Retailers, and especially clothiers, routinely clear and restock seasonal inventory. “Out with the old, in with the new” is the mantra. The freight market changes faster than the weather, but rapid change is much more difficult in the capital-intensive trucking and logistics industry, especially for technology decisions.

Many carriers and freight brokers use aging transportation management software (TMS) platforms. The technology is neither easy nor affordable to replace. Switching from “legacy” to modern solutions can be disruptive, and the payback period may drag on for years.

Continuing down the same path with existing technology can be even more risky. Delaying investments in technology will add more “tech debt” from having to build, buy, and support workaround solutions.

Fortunately, there’s a better option for modernizing a TMS. Transportation and logistics companies that use a SaaS-based integration platform have found a way to instantly exchange, translate and reformat data between their systems and trading partners.

The integration platform includes pre-built software components that enable non-developer IT staff to fill gaps and create better information flows and user experiences for office staff, drivers, and customers. The benefits of this approach are twofold: 1) gain complete control over your tech strategy; and 2) expand system connectivity, capability, and scalability.

This article provides an overview of how cost-conscious transportation companies use the platform to advance in a rapidly evolving industry.

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Gaining Full Control

The transportation industry has plenty of technology options. In many instances, carriers and logistics providers have all the data they need to solve operational challenges and unlock new efficiencies. What they need is to have system integrations that keep up with technology innovations.

With a SaaS-based integration platform, companies can leverage pre-built connectors and software components to strengthen how their existing systems work and exchange data with new applications. The platform puts you in front of the line, skipping vendor-imposed delays and timelines for integrations, giving you complete control over your tech strategy.

Unlock the Power of System Integrations

The ability to keep what you have and adopt new tools within a connected network of applications creates value across the board for office staff, drivers, business partners, and customers from:

• Instant access to data: Eliminate the time office staff spends gathering information, allowing them to focus on higher-value activities like solving problems and finding more profitable business opportunities.
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• Workflow automation: Syncing data across applications improves the flow of information for order entry, load planning, payroll, billing, and more. Your teams stay ahead of information to expedite customer responses and address critical business needs.
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• Pre-built components: Quickly add new connections, functionalities, and capabilities to existing systems to sustain and scale your business.
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• Scalability: Rapidly adopt new technologies that help you grow and improve performance without adding more staff and overhead.

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Reaping the Rewards

Having a platform that facilitates real-time exchanges of information between systems will vastly improve communication, collaboration, and decision-making. The payoffs don’t end there. Carriers and logistics companies can give their drivers, business partners, and customers a better experience from:

• Greater visibility: Bridging disparate systems and creating a seamless data flow across the organization will give users a unified view of information, which can also be shared with customers to automate routine communications.

Consider how motor carriers and logistics providers can more seamlessly share information with customers to improve temperature tracking and food traceability. Rather than attempt to meet tedious reporting tasks for customers with disconnected TMS and telematics systems, a fleet could automate the monitoring, capturing, and reporting of trailer temperatures to share to-the-minute information directly with customers at various checkpoints to ensure their cargo is safe.

Fleets can also create “if-then” logic with customizable software components of an integration platform to alert internal teams of risky events and take immediate corrective actions to prevent loss claims.

• Customized capabilities:  Carriers can use the SaaS-based integration platform to create a customized user experience for office staff and customers.

Some companies use the platform to create a web portal that gives customers self-service tools, such as real-time shipment tracking information, to eliminate phone calls and emails. The platform can scale to meet customer service demands, ensuring the back office can efficiently manage customer support needs without adding staff during periods of growth.

• Future-proofed foundation: In an increasingly competitive market, carriers and logistics providers need flexible, scalable, and adaptable technology to outpace the competition. An integration platform that accommodates a wide range of technologies allows companies to respond with agility to market shifts and varying customer needs.

The same integration platform can future-proof your technology strategy. It will give IT staff more time to meet present user needs by reconfiguring workflows, introducing greater security and compliance features, and adding new tools that enhance the user experience.

Download this whitepaper today to see how a top North American fleet, Challenger, is gaining all these benefits by supercharging its business with the SaaS-based Tranztec Extend platform.

Confidently Move Forward with Tranztec 

Tranztec Connect offers the industry’s only standard solution for connecting and extending transportation technology platforms through pre-built integrations and software components. With its plug-and-play functionality, the Tranztec Extend platform minimizes setup time, modernizes data flows between systems and delivers a near-immediate ROI.

Tranztec provides a path forward that puts control in the hands of carriers and logistics providers, allowing them to get the most out of new and existing technology today.

Interested in learning more about the Saas-based Tranztec Integration platform?