ahead of schedule or running behind. While the system can provide tracking information using EDI, it typically sends data directly to shippers and brokers' TMS systems through an application programming interface, a web service that moves information faster, provides more frequent updates and identifi es excep- tions earlier, Halsema says. Over the last three years, MacroPoint says it has seen requests for its tracking platform increase by 300 percent. The company now works with 84 of the top 100 freight brokers and 39 of the top 50 3PLs, as well as nine of the 10 largest asset-based carriers through their broker- age divisions. McLeod Software, a developer of TMS systems for motor carriers and nonasset logistics fi rms, has developed an interface with MacroPoint and load tracking plat- forms from FourKites and 10-4 Systems. More carriers are being asked to provide automated tracking data to customers using these providers, and the ultimate goal is to use the interfaces for shippers and brokers to identify carriers that have available trucks to solicit spot-market capacity. "That is the next step of the platforms McLeod Software, a developer of TMS systems for motor carriers and nonasset logistics rms, has developed an interface with MacroPoint's load tracking platform.