Cloud-based transportation management suite

Release from Descartes Systems Group integrates transportation management, small package shipping, fleet routing, mobile applications and telematics.

By Source: Descartes Systems Group April 23, 2012

Descartes Systems Group has announced the general availability of a new release of its cloud-based Transportation Management suite. The suite now includes transportation execution capabilities that provide better control across fleet and for hire operations and help with carrier compliance for small package shipments.

As part of Descartes’ Logistics Technology Platform, the Transportation Management suite uniquely offers extensive execution and mode-specific functionality in a single solution. Ideal for organizations with private fleets, small package shipments or complex execution challenges, Descartes Transportation Management suite capabilities include:

  • Common carrier or fleet selection made through bi-directional planning with flexibility to allow either the contract carrier planner or private fleet planner to drive the decision making process and manage over-capacity exceptions;
  • Fleet plans made using complex and detailed street-level, optimized fleet routing decisions to minimize fleet costs and maximize customer service;
  • Route plans executed through integrated fleet dispatching, tracking, mobile and telematics for complete management and tracking of delivery, driver and vehicle performance to measure whether deliveries happened as planned and drivers complied with operational rules;
  • Small package carrier selection consolidation decisions made through fully compliant tariffs from over 100 small package and less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers’ service guides that help minimize shipping costs;
  • Small package shipment manifesting available for those same carriers’ unique guidelines;
  • Shipment visibility from tender acceptance to in-transit through proof of delivery, including electronic signature, barcode or picture capture;
  • Freight bills audited right down to the line and assessorial level, and the costs allocated;
  • Modular solution architecture so customers can get results where they need them the most. 

Descartes’ Transportation Management suite was designed to accelerate time-to-value for customers. Because it is cloud-based, customers simply connect to the solution via web-browser and internet connection. Through Descartes’ Global Logistics Network (GLN), integration to customers’ back-end systems and carriers is straightforward and fast, with thousands of carriers already connected to the GLN.