After an extensive review of all thetransportation management systems (TMS)on the market,DHL Supply Chainstandardized on what we believe is the most robust and capable solution available today. The marketing for that solution promises that it, “provides a single platform for companies to manage all transportation activity throughout their Supply Chains.”
This is not the only TMS that makes such a claim—many TMS providers market their platforms as a complete solution. But, in our experience managing high-volume and complex transportation networks across a number of industries, no TMS lives up to that lofty claim—and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
A TMS provides the foundation for transportation digitalization, but no single solution meets all the requirements of a typical transportation network. There are almost always either gaps that exist or opportunities to relieve the TMS of some data-intensive, non-core functions that can compromise its ability to optimize freight flows.
This reality has led to the development of microservices and supplemental applications that integrate with the TMS to extend its value and make it easier to tailor transportation technology to an organization’s specific requirements. At DHL Supply Chain, our technology strategy is to augment our core TMS with complementary technologies where they can add the most value. The major opportunities are in the following areas:
When a dedicated fleet is part of the transportation solution it often makes sense to deploy a dedicated fleet solution in concert with the TMS being used to manage third-party carriers.
The specific functionality required to optimize a dedicated fleet is very different than that required to manage transportation flow through third-party carriers. In addition to providing sophisticated route planning and driver management capabilities, a fleet management platform also provides better insight into fleet performance and enables more informed decisions about how and when to scale the fleet.
Dedicated fleet solutions can also benefit from complementary technologies and microservices. This is especially true when managing the fleet to minimize empty miles. At DHL Supply Chain, we do this through a proprietary algorithm that dynamically matches capacity to available loads in close proximity to the capacity. Our transportation specialists then review the available loads to ensure compatibility between the supply and demand. Other services that support dedicated fleet management are out-of-route fuel guidance, asset management, electronic logging for compliance and commercial navigation.
While the emergence of microservices and other solutions that complement the TMS are creating new opportunities to reduce transportation costs and improve service levels, they also bring increased complexity to transportation management.
很少有企业有资源或技能to manage this level of complexity. Fortunately, 3PLs, such as DHL Supply Chain, can insulate shippers from the complexity inherent in transportation technology today.
At DHL Supply Chain, we manage all aspects of transportation technology design, implementation and management, from determining the mix of technologies that will deliver the most value to integrating those solutions to ensure they function as a single platform to optimizing the capabilities of each component of the platform. While there is a lot of complexity on the “back-end,” our customers never have to deal with it. They get everything they need to manage performance and serve customers through a single sign-on, easy-to-use interface, called MySupplyChain.
Transportation management is becoming technically complex. But shippers don’t have to grapple with this complexity. Working with DHL Supply Chain, they can take advantage of the full complement of transportation technology solutions available today, while enjoying the benefits of a single, integrated platform that delivers the information they need when they need it.
To learn more about how DHL Supply Chain can help you optimize your transportation management system’s capabilities, visithttp://app.supplychain.dhl.com/e/er?s=1897772577&lid=6911.