We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • ::COVID-19 COVERAGE::
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC.
    • Podcast
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Dispatches
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC.
    • Podcast
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Dispatches
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
Home » "Uber for Trucking" name not an asset for companies, report contends
newsworthy

"Uber for Trucking" name not an asset for companies, report contends

August 1, 2016
DC Velocity Staff
No Comments

Companies marketing themselves under the "Uber for Trucking" title but expecting not to provide services beyond a basic freight-matching model should probably re-think their messaging, according to a consultancy report issued Friday.

Armstrong & Associates Inc. said a number of companies providing legitimate "digital freight matching" services have chosen to associate with the now-famous "Uber" name. The problem is that the on-demand car-sharing model popularized by San Francisco-based Uber Technologies Inc., represents a commodity service that doesn't compare with the complex and value-added solutions delivered by truckers and third-party logistics (3PL) providers, according to the report.

On its face, the two models seem similar in that they try to achieve better vehicle utilization in their respective areas by efficiently matching consumers and providers. That is especially true in trucking, where between 10 percent and 23 percent of miles run empty and where the costs of e-commerce fulfillment are rising. However, that basic premise is where the similarity ends, according to the report.

"Domestic (freight) transportation is not a simple commodity," the authors wrote. "Complexities arise in the form of specialized equipment types, shipments transported via multiple modes, and necessary exception handling for service issues such as equipment breakdowns." Placing an Uber-like app "atop a complex industry doesn't truly address the problem. Shippers and carriers alike will be disappointed if this is the extent of the 'solution,'" the report said.

Armstrong's report affirmed what many veteran industry players have long been saying: That although digital freight matching has its place in the mosaic of daily freight, it is no substitute for the depth and experience of providers that understand the business and can deploy both people and technology to improve a customer's business or resolve a problem.

The report did find that most digital freight matching companies are taking functionality popularized by Uber and tailoring it to trucking by adding features unique to the industry. Capabilities such as algorithmic pricing, automated programming interface (API), map integration, track-and-trace, and mobile transactions are becoming key components of a freight-matching provider's value proposition, the report said. Many of these providers "adamantly reject" the Uber sobriquet, according to the report.

"Valuable technologies are emerging" that will enhance the digital freight-matching function, Armstrong said.

According to the Armstrong report, which was based on a review of 27 companies, digital freight matching firms have attracted $180 million in venture capital funding since 2011, with about $67 million coming in the first seven months of this year. Global investment in on-demand technologies in 2015 hit a record high of $18 billion.

The report is titled "Capturing Technology-Based Efficiencies in the Trucking Industry."

Transportation Trucking
KEYWORDS Armstrong & Associates Uber
  • Related Articles

    Manhattan develops TMS module for 'Uber for Trucking' segment

    XYpper joins "Uber for trucking" crowd

    Dallas software startup joins "Uber for trucking" crowd

Recent Articles by DC Velocity Staff

Logistics-as-a-Service platform expands with $2.5 million funding round

Postal service to realign logistics and processing operations starting in August

Truck driver hiring pool tightens to lowest point in three years, ACT says

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • IBM survey says digitalization trends will sweep trucking industry by 2030

  • Gartner survey signals increased investment in resilience over the next two years

  • What Level of Automation is Right for Your Warehouse?

  • Growing up … and up and up: interview with Sam Bertram

  • Old Dominion adds nine freight service centers to handle business growth

Now Playing on DCV-TV

D92f0dd1 a98c 434a 9e17 30b63ee72c90

Automated Pack-out and Print-Apply System for thredUP

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
SilMan Industries designed and implemented a mixed polybag-carton system, including automated print and apply, in a new regional Fulfillment Center for thredUP, one of the world’s largest online resale platforms for women’s and kids’ apparel, shoes, and accessories. The Situation Secondhand clothing and online...

FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

  • Time to rethink your lift truck power

  • Warehouse Management System Project Toolkit

  • Solving Talent Management Challenges Now and In the Future

  • Shaping Up Last Mile Delivery to Surpass Customer Expectations

View More

Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • ADVERTISING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • STAFF
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright ©2021. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing