10-4 Systems integrates shipment-tracking platform with McLeod TMS

Fleet-management software startup 10-4 Systems Inc. has integrated its load-tracking software with transportation management system (TMS) vendor McLeod Software Corp. in a move the companies say will offer shippers and carriers greater visibility over shipments in transit.

Boulder, Colo.-based 10-4 Systems has linked its multimodal shipment-tracking application to McLeod's PowerBroker enterprise brokerage-management software, the companies announced Thursday.

The partnership is another step by Birmingham, Ala.-based McLeod to support real-time load tracking. The company announced a deal in March with FourKites Inc. to provide similar services.

Adding 10-4 Systems as another integration partner creates a wider opportunity for McLeod customers to use a variety of supply chain visibility tools, 10-4 Marketing Manager Cara Wilmer said in an email. The addition will allow those users to access 10-4 Systems inside of their TMS software, giving those shippers and carriers an "easy button" to obtain visibility over shipments and assets, Wilmer said.

Often described as a member of the tumultuous "Uber for trucking" sector, 10-4 Systems has been growing quickly since it landed $13.9 million in funding and spun off from parent company GlobalTranz Enterprises Inc. in June.

10-4 Systems' technology platform supports real-time carrier data that allows users to set different shipment alerts depending on their status, the company says. Subscribers can continuously recalculate a shipment's estimated time of arrival (ETA) and share that information with ports, distribution centers, wholesalers, and consumers. The software also matches trucks with shipper loads so carriers can avoid empty backhaul miles, 10-4 said.