Ben Ames has spent 20 years as a journalist since starting out as a daily newspaper reporter in Pennsylvania in 1995. From 1999 forward, he has focused on business and technology reporting for a number of trade journals, beginning when he joined Design News and Modern Materials Handling magazines. Ames is author of the trail guide "Hiking Massachusetts" and is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism.
A software vendor called "project44" has introduced a program it says will dramatically improve the speed of data exchanges among shippers, less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers, and third-party logistics providers (3PLs) from the technology that has existed for decades.
In an effort to "walk the walk," the Chicago-based vendor is inviting companies to participate in free tests of the speed of their data-interchange connections. Project44 will run a 72-hour health scan to evaluate more than 15 key technical capabilities of the companies' application programming interface—better known in the IT trade as APIs—which are add-ons to transportation management system (TMS) platforms now in widespread use. The scans will grade the effectiveness of each user's ability to provide fast and accurate rate quotes, automate pickup requests from shippers and 3PLs, provide clear tracking codes, and confirm delivery with real-time documentation, project44 said.
Armed with that information, carriers can decide whether their current networks meet their needs and find out how they compare to other carriers and industry averages in the ongoing effort to reduce billing errors, provide increased visibility to customers, and ultimately increase profits, the company said.
The web-enabled tool is the latest step of a rapid rollout that has seen project44 link its APIs to the TMS platforms of firms such as MercuryGate International Inc. and McLeod Software Corp. The tool performs in much the same manner as an engine that supports online travel booking sites like Kayak and Travelocity.
Like adding nitrous oxide to a drag racer's fuel line, linking a nimble API to a lumbering TMS allows it to produce faster, more accurate price quotes than through the standard electronic data interchange (EDI) approach, according to Jett McCandless, project44's cofounder. McCandless has made a name for himself by applying new technologies to a business that has not been known as a first-mover in adopting new IT tools.
Created in 1948, EDI is a one-way communication standard that requires users to communicate in batches that are processed every 15 to 45 minutes. In a world where shippers and 3PLs are constantly trying to match rates with carriers, that slow pace of conversation forces users to rely on static rate tables compiled once a year or, at best, on a seasonal basis, McCandless said.
In contrast, an API-based communication system automates that exchange, allowing users to generate dynamic price quotes that can vary from day to day, reflecting the complexities of the modern transportation industry.
"It's like having a fax machine, and then upgrading to email, text, and social media," McCandless said. "Imagine how successful text messaging would be if it took 30 minutes to get each response? You'd never get anything done."
EXPERT SAYS API MUST COEXIST WITH EDI
Though supplementing TMS platforms with APIs is a crucial ingredient in generating quick price quotes, it can't solve every challenge alone, said Danny Slaton, EVP and COO of SMC3 Inc., a transportation pricing software provider that has been providing LTL pricing content for 85 years.
SMC3 integrates its web service APIs with supply chain software providers to support its products, such as "CzarLite," "Bid$ense," and "RateWare," which combine to support end-to-end predictability in shipper and 3PL-carrier relationships, the Peachtree City, Ga.-based company said.
However, Slaton draws a distinction between transactional APIs, which are effective at simple tasks like collecting a price estimate for a single shipment from a carrier's website, and analytical APIs, which can handle complex jobs such as pricing 100,000 shipments over five different carriers. That is why companies have used the EDI standard for decades, and continue to do so, Slaton said.
"EDI is used by large carriers and 3PLs because it is integrated into ERP and TMS systems," Slaton said. "Processes in the B2B sphere are very slow to evolve, and in the supply chain they are even slower; they will be there for some time."
Over the years, industry users have standardized about a hundred EDI sets for supply chain applications—generating such calculations as the bill of lading, merchandise return, shipment status, pickup manifest, inspection reports, and motor carrier load tender—but most API interfaces cover only five or six variables.
"There's going to be a long term of coexistence between EDI and API," Slaton said. "Any time you launch something like this, it's really a relationship play; what's really important is your infrastructure."
SMC3 will follow that strategy when it releases its next product in the third quarter of 2016, launching an industry platform capable of integrating the content of its own APIs with other providers' APIs. The combination will allow users to orchestrate a series of supply chain events as a unified package, including for example a rate quote, points of service routing, shipment booking, and proof of delivery.
ACCURATE SHIPPING DATA REQUIRES A WIDE NETWORK
While project44 and SMC3 might disagree on the means of sharing shipping data, they both agree that a rating system is only as powerful as its network.
Project44 is also driving its growth by integrating its API with a rising number of TMS providers. The company is reaching out both to 3PLs with proprietary TMS platforms and to major providers such as Oracle Corp., SAP SE, and JDA Software Group Inc., McCandless said.
As the network of participating transportation firms expands, the value of embellishing a TMS with an API will grow accordingly, he said.
"APIs are only as good as the trucking companies they are connected to," McCandless said. "It's already significantly better than EDI, but we've only been in the industry for two years, so we are nowhere near our potential yet."
Project44 plans to release a "significant" 2.0 release of its freight API in January 2016, according to McCandless.
Supply chain planning (SCP) leaders working on transformation efforts are focused on two major high-impact technology trends, including composite AI and supply chain data governance, according to a study from Gartner, Inc.
"SCP leaders are in the process of developing transformation roadmaps that will prioritize delivering on advanced decision intelligence and automated decision making," Eva Dawkins, Director Analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain practice, said in a release. "Composite AI, which is the combined application of different AI techniques to improve learning efficiency, will drive the optimization and automation of many planning activities at scale, while supply chain data governance is the foundational key for digital transformation.”
Their pursuit of those roadmaps is often complicated by frequent disruptions and the rapid pace of technological innovation. But Gartner says those leaders can accelerate the realized value of technology investments by facilitating a shift from IT-led to business-led digital leadership, with SCP leaders taking ownership of multidisciplinary teams to advance business operations, channels and products.
“A sound data governance strategy supports advanced technologies, such as composite AI, while also facilitating collaboration throughout the supply chain technology ecosystem,” said Dawkins. “Without attention to data governance, SCP leaders will likely struggle to achieve their expected ROI on key technology investments.”
The British logistics robot vendor Dexory this week said it has raised $80 million in venture funding to support an expansion of its artificial intelligence (AI) powered features, grow its global team, and accelerate the deployment of its autonomous robots.
A “significant focus” continues to be on expanding across the U.S. market, where Dexory is live with customers in seven states and last month opened a U.S. headquarters in Nashville. The Series B will also enhance development and production facilities at its UK headquarters, the firm said.
The “series B” funding round was led by DTCP, with participation from Latitude Ventures, Wave-X and Bootstrap Europe, along with existing investors Atomico, Lakestar, Capnamic, and several angels from the logistics industry. With the close of the round, Dexory has now raised $120 million over the past three years.
Dexory says its product, DexoryView, provides real-time visibility across warehouses of any size through its autonomous mobile robots and AI. The rolling bots use sensor and image data and continuous data collection to perform rapid warehouse scans and create digital twins of warehouse spaces, allowing for optimized performance and future scenario simulations.
Originally announced in September, the move will allow Deutsche Bahn to “fully focus on restructuring the rail infrastructure in Germany and providing climate-friendly passenger and freight transport operations in Germany and Europe,” Werner Gatzer, Chairman of the DB Supervisory Board, said in a release.
For its purchase price, DSV gains an organization with around 72,700 employees at over 1,850 locations. The new owner says it plans to investment around one billion euros in coming years to promote additional growth in German operations. Together, DSV and Schenker will have a combined workforce of approximately 147,000 employees in more than 90 countries, earning pro forma revenue of approximately $43.3 billion (based on 2023 numbers), DSV said.
After removing that unit, Deutsche Bahn retains its core business called the “Systemverbund Bahn,” which includes passenger transport activities in Germany, rail freight activities, operational service units, and railroad infrastructure companies. The DB Group, headquartered in Berlin, employs around 340,000 people.
“We have set clear goals to structurally modernize Deutsche Bahn in the areas of infrastructure, operations and profitability and focus on the core business. The proceeds from the sale will significantly reduce DB’s debt and thus make an important contribution to the financial stability of the DB Group. At the same time, DB Schenker will gain a strong strategic owner in DSV,” Deutsche Bahn CEO Richard Lutz said in a release.
Transportation industry veteran Anne Reinke will become president & CEO of trade group the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) at the end of the year, stepping into the position from her previous post leading third party logistics (3PL) trade group the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), both organizations said today.
Meanwhile, TIA today announced that insider Christopher Burroughs would fill Reinke’s shoes as president & CEO. Burroughs has been with TIA for 13 years, most recently as its vice president of Government Affairs for the past six years, during which time he oversaw all legislative and regulatory efforts before Congress and the federal agencies.
Before her four years leading TIA, Reinke spent two years as Deputy Assistant Secretary with the U.S. Department of Transportation and 16 years with CSX Corporation.
Serious inland flooding and widespread power outages are likely to sweep across Florida and other Southeast states in coming days with the arrival of Hurricane Helene, which is now predicted to make landfall Thursday evening along Florida’s northwest coast as a major hurricane, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
While the most catastrophic landfall impact is expected in the sparsely-population Big Bend area of Florida, it’s not only sea-front cities that are at risk. Since Helene is an “unusually large storm,” its flooding, rainfall, and high winds won’t be limited only to the Gulf Coast, but are expected to travel hundreds of miles inland, the weather service said. Heavy rainfall is expected to begin in the region even before the storm comes ashore, and the wet conditions will continue to move northward into the southern Appalachians region through Friday, dumping storm total rainfall amounts of up to 18 inches. Specifically, the major flood risk includes the urban areas around Tallahassee, metro Atlanta, and western North Carolina.
In addition to its human toll, the storm could exert serious business impacts, according to the supply chain mapping and monitoring firm Resilinc. Those will be largely triggered by significant flooding, which could halt oil operations, force mandatory evacuations, restrict ports, and disrupt air traffic.
While the storm’s track is currently forecast to miss the critical ports of Miami and New Orleans, it could still hurt operations throughout the Southeast agricultural belt, which produces products like soybeans, cotton, peanuts, corn, and tobacco, according to Everstream Analytics.
That widespread footprint could also hinder supply chain and logistics flows along stretches of interstate highways I-10 and I-75 and on regional rail lines operated by Norfolk Southern and CSX. And Hurricane Helene could also likely impact business operations by unleashing power outages, deep flooding, and wind damage in northern Florida portions of Georgia, Everstream Analytics said.
Before the storm had even touched Florida soil, recovery efforts were already being launched by humanitarian aid group the American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN). In a statement on Wednesday, the group said it is urging residents in the storm's path across the Southeast to heed evacuation notices and safety advisories, and reminding members of the logistics community that their post-storm help could be needed soon. The group will continue to update its Disaster Micro-Site with Hurricane Helene resources and with requests for donated logistics assistance, most of which will start arriving within 24 to 72 hours after the storm’s initial landfall, ALAN said.